4 ms·

Poverty-spent childhood in a rural area of Oklahoma here. I'm also a convicted felon. Never had perfect marks in high school. No one in my family ever went to c

Poverty-spent childhood in a rural area of Oklahoma here. I'm also a convicted felon. Never had perfect marks in high school. No one in my family ever went to college except me. A mentor saved my life. She opened my eyes to the world outside of Oklahoma, and I had so much anger saved up inside of me that it fuels me even today. I've spent the last couple decades building startups and have made millions doing it. Now I'm 35 and I run an online communications school that helps thousands of young people with a focus on mentorship. Standard tests are the wrong approach. Find mentors.

maxxxxx 8y ago
Good story. A lot of people in your position never meet the mentor that will turn their life around and their potential gets wasted. I used to box in a gym where a lot of poor kids went and it was amazing how little they knew about the wider world. All they knew was crime, prison, poverty, anger, disappointment and violence. Although a lot of them were clearly very intelligent I doubt they will ever escape that cycle.
- itronitron 8y ago
  In the USA, the historic path for that demographic to gain a broader world view is joining the US military. Bonus points if you use it to pay for college.
wahern 8y ago
My mentor was Nick At Nite: The Donna Reed Show, My Three Sons, Gidget, Mr. Ed, Dennis the Menace, The Patty Duke Show, etc. Also similar shows that syndicated during the late 80s and early 90s, like the Andy Griffith Show, Webster, The Jeffersons, and especially Good Times--which despite being white and relatively rural I identified most with. I grew up with near zero supervision so I would often watch these shows into the wee hours. I knew that the behaviors in these shows were idealized and in large part imaginary, but I also believed they represented the types of relationships and goals I should aspire to if I wanted to learn to behave like the non poor. In retrospect I think my beliefs were pretty healthy considering the circumstances, and in particular more constructive than, e.g., aspiring to be like sports stars. There's something to be said for demanding, if not mandating, strong moral codes in our popular entertainment. In many ways those old 1950s era shows were far more mature than the current fare. We tend to think of those characters as naive, but I don't think the characters, writers, nor audiences were naive.

maxxxxx 8y ago

Good story. A lot of people in your position never meet the mentor that will turn their life around and their potential gets wasted. I used to box in a gym where a lot of poor kids went and it was amazing how little they knew about the wider world. All they knew was crime, prison, poverty, anger, disappointment and violence. Although a lot of them were clearly very intelligent I doubt they will ever escape that cycle.

itronitron 8y ago
In the USA, the historic path for that demographic to gain a broader world view is joining the US military. Bonus points if you use it to pay for college.

wahern 8y ago

My mentor was Nick At Nite: The Donna Reed Show, My Three Sons, Gidget, Mr. Ed, Dennis the Menace, The Patty Duke Show, etc. Also similar shows that syndicated during the late 80s and early 90s, like the Andy Griffith Show, Webster, The Jeffersons, and especially Good Times--which despite being white and relatively rural I identified most with. I grew up with near zero supervision so I would often watch these shows into the wee hours. I knew that the behaviors in these shows were idealized and in large part imaginary, but I also believed they represented the types of relationships and goals I should aspire to if I wanted to learn to behave like the non poor. In retrospect I think my beliefs were pretty healthy considering the circumstances, and in particular more constructive than, e.g., aspiring to be like sports stars. There's something to be said for demanding, if not mandating, strong moral codes in our popular entertainment. In many ways those old 1950s era shows were far more mature than the current fare. We tend to think of those characters as naive, but I don't think the characters, writers, nor audiences were naive.