Wasn’t it great being 16?
It feels like just yesterday when I was in the 11th grade. I had free time, no responsibilities, boundless energy, and seemingly invulnerability.
I was living in Thailand at the time playing basketball 4 or 5 days a week, watching about 8 movies a week, building up my collection of tapes and thoroughly enjoying my life.
I hadn’t a care in the world.
Nor did I have any idea what I wanted to do. Pilot perhaps? Businessman?
But that was me. A typical teenager.
Elijah Johnson, on the other hand, is anything but a typical teenager.
His YouTube site ( http://www.youtube.com/UnconventionalFIN) has garnered over 100,000 hits and has 600 subscribers all signed up to listen to him interview the best financial minds out there.
Upon hearing that he was only 16, I thought he would make an ideal interviewee for iSucceed.
My passion is teaching. And through sharing ideas, stories, techniques, and interviewees I hope I am able to help you, the reader, live a better life. That’s what excites me about teaching; the opportunity to influence others in a positive way.
Elijah’s passion is finance.
Most 16 year olds I know are too busy focused on one of three things:
- Boyfriends/Girlfriends
- School
- Fun
And very few high schoolers have any idea whatsoever about what they want to do in the future.
Most kids have simply fallen into the routine of go to school, get into college, get a good job and the rest will take care of itself.
Not Elijah Johnson.
He is driven. He knows what he wants. And I have no doubt that he will succeed.
We could all learn a thing or two about success and finance from this young man.
One day it wouldn’t surprise me to find him on CNN or CNBC, maybe even running his own show.
The lesson we all should remember from Elijah is that it’s never too young to start and that if you keep at it doors will open up. In Elijah’s case, 100,000 doors to date.
Please enjoy the interview.
Adrian Shepherd