The Origin
I was born in Cambodia during the Khmer Rouge war in 1977. My father was killed when I was one month old. My mother escaped with us to Thailand, where we lived in a refugee camp before being resettled in the United States. I arrived in Boston at six years old.
I was raised in poverty, on welfare, often sharing cramped apartments with extended family—at one point, nineteen of us under one roof. We had little, but we had each other. Some of my earliest memories are collecting cans with my grandmother to help the family, repairing discarded toys, and sharing whatever we could. One of my clearest memories is repairing a discarded bicycle with my grandfather so all the children could take turns riding it.
As a teenager, I worked to support my household, turning over every dollar I earned to my mother. I learned early that dignity comes from contribution, not comfort. By high school, I refused free lunch out of pride. That same drive led me to study real estate on my own, long before I had the means to act.
Poverty shaped me—but it did not define me. From an early age, I resolved to break the cycle and build a life anchored in discipline, responsibility, and substance.
The First Life (The Warrior)
In 1996, I joined the military. I served nearly five years on Active Duty in the Marine Corps, where I learned that standards and perseverance are the foundation of character. I continued my service in the Marine Corps Reserve and eventually the Army Reserve as a Drill Sergeant, training soldiers until I retired in 2016. The military taught me that pain is temporary, but discipline is forever.
The Second Life (The Builder)
I became a multi-millionaire at 27 years old. But my path was not a straight line—I lost everything, rebuilt it, and faced the cycle of ruin and recovery again. I operated in the high-stakes arenas of Residential and Commercial Finance for over two decades, structuring capital and directing operations across major development projects. I learned that while markets can strip you of your net worth, they cannot strip you of your skills.
The Third Life (The Researcher)
Today, I have retired from the chase. I no longer chase money; I chase peace, health, and connection with my family and friends. I am an independent researcher of the human mind and performance—investigating neuroscience from a biological standpoint and documenting personal frameworks for understanding cognitive performance under pressure. When I am not coding or training, I am traveling and documenting operational wisdom to pass down to the next generation.
Core Philosophy
The Discipline
The Iron Standard. The body leads the mind. I do not train for vanity; I train for mental survival. At 48, I maintain the physical standard of a Drill Sergeant because you cannot have a strong mind in a weak vessel.
The Legacy
The Wisdom. I am documenting the unvarnished truth of my life—my rise, my fall, and the lessons found in the ashes. These are field notes for my children to navigate their own storms.
The Internal Code
Refactoring the Brain. I view anxiety and trauma not as permanent failures, but as bugs in the system. I use Neuroscience and logic to debug them with patience.
The Execution
Mission First. Wisdom is useless without action. I apply military precision to my daily objectives. I do not negotiate with myself; I execute the plan regardless of how I feel.