Where It Began
From a young age I knew that there is more to life than meets the eye. Even from this young age, I knew that we as humans are here to do more than just eat, sleep, work, pay bills and pass over.
From birth, God gifted me with a passion for seeking adventure, new experiences and new information.
As I grew up, this included the investigation, analyzing and discerning of ‘established’ scientific, societal and spiritual norms; and why certain things in our world have been the way they have been for so long.
When I was in late middle school and entering into high school, something came into my life that would end up being a foundational tool of learning for me and would set the course of my life in many ways.
One may naturally assume this foundational tool would have been a mentor of sorts, a fascinating book or perhaps some life-changing single experience…but it was something different…and something quite controversial at the time.
Online poker.
All-In
Around that time, the poker game Texas Hold’em was taking off in popularity and quickly became one of the most watched shows not only on ESPN, but on all of cable television.
After not knowing how to play the game at all and getting crushed by my friends in our home games for months, I started to learn more about the general strategy, math and nuances of the game while playing online.
I started to see how the game worked and over months of online play, I started to actually make some money. At the time, I was in 9th grade and as quickly as I was making decent money for a high schooler, I also learned how quickly that money could disappear.
Over a period of the next 7 years, online poker would be a large part of my life and was my first experience with online business and entrepreneurship. But more importantly, it was this game that taught me many life lessons. Though this is a longer story for another time, online poker helped teach me many different lessons that have been translated over into my everyday life; including discipline, strengthening of the mind and how to begin better management of emotions.
It also taught me that “work” didn’t necessarily have to come in the form of a 9-5 job.
But most importantly, it taught me how to ask the right and difficult questions.
Why?
You see, in poker, players are always trying to position themselves as either having the best hand or not having the best hand; AKA “bluffing.”
It was after years of playing and living my life that I understood that one of the most important, if not the most important, questions a poker player and a person in everyday life can ask is “why?”
“Why” is this player making this move now? “Why” are they positioning themselves in a particular way? Why would he or she be bluffing right now? Etcetera.
Asking “why” helps a player think through different situations and the rationale behind the other player’s move.
After these years of playing, it dawned on me that this question and the game itself taught me how to analyze and interpret situations using both the left-side of my brain’s hemispheres, which is more analytical, rational and scientific, and it taught me how to really tune into those “gut instincts” we all have…which is more of the right hemisphere of the brain being used.
In the game of poker, and in the game of life itself, we all know that just because something makes sense, should fit logically or in theory, doesn’t always mean that it does in reality.
This taught me many lessons, but most importantly, to keep an inquisitive and open mind about different possibilities.
The Value of Life
A couple years prior in 2008, my family, those around us and I were impacted personally with the failings of an outdated, corrupt and broken “medical” system when my father had sought help for feelings of depression.
Searching for help, he was given different pharmaceutical drugs over a period of months. Though he had times of mild improvement, the drugs dulled his personality, vitality, health and happiness rapidly.
In the spring of 2008 he took his life; and since that time I’ve sought to learn, implement and share accurate teachings of health, happiness and the gift of life…to honor my father and all of those who have needlessly suffered and continue to suffer at the hands of a broken and at times, unintelligent “medical” system.
“Let There Be Light”
By the time I reached my senior year in college in 2011, I had been learning many new things, especially in relation to medicine, science, nutrition, health, fitness, religion, spiritual studies, business, technology, finance, personal development and other topics of interest.
The questioning of the “narrative” around these topics had reached new levels for me and I became increasingly frustrated at how the “systems” of the world were not truly implementing and practicing the good they said they were.
By the fall of 2011, I could no longer sit idle and just go with the current of the “system.” I had also learned of the corruption taking place in education and “higher” education and could no longer be part of it.
I dropped out of my classes and stopped going entirely. This decision was not understood at all by most around me, but it was one of the best decisions I have ever made. The classes being taught were old, outdated and were no longer serving my true education.
Though this was one of the most difficult seasons in my life, it taught me many lessons about strength, fortitude, staying true to myself and releasing the care of the opinions of others, amongst many other lessons.
When I went back to finish the degree, I chose to take classes that actually sparked my interest and supported my education on life.
“The Best Is Yet To Come”
After graduating from the University of Iowa with a degree in Health Science, I owned my health coaching business and have worked in various capacities in the nutraceutical and business world for the past 10 years.
This passion for health, happiness and wellness created a vision to one day own and operate a company that provides medicine to the people. This is part of why Ascent Nutrition was created and continues today.
As we as a collective have learned over the past few years, questioning the narrative, and especially questioning “medicine” and “science,” has never been more important.
Since the time when I really began to question the systems of the world, I have written many articles on a range of topics and contribute to The Epoch Times as well as write articles here on my personal website.
You can find me on the socials I use by clicking Connect at the top or bottom of my website, or by clicking here.
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For good health and happiness,
Lance
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