Julian Dawson on HubPages

My family and I emigrated from South Africa in 1984.

I grew up in a poor neighbourhood, but family values and traditions were extremely important. One of my earliest childhood memories is of me at 8 years of age, watching my mother cry because she didn't have enough food to feed us all.

That vision still haunts me today, but it drove me to make sure my life would be far removed from my childhood memories.

Soon after emigrating to Australia, I landed a job as a manager with Hewlett Packard. Money was no longer a problem, but I was on the 'treadmill of a corporate career', no social life because of 70+ hours a week work, and I had to keep doing it to pay the bills.

To cut a long story short, I went on a mission and read every book on investing I could get my hands on, made some big mistakes and some big money.

After 12 years of part time investing, in 2001, I was able to quit my job and earn a very impressive income through real estate and share market investments.

These days, not only am I passionate about helping other people achieve the same financial successes that I have, but I am a big supporter of disadvantaged children in poverty stricken areas. I have never forgotten my roots.