I started my first 'business' at age 10 (lawn mowing, raking, and gutter cleaning). I'd hustle the 'jobs' and work them, but also included some of my friends, as 'employees' - when there was enough work to go around, or it was a project that required more than one person.
I started playing with cameras around that time, winning a blue ribbon at the County Fair back in 1974 with a photo my photography teacher entered on my behalf. It was a costly hobby back then, even learning to roll, develop, and print your own film; so my photography stuff waned until about 1992, when digital cameras were released. I LOVED IT! Despite it being 'small' (initial digital was just 320x200, great for the web, but not practical for printing quality above a wallet size) Limited only by hard drive/storage space. It became a serious profession, nights and weekends, around 2009; shooting sporting events and concerts.
By age 13, I was a service project away from Eagle Scout, with every single merit badge that existed at that time. I had an aptitude for computers, and was one of the only junior high 'kids' allowed to program on the 'main frame' at the local high school and community college. I was in the US Air Force at 17... leaving my home town just days after my graduation; then with an Honorable Medical Discharge, I became an assistant manager of my first corporate store by 19.
I enjoyed exploring, challenging myself, learning, and doing a variety of things, like, skating, boarding, bicycling, skiing, kayaking, scuba diving, bungee jumping & zip lines, roller coasters & sling shots, climbing, as well as assorted sports activities.
I often pushed my limits, doing things many people wouldn't even try. I've had motorcycles jumping over me, horses stampeded directly at, and past me. I've been on the line at football and basket ball games, with a camera in my face, focused on taking pictures of the players, as they crashed past the invisible line. I loved speed: having been nearly 100 mph on the water, nearly 170 on a motorcycle, nearly 200 in a car... even over 70 mph hanging on to a ski rope, being pulled behind a boat. I loved pushing the limits, and have been around a wide variety of unique situations over the years. However, I occasionally over estimated my ability (or the situation), or miscalculated, and consequently got hurt.
My most painful break, ever, was BOTH HEELS... showing off on a trampoline, I did a forward flip landing in a pike position... but my heels slammed the 4" steel bar, with excruciating pain instantly shooting up my body. Over 40 years later, I still have sensitive 'bumps' on my heels, and physically can't wear certain types of shoes, because of how they impact my heels.
The nastiest looking break: my left leg, when I was about 12. I was on some old school cross country skis, at a scouting event, 23 miles from Ashland. We were building igloo's, skiing, and ice fishing. While I was going down a slight slope, after it had snowed the night before, the tip of my left ski went under a downed tree (the right leg kept going). When the snow settled, my left leg was behind my back, with the foot coming out from under my right arm pit... with the cross country ski STILL ON. Yes, it was painful... especially getting the ski off, and then my dad and other adults loading me on to the sled my dad & I had built... to haul me out of the wilderness to the vehicle... then to the hospital. Before I finished grade school, I was very aware of the routine of x-ray techs, casts, learned to run on crutches, and could balance a wheel chair on two wheels (I could go down curbs and a couple steps without issue. Though I can still balance a wheel chair, I'm not sure I could jump curbs these days).
While computers, cameras, and business were things I enjoyed... I also finished a small degree in PHYSICAL SCIENCES. Basically anatomy, diseases,
I point out all that, because the study of 'nutrition' wasn't top on my list, it was because the doctor's insisted I knew something about the stuff I was helping them market. They insisted that I have a grasp of what the different ingredients used, especially for joint & digestive products, actually DO WITHIN THE BODY. They insisted that I wasn't just an 'order taker' - but someone that could ACTUALLY TRY TO HELP OTHERS SOLVE COMMON PROBLEMS!
Arthrosamine capsules easily gave me over 30 years of joint health back! I'm a firm believer in the benefits this product has to offer; to the point I moved from the west coast to Tennessee to help the doctors bring this product to market back in 1998. I faithfully use it everyday! Today, over twenty years later, I'm the CEO of MD's Choice... and have strived to never cut corners on quality. We HAVE the 'Rolls Royce' type of product, at Cadillac prices. We acknowledge we aren't the cheapest, but when it comes to oral supplements... WE ARE THE BEST! The biggest bang for the buck, and we have stood behind that statement since 1998 with a RESULTS BASED GUARANTEE that isn't limited to 30-days or 1 bottle! We wouldn't have been able to do that if our product didn't work as the doctors that actually formulated it have repeatedly said!
Terry Mercer, Computers & Cameras, Web Development, and now CEO of MD's Choice