A Father's Day Homage 🫡

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Jonathan Livingston Seagull was one of the first books I ever read as a kid. It’s a quick and inspiring read that revolves around themes of individuality, self-discovery, and personal growth.

It encourages readers to embrace their own unique qualities and follow their dreams, even if they go against societal expectations. 🙌

It explores the idea that true fulfillment comes from pursuing one's passion, breaking free from limitations, and striving for personal excellence.

And it’s not just for kids… Reading it back as an adult brings a completely different perspective on life and inspires you to remain on your path.

Can you guess who originally gave it to me and encouraged me to read it… ?

Yep, you guessed it! Our Storybook Feature for this week. 🫡 

This guy is the hardest working man I’ve ever known. Nothing stops him from achieving his goals.

He successfully developed a Software Program that became the most WIDELY used payroll tax platform in the COUNTRY.  

SAY WHAAAT?! 😱

The man put in 20 hour days, seemingly every single day, but still made time for his family.

That’s probably the biggest thing I respect about him.

All the success he had in his career was INCREDIBLE, but the fact that he showed up for his wife and kids, during all of those dark and long days of building something great, was even more IMPRESSIVE.

As he built something that had never been thought of or built before, he made his family a priority while venturing out into the ABYSS and the UNKNOWN

HE MADE SURE OF IT.

In between his 20 hour days, he made it to all of his kids sports games. 🏀

When his wife, made plans for vacation, he joined. 🌴

No excuses on why he wouldn’t be able to go, because he knew the importance of being there.

His vision of what was possible was only seen through his eyes early on and he had the KAHONES 🥜 to find out what was possible.

He challenged himself on purpose. 💪

A MASTER at taking risks because of what he believed in.

He controlled his own destiny, because he knew he would make it happen.

A true Inventor. 

Without further ado and with Father’s Day on deck, introducing the…

DEEP-THINKING 💭

LEGACY-DRIVEN 🏆

HARDEST-WORKING 🏢

AKA WILLIAM VAN CLEEF 😂 

my Father… BILL HARRIS

William Gene Harris, was born to Alma Lee and Raymond Harris (RIP Grandma and Grandpa 🙏) in Safford, AZ.

Yes there is a town called Safford in Arizona and Yes, this would make him a NATIVE. 🌵 

He was born in the MOMENTOUS (his words not mine) year of 1954.

My Dad booked it out of Safford towards sunny Southern California when he was two years old.

His older brother (Uncle Kenny RIP🙏) and him grew up with a bunch of friends that reminds him of the movie, The Sandlot, and all that Southern Cal had to offer in the 1960s.

You know… back when kids used to run all over the neighborhood and parents didn’t care where they were or what they were up to.

All that mattered was they were home before the street lights came on.

In the early 1980s, while strolling the halls of his office, he met the beautiful new office receptionist. (my Mom!)

Days afterward, he asked if she would like to join him at a baseball game. ⚾

She wanted to know who was going before agreeing to his request as they had only just met; his reply: “many people”. 😜

They took their seats, and she asked where everyone was… 🤷‍♀️

… the sly dog that my dad was then said, “There must be at least 40,000 people here.” 🤣

Oooo Weeee….. Smooth move POPS.

She obviously wasn’t upset about it, as the rest is history and they’ll be celebrating their 40th wedding anniversary this year. 🥳

In the mid-1990s, him and my mom returned to Arizona, with me and my two sisters. They now have seven grandchildren and if you ask him, he is eagerly awaiting their great-grandchildren. (we are not!)

When thinking back, he can recall two major moments that COMPLETELY changed the trajectory of his life.

THE PHONE CALL ☎️

“After high school, I attended college as a chemistry major (what?!) for almost a year. The summer after, while I was idly watching TV at my parent’s house, a commercial appeared selling the benefits of a computer programming trade school (CDI). CDI’s catchphrase was, ‘Call now. This phone call may change the rest of your life’.”

“I called, and it did!”

He found his calling and went on to become an expert in computers and software programming.

After many years in the Corporate World, he opened a software development office (SDO) to create a robust payroll tax filing system soon to be named, MasterTax.

Then, came the next PIVOTAL MOMENT…

MR. WARNEKA 🤑

“In the early design days of MasterTax, I was working on custom software projects to pay the bills. I searched the newspaper Classified Ads seeking programmers to help with the custom work while focusing on MasterTax. I contacted Consultants in Data Processing (CDP) to bring two of their consultants on board.”

“Six months later, a man walks boldly through my office door, introducing himself as Dick Warneka, owner of CDP. He proceeded to ask me about the performance of his consultants, to which I responded that they were stellar. He then asked if I knew how to write a payroll system. My answer was no but let me show you this payroll tax system I am working on….”

Fast forward eight months and MasterTax’s angel investor was on board. 👊

The end goal is what keeps him driven, so if you ask what SUCCESS looks like, for him it’s “Committing to something and reaching the finish line.”

He’s a white board guy, and that bad boy is peppered with quotes and phrases that inspire SUCCESS and ACTION. 

Below are some of those BILL HARRISisms…

• “Unfinished is Never Finished.”

• “Try. Learn. Try Harder.”

• “I make Mistakes, but I am not Wrong.”

• “Respect your Waiter as the Chef will not always Serve you.”

• “Hope is for those who don’t know.”

• “Respect. Share. Teach. Guide.”

• “Focused Anger Creates Determination.”

• “Explain to Educate, not to Justify.”

• “Never Grow Up, but do Grown Up Things.”

• “Don’t Question Change, just Go With It.”

• “Don’t Stand Out, but Be Noticeable.”

• “Not all ideas are good ideas, but if you never have any ideas, you never have a good idea.”

• “You don’t Have to. You Get to.”

I always saw these quotes growing up as a kid, which I have learned from and implemented into my life as well.

This man is the most HUMBLE person I know.

He literally changed an entire industry. 🌎

Even still, 13 years later, after he had a fruitful exit, selling the business in 2010, MasterTax is the best in class on the market.

If you ask him, though…

He didn’t do it for his DREAM.

He did it for his FAMILY.  

He set a precedent for what HARD WORK and PASSION looks like.

He built the foundation for a LEGACY.

He’s taught me that when you’re building something great, you CANNOT ever forget about the people closest to you.

YOUR FAMILY.

It’s so easy to get caught up in the day to day grind, but if you’re building something amazing for your family, you better make sure to be there for them along the way, or they won’t be there for you in the end.

I am called to build upon what he started and continue driving my FAMILY LEGACY to new heights, inspired by him, now more than ever.

I want my kids to see and know what their Pop started…

The DRIVE and TENACITY I have, all comes from watching and learning from him.

I want to show my kids the same through MY ACTIONS.

To go after whatever it is they want outta LIFE… 💪

To take RISKS… 😱

To go for their DREAMS… 🤩

To be there for their FAMILY… 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦

Just like their Pop did and just like what I am striving to do now.

That’s the MINDSET. 🤯

That’s the LEGACY. 🏆

My dad is the smartest person I know and I have learned so much from him.

We’ve been meeting up for coffee every month for the last 18 months.

We talk family, finances, business, successes, challenges, and all things life.

I look forward to this every single month and will continue to look forward to it for the rest of time.

Happy Father’s Day, Dad. Love you!

Until our next FLIGHT, enjoy your Song of the Week hand-picked by the MAN…the MYTH… the LEGEND… Mr. Harris! 👇

Remember, Opportunity is Everywhere!!

Cheers! Steven

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