Overcoming obstacles in life is something Zach is very skilled at and something I admire tremendously. I know Zach like the back of my hand, he’s my better half. He’s my better half for a reason- he’s everything I’m not and being with him makes me a better person. He’s been faced with adversity many times in his life but has always gotten through it, & has become a better person because of it. I haven’t shared a lot of my personal life that involves Zach. But since we’ve been together for almost 6 years, I know he has a lot to offer the world. I also know he is one of the most inspirational people in my life, therefore the perfect person to feature on my blog.
Without further ado, everyone meet Zach Veencamp!
I’m the man, the myth, the legend; Zach Veencamp. Similar to the commonality of my name, ‘Who I am’ is far from average. I pride myself on my quick wit, intellectual curiosity, ambitious drive, humorous demeanor, & overall optimism regardless of the circumstance. My passion currently lies in stock market analysis. In relation to that, a nice chunk of my free time is spent nerding out on finance related articles. I want to soak in as much information as I can on the current market conditions. I’m also the homework-police to my little man, Aden. He’s a 10 year old Fornite addict. I’ve also been working on becoming a Chartered Financial Analyst (in essence, the equivalent to a Masters in Finance) for the past 2 years. I’m hoping to be finishing that next year. I’m consistently a busy beaver, but I’m fortunate enough to have a great support system in Ob to keep me afloat.
My ambition & motivation. Long story. My life has been a rollercoaster since I’ve been old enough to defiantly ‘make my own decisions’ & ‘carve my own path’ so-to-speak. I learned at an early age that there’s consequences for your actions. Fortunately but unfortunately, I learned that lesson more than once. Through my own doing, I stacked the cards against myself early on in life. Despite that, time & time again, I’ve made life what I wanted it to be, through focus. Going from feeling like you’re alone in life, stuck in a hole you dug yourself into, to climbing out & making past dreams a reality. It really makes you realize with the right drive, you can achieve anything. Rather than just hearing the adage, “You can do anything you put your mind,” I’ve lived it on multiple occasions. To that degree, I’m fortunate enough to go beyond simply thinking I can do whatever I put my mind to, I feel it because of my past.
The best advice. My mom has this saying that she’s always held close to her heart because of me and my poor decision-making. “You can let your circumstances make you or you can let them break you.” I’ve learned early on that life in general is a rollercoaster. You’re bound to have some years that are just so beyond expectations you think you’re never going to come down. That’s also a guarantee that some years are going to knock you down & do everything in their power to not let you back up. To quote one of my favorites, “Sometimes you’re flush and sometimes you’re bust, and when you’re up, it’s never as good as it seems, and when you’re down, you never think you’ll be up again, but life goes on.” – Fred Jung (Blow). On more than a handful of occasions, I’ve felt as if I’ve been at the bottom. This is followed by feeling as if I’m on top of the world for an extended period of time. This all leads me to the next question.
The best advice I can give someone who’s struggling is this; “Where you are now is not where you’re going to be forever.” It’s HARD to think & focus beyond the moment when you’re struggling. I’ve lived the rollercoaster. There’s some people that are fortunate enough in life to have a support system that can save them from their struggles. Many of us aren’t blessed with that. We have to get ourselves out of the struggles because there’s a good chance no one else will. A related saying my dad noted from Joe Rogan’s podcast with Elon Musk, “Comparison is the thief of joy.” I’d advise anyone to think deeply on saying that because it applies now more than ever in today’s social media heavy, comparative-focused society.
I’ve come to master my self-confidence largely in part due to the mistakes I made. One of the early ‘big mistakes’ led me into legal trouble. I also feel out of my ‘popular’ friend group. Having been a young adolescent when friends mean everything. Life went on and I adapted. I ended up with new friends & came to realize what a true friend means. I had less than a handful of friends that didn’t care about what the rest of the world thought about me. Through the process of going from being stuck in the hole I dug myself into, to climbing out of it. I realized despite the majority of my peers thinking I was a ‘loser’ or ‘not capable of accomplishing anything,’ I was still able to climb out of the hole. At that point, it didn’t matter what anyone else thought. What mattered is what I knew I was capable of. I’ve been able to use others’ doubt in me as fuel to drive my ambition. As I’ve been able to accomplish my goals & dreams, it’s been in spite of the doubt others may have had in me.
-Zach Bentley-
Let me just give a shoutout to my babe for answering these questions so honestly. I love you.
If you’d like to see another post in this series, click here to learn how you can live a happy life, by Mati!
xx, Aubrianna