“In my mind, I had this idea that being successful was possible and it’s in my genes,” Robson said. “My dad did it; why can’t I do it? I did not want to be poor because I saw my mom being poor and the struggles [that came with it.] I got to expe- rience the pain of not having money; that’s where a lot of my drive came from.” At 18, Robson had made up his mind. He wanted to go into real estate like his parents. His dad convinced him to learn how to walk before he could run, however. Rather than jump into the real estate arena feet first, Robson’s dad suggested he study accounting or finance. Then if he wanted to work in real estate later, he could learn about that industry in the future. “That was hard for me because I was a young entrepreneur and visionary,” Rob- son said. “I wanted to go out and rule the world—just go out and take over. At a young age, my dad convinced me to build a founda- tion first and then expand on it. So, I studied accounting in school. Avoiding real estate right out of school was perhaps some of the best advice Rob- son could have received. His other pre-real estate activities included serving a two- year mission for his church, which Robson said helped him mature and develop more emotional intelligence. He lived in Spain for two years and spent some time doing out- of-the-box sales. Meanwhile, his accounting education and work helped him slow down and understand the importance of spread- sheets, structure, and skills he didn’t have beforehand. Working in accounting also gave Robson a better idea of what he didn’t want to do. “I did accounting for four years and it wasn’t a long-term fit for me,” Robson said. “My personality is in the sales, marketing, and the real estate world, accounting did not fit well with that.”
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