There’s a thing right now where you post your first seven jobs. I find that interesting, because it shows that you can start out in one place, just to end up in another. This is probably more true than ever, now.

So here it is, without further ado, my first seven jobs.

1. Apple picker (no, not computers, actual apples).

2. Odd jobs at a gas station, cleaning windshields and the like.

3. Started my first company, where I obviously did everything, but mostly I was the editor in chief for various publications and imprints.

4. Sales clerk at a toy store chain, the most soul-crushing gig I’ve ever had.

5. Freelance writer, later editor, for various publications blogs in the US, owned by a startup. I kept some of these on the side for a time.

6. Merged my company with another one, with my focus moving to web design and development.

7. CEO of digital agency. Not as bad as it sounds.

All this lead to other things, which then led to writing books part-time, doing more freelance writing, and the like. My story isn’t as interesting as, say, Warren Ellis’s, because I just couldn’t stand working for someone else. Not that they were bad people or anything, it’s just that I can’t get up in the morning. Which, incidentally, was why I started my first company at 18.