Miscellaneous
Jordan Toma (@imjustakidwithaniep) loves a good comeback story. Whether it’s his own, a student’s he connects with during one of his speaking engagements, or even a total stranger’s he hears being shared on the social media platform Clubhouse, he just can’t help himself from rooting for the underdog. That’s because for as long as he can remember, he’s been the underdog. As a kid, Jordan was diagnosed as having dyslexia, attention hyper-deficit disorder (ADHD), and an auditory processing disorder, which meant traditional classroom learning was a major challenge for him. So much so that merely the sight of a school bus used to send him spiraling into anxiety attacks. Eventually, he was placed on an individualized educational program (IEP), and after struggling his way through high school, he thought there was no way he was going to college. The tests, the homework, the fact that he was about to graduate high school with a 1.7 GPA… he was convinced he was done with school forever. His mom wasn’t, though. To her, there was no way he ~wasn’t~ going to college. After being rejected by dozens of colleges and universities, they finally found the right fit – New Jersey’s Centenary University. There was only one catch: to enroll, it was mandatory that he’d have to move in early to begin their STEP Ahead program, leaving him only two days of summer. He thought it would be the end of the world. Reflecting upon it in this episode, he believes it’s the best thing that could have ever happened to him. Hear Jordan share the story of how the habits he formed during his time at Centenary transformed him into the unstoppable force he is today: from his first job post-grad selling windows door to door and becoming the top salesperson in the company, to passing a series of exams to become a financial advisor and going on to become one of the top producers in the country, to building his real estate portfolio, to becoming a TikToker and keynote speaker and traveling all around the country sharing his story with students. I hope you’ll enjoy listening to this episode half as much as we enjoyed making it for you, and if you do, please let us know by dropping a quick rating and a review on Apple Podcasts, and by sharing it on social media or sending it to someone else you think needs to hear Jordan’s message!