Thomas sat in his small university dorm room, the hum of his computer filling the silence. It was 1997, and while most of his peers were using the internet to browse forums or send emails, Thomas saw it as something much more-a gateway to the future. His foresight was sharpened by memories of a life once lived, and he was acutely aware of the seismic shift the digital world was about to bring.
He began voraciously devouring books and articles concerning new emerging technologies. Soon enough, the university's library became his home, and any topic on the net, computers, or on a new emerging technology got read through him. While many university students were looking to do some assignments, Thomas was already planning yet another way, one that placed him in the forefront line with this digital world.
He started attending small-town tech seminars. These were usually underpopulated events with a few enthusiasts, and from that alone, the defiant gathering of nuggets was available. It was in one such session that Thomas heard talk about the nascent potential of e-commerce. A speaker-an early convert to the internet-described selling products online, an idea looked upon skeptically by the majority present in the room. But he knew better. He foresaw that he was only seeing the seedlings of what was to be the dominance of online retailers across the world.
This insight had triggered Thomas to explore online platforms and startups. He subscribed to tech magazines and newsletters, joining discussions on early internet forums under pseudonyms. He saw how the internet was bringing people together in ways that were previously unimaginable, and its exponential growth would enable businesses to innovate and scale in ways they never had before.
One of them in particular caught his attention: a small, relatively unknown online bookstore operating out of Seattle. Most people viewed it as little more than a niche idea with limited potential, but Thomas looked at this company and thought, "Someday this company is going to change retail." With that intuition, he began thinking about how he might invest in the company, which at the time he had little money to do.
Aside from research, Thomas started fiddling with basic coding.
He saw this skill as basic survival in the future of digitization. Even though he would not become a professional programmer himself, knowing the guts of the internet would enable him to make much more informed decisions on investments and opportunities. Having acquired a computer from a university lab, Thomas began to experiment with HTML at night and created some very basic websites while dreaming of things that soon could be possible.
Meanwhile, Thomas started building a network of similar minds. Attending tech meetups, he met young entrepreneurs who equally believed in the power of the internet to change it all. These networks, although small at that time, would someday be worth more than gold when the digital revolution began to take place.
Through it all, Thomas established that he needed to position himself in the early days of the internet. The opportunity was taken by plunging into pooling his meager savings into tech stocks. Every penny went to companies that were pioneering the digital space-startups that the world wasn't paying any attention to just yet.
His actions marked the beginning of a journey into uncharted territory. While others hesitated, doubting the potential of the internet, Thomas pressed on with quiet determination. He was not merely riding the wave of innovation; he was preparing to shape it, one strategic step at a time.
By the end of the semester, Thomas had set up his launching pad into the digital frontier: a growing knowledge of the internet, an expanding network of tech enthusiasts, and a budding portfolio of investments in companies he knew would redefine industries. The world wasn't ready for what the internet was about to become, but Thomas was.