Briefly about me

Briefly about me

My name is Alexander Juan Antonio Cortes. I am a personal trainer, dancer, writer, and solo entrepreneur. My entire life, I have been enthralled by the power of the mind/body and the potential of human beings.

My original career plan was only to be a ballet dancer, but after injury derailed that, I committed myself to the study of the body. In rehabilitating myself and working with others, I realized that the ultimate power is in the congruence of mentality and physicality. If you can change your mind, you can change the story of your entire life.

My life so far…

There’s only one man I’ve ever called a coward, and that’s Brian Doyle Murray. No, what I’m calling you is a television actor. Bad news.

  1. Born (April 4, 1989)

    There’s only one man I’ve ever called a coward, and that’s Brian Doyle Murray. No, what I’m calling you is a television actor. Bad news.

  2. First traumatic injury (December, 2007)

    In December 2007 I suffered a hamstring tendon rupture. This was my first lesson that life is truly not fair, and that misfortune can happen at anytime. This injury would derail the “dream” I had to become a professional dancer, and it took 8 years to recover from.

  3. Arrested for Grand Theft (February, 2008)

    Sentenced to three months of jail time. Only served two months thanks to good behavior. My realization and acceptance of my not being a good person and recognition that I had a dark side was the transformational change from childhood to adulthood. I learned many lessons from this, most of all being everything in life that happens to you is your fault. All actions have cost and consequence.

  4. Second traumatic injury (December, 2008)

    In December 2008 I suffered a foot fracture. This was another setback that essentially killed any remaining aspirations I had of a professional career. Having my athleticism greatly reduced and being in constant pain, I was driven to study the body on a far deeper level beyond the conventional.

  5. Started working as a personal trainer (fall, 2009)

    When I first started working with personal training clients, I realized very swiftly that I enjoyed teaching and that it was something I could for the rest of my life. Being a teacher was added to my identity.

  6. First published an article online (October, 2012)

    This was the moment when I realized that writing was a legitimate way to change the world. And it’s when I added being a writer to my identity.

  7. First paid article (November, 2013)

    At this point, I realized that writing was something I could make money from. The idea of being paid for knowledge would dramatically transform the rest of my twenties. Writing is a scalable skill and a true super power.

  8. Went completely broke, decided to start a business (June, 2016)

    This was the major turning point of my 20s when I was 27. I knew that I had to determine my own destiny, be more responsible, and that I could only depend upon myself. I decided to start my own online business—with the worst business plan in the world.

  9. Made my first $400 online (July, 2016)

    Making money online is often made out to be something mythical, but it is no different than making money in the physical world. Produce something that people need, and find your customers. This proved to me that working online was a viable future.

  10. Started my newsletter (August, 2016)

    Originally I emailed people 3 times daily. After 8 months I dropped that down to every day, and then every other day currently. Writing at this rate trained me to always be able to produce content, and the feedback I got was invaluable in improving my writing and building relationships with people. A newsletter is your most loyal friends and fans.

  11. Hit 2,000 newsletter subscribers (February, 2017)

    At the time, this was a major milestone because I knew at any given time, at least 500 people were reading my emails. Get 500 people together in a room, that is a lot of people.

  12. Hit 15,000 Twitter followers and 5,000 email subscribers (November, 2017)

    This number was significant as I knew that with this level of audience, I could make a living online forever. It also was a shift in how I was perceived by others, as people assume you are an authority figure once you get over 10,000 Twitter followers.

  13. Earned $30,000 in one month (April, 2018)

    This was the most amount of $$ I’d ever made, and it was a shift in living. I moved to a beach side apartment in San Diego, and then later Los Angeles, and my lifestyle enabled me to travel. I knew that I had overcome the bad habits of my early 20s and had the foundation to build real success for myself. I realized the online business was unlimited in its potential.

November, 2018—present time

As of November 2018, I have 17,000 email subscribers, 47,000 Twitter followers, and financial freedom. I’m currently working on my first book, to be published in the winter of 2018. At this point, I am exploring all the ways I can reach more people and educate on a larger scale. My next project, after the book, is creating a health education video course for 2019.

Why start this website and newsletter?

People can change. I have never doubted this, and I have seen it many times in my life. To believe that people cannot change is cynical, and irrational in the face of the millions of people who have overcome their mistakes, their upbringings, and their limitations. People change every day, for better or worse. I believe in becoming better.

If you teach someone the appropriate tools, strategies, and mentalities, they can themselves (and their life) for the better. My goal, so long as you are willing to learn, is to teach you those tools.

When I discovered you I was a skinny distance runner. Through your programming and email list I learned how to build muscle in and out of the gym (through nutrition), stay injury free while doing it, and enhance my overall well-being. Thanks again my man.

Picture of Kaleb Firkins
Kaleb Firkins Man of Stature program + email

Thanks to you, I lost 50 pounds in 6 months—from 245 to 195 pounds. Still working as hard as I can to unfat myself and gain muscle.

Thanks so much again for all the help you’ve been. I know I haven’t hit you up before so you wouldn’t know, but you are my go-to source for all things health related at this point.

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James Bianco Email subscriber

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