Joseph Charogoff

I was born in Appleton, Wisconsin, in 1977. I am the youngest of five children; two brothers and two sisters. We moved around quite a bit when I was a child. I mainly grew up in New Jersey and Michigan however.

If I only got to share one incident of my life with someone, which sums up who I am and why I am that person, it would be the following one...

When I was a very young boy, about five, I experienced fairly serious brain trauma. While playing in a mall with my brother, I fell on my head and lost consciousness. This incident, along with a medication I was prescribed for it, led to some notable changes to my mentality and social standing. I had occasional seizures. I was not allowed to do certain things like ride a bike. I developed a regular and distant train-of-thought; sort of like a nearly constant inner monologue that I can't completely control. I no longer have any other direct side-effects, but that extra subconscious voice in my head still exists to a lesser extent. All of the biological effects that the fall ended up causing however, paled in comparison to the social effect it had on me. In short, it made me seem different than everyone else. From the fall on, I was no longer just another person going through the motions. Part of me is thankful for that fact, and part of me despises it.

My books are all about something similar to that altered view- they are all about different perspectives than the one we typically take on- important and more difficult ones. My first book- The Introduction of Self- deals with taking on a new perspective of our own existence in order to progress as people and individuals. You can call it a "Self-Help" book, but realize that it truly means only you can help your self, and not that the book or author can.