The card shows were my first marketplace.
Long before I walked into a courtroom, a dispensary, a bank, or an IRS meeting, I walked into rooms filled with folding tables, plastic sleeves, glass cases, and men who took cardboard very seriously.
I loved those rooms.
There was noise, movement, opportunity. A kid could walk in with a shoebox and walk out with something better if he knew what he had and did not get scared during the negotiation.
That is where I learned to trade.
Not just trade cards. Trade value. Trade confidence. Trade patience. I learned when to talk, when to shut up, when to walk away, and when someone was pretending not to want what they wanted.
The paper route taught me work.
Baseball cards taught me the deal.