One of my first big wake ups three years ago was regarding 1914. As a JW, we are taught that CT Russell 'discovered' this timeline and therefore proves he had god's exclusive direction. God revealed to him alone that 1914 was a "marked" date. What a shock to learn it was created by, not CT Russell, but JA Brown and promoted by the Adventists long before Russell ever heard of it! A further shock is that this is even acknowledged in the Proclaimers book, but I never cared enough to pay attention to it. I doubt very many JWs have actually even read the Proclaimers book, which incidentally, is one of the most revealing and self-damning publications WT has ever produced.
My next thought was: If I didn't know this one important fact as a fourth generation JW (and BTW, I was a good JW- very studious, very "faithful" and I could explain the 607-1914 timeline backwards and forwards) what else didn't I know about my religion? This led to an avalanche of facts and evidence that obliterated my religion in the span of a few short weeks. The next big shock was that, not 1914, but 1799 was the beginning of the Last Days and 1874 was the year of Christ's invisible return. 1914 would usher in Armageddon, it was not the beginning of the last days as WT now teaches.
In short, I realized I was lied to my entire life and my religion was a sham based on false prophecies and idiocy....