Instead of taking a traditional "about me" path, I decided to switch it up to provide a deeper look into who I am. Below you will find some questions and answers I came up with that may help you get to know me a bit better.

On the right, I've included some other inspirations. The first are a few books that I've read that have inspired me in different ways. Under them you will find some select photos from my various travels and adventures. If you have any feedback please let me know!

Personal Q&A

What are some interesting things about you most people don't know?

I used to be a pretty good golfer back in high school. I hit two holes-in-one, in the same year, on the same hole, at the same course in one summer. I also have two junior club championships to my name. I’ve also traveled to 5 continents and 26 states.

What are you currently reading?

I am almost finished with “The Coddling of the American Mind: How Good Intentions and Bad Ideas Are Setting Up a Generation for Failure,” written in 2018 by Greg Lukianoff and Jonathan Haidt. As a parent, I’m very interested in studying the portion of the book on how parenting has changed over the last 15 years. There is a great quote from Folk Wisdom at the beginning of the book, “Prepare the child for the road, not the road for the child.” I think parents, especially those in my age bracket (mid to late 30s, let say) forget that building resiliance in a child means challenging them and introducing them to small doses of stress so they can build their coping skills. This is something my wife and I try to do for our two boys, but I know we can do better.

After this I’ll likely move on to a reread of “Start With Why” by Simon Sinek. My first introduction to the book was in audio form and I really don’t think I captured all of the lessons just by listening. This time I plan on doing a full read, capturing notes using this new notecard system I’m learning from Ryan Holiday.

If you could spend a day in someone else’s shoes, whose would they be and why?

This is a tough question because a single day is a small amount of time to really experience something. With that in mind, I’m going to pick two people and the specific date - to give it more context.

Abraham Lincoln - March 4, 1861: This is the date of Lincoln’s first inaugural address, coming on the back of his unforeseen presidential victory. There must have been so many thoughts running through his mind. The south was on the verge of seceding, and the bloodiest war in American history was to begin the next day. The entire goal of Lincoln’s address was to keep this from happening. The pressure of the words he spoke was immense. Feeling the eyes upon you as you gave a speech to try and hold a nation together is beyond comprehension, and would be a true lesson in what it means to be a leader.

Satya Nadella - February 4, 2014: This is the day when Nadella took over Microsoft from then CEO Steve Ballmer. I’m sure it was a day filled with excitement and angst. Taking over one of the most iconic American brands that had recently lost it’s way. The thoughts swirling in his mind regarding the strategy moving forward and how he would position himself as the new leader must have been intense. Just to experience the speech he gave to employees after being introduced as CEO by Ballmer and Bill Gates would be worth it. The hundreds of eyes looking to you to lead them. There is probably no greater responsibility for a business person.

What keeps you busy in your spare time?

When I'm not with my wife or my two boys I read, a lot. I also spend a good amount of time learning new things. Recently, I started restoring a John Deere lawn tractor from 1981. I really enjoy digging into the mechanics behind small engines. It's also satisfying to clean something up and make it look good again. For fitness I do Crossfit a few times a week. In my opinion, there is no better full body workout out there.