I'm a builder. That's the short version.

Most things I build start with friction I have felt myself. A problem that keeps showing up in my day is usually more convincing than an abstract product idea.

I like staying close to the whole problem: talking to people, writing the code, and finding out whether the thing actually works for them. I do not want building to become something I only direct from a distance.

I am not precious about the first solution. If the evidence says an approach is wrong, I would rather preserve what is useful, try another route, and find out.

For a long time, I mostly spoke when someone spoke to me. In meetings and gatherings, I stayed quiet because I did not trust that what I had to say mattered.

After moving from Indiana to Seattle, I changed my health, began running, finished a half marathon, and eventually ran the Seattle Marathon. I am a marathoner.

The marathon did not go to plan. Late in the race, my girlfriend and friends walked beside me when I could barely move. Their belief carried me until I could believe in myself again. No one can take away the training that I did.

Doing difficult things gave me evidence I could trust. I speak up more now—not because I assume I am always right, but because I know I can prepare, do the work, and contribute something that matters.