As a student of Life, I have had a passion for learning from a young age. 4 years living in Japan as a student learning the culture and language, business practices and philosophy continued that theme for me, and another 4 years in Thailand and 3 in India professionally helped add additional perspective on business practices, mindsets and work styles. I've now come full circle and am back living and working in the US, a proud homeowner and father of three girls.

Life has provided me with gentle learning opportunities, as well as challenging ones. I've overcome feelings of isolation and extreme loneliness, as a 15 year old high school exchange student in Japan, who couldn't speak the language or had anyone to talk to...for six months, until I broke through and (finally) became fluent in conversational Japanese.

I've had to learn how to manage finances, after getting let go after only four months due to the Financial Crisis, changing not only cities, but countries as well...this happened to me 3 times...back-to-back.

I started up the India subsidiary of our advertising agency's parent company, and moved there as the first employee, with no customers and little financing and over three years built a team and business that grew from nothing to well over a million dollars in annual sales. India is a country that is rich in history and culture, which varies greatly region-by-region, and so learning enough to have credibility in terms of understanding the Indian consumer and different business practices and communication and work styles was a great lesson.

I've worked in startups in Vietnam that had great growth but lacked in organization, and helped them gain structure, processes and accountability. 

I've taught English part time, and learned how to carry a conversation with anyone for at least two hours, even when English is not their native language. 

I used my experience in finance and research to scour the Internet, as well as on-the-ground, to find a good buy on a home, and saved over $90,000 on a $198,000 home.  

I've traveled to over 40 countries, and spent six months traveling when I was a university student to 16 countries on 4 continents, working hard and smart to pay my own way.

I'm fluent in Japanese language, culture and business practices (have translated 50 page insurance agreements, negotiated multi-million dollar company sales, and graduated from a Japanese university).

I am first a student of Life, with still much to learn. I hope to be able to share some of the lessons which I've gained along the way with those who would benefit.