My 4 "alternate universe" careers

What would I do if I wasn't in tech?

Just for fun, here's a list of 4 alternate universe careers I might have explored if not for tech:

1️⃣ Wealth Manager

I love personal finance and investing. I'm fascinated by behavioral science. I think I'm pretty good at synthesizing information and creating tools to help people act in their own best interest. Downside? Probably too much optimization; not enough new and different.

2️⃣ Music Producer

I love music, and I used to write/perform/record/produce music in my teens and 20s. It turns out what I do at Character Capital is a lot like production... find great people, back them, support/enable/empower them, but ultimately get out of the way and recognize that they are the geniuses and stars, not me. Downside? Probably even harder to find success than startups.

3️⃣ Yacht Captain

I love sailing and boating, and unlike most people, I actually enjoy managing, maintaining, and (occasionally) repairing boats. I enjoy creating repeatable systems and designing great experiences. I think I'd make a darn good yacht captain. Downside? Being away from home for months at a time.

4️⃣ Graphic/Marketing/Brand Designer

This one is not SO different than what I do in this universe. But the context is different: Clients instead of portfolio companies. Campaigns instead of products. Offline (mostly) instead of online. Fun fact: When I graduated from college, this was the career I pursued. I applied to a bunch of jobs at marketing/design/interactive agencies and got exactly zero of them. On a whim, I applied for a job at a startup. Fortunately, I caught Matt Shobe's attention and... the rest is history.