I am a curious mind, well on track to being a lifelong learner. I grew up in a small, rural Nevada town where my father was (and still is) a major piece of the community. He is a top-notch surveyor who moonlights as the commissioner of the town board of Minden. He practices what he preaches, which is to do things the right way, treat people the way you want to be treated, and to get to where you want to get, you need to work harder than everyone else.

As a high school student, I discovered the true value in my dad’s beliefs. I played varsity basketball and baseball on teams that I made not because of talent, but because I worked harder than everyone else. I went on to the University of Nevada, Reno for my undergraduate degree, where I graduated with a dual major in Finance and International Business. My focus abroad lead me to study in Turin, Italy. The vast cultural differences between living in an urban center in Italy and where I grew up in small-town Nevada was a shock at first but it turned out to be a fantastic opportunity to learn more about myself, my beliefs, and my values than I ever thought possible.

Upon Graduating, I began to pursue my career, starting at a small general aviation company in Reno, Nevada. I started on the floor of a call center, taking calls and processing background checks but I quickly began to rise through the ranks, taking on multiple hats. I became the Manager of Sales, Communications, and Government programs- depending on where we were would be the specific title I would use. I ran all our outbound and inbound marketing, developed a new and modern website, attended general aviation conferences all around the country, and most importantly, worked closely with a variety of government agencies, lobbyists, and congressmen and women to bring two new products to market. I brought online training to general aviation pilots, as well as brought known crew member and precheck programs to general aviation as well.

Currently, I am a fraud analyst at Intuit, where I have prevented north of $100 million in fraud this year alone while working to simplify processes across the entire company. I am pursuing my Masters of Business Administration at the University of Nevada, Reno, which allows me to further develop my management and leadership skills while furthering my international horizons by taking classes in Australia and New York City.

One final part of my life that is wildly important is my wife, Molly. We met way back in high school and have been together ever since, approaching 6 years of marriage this August and 12 years being together. Molly has helped me become who I am today by constantly pushing me to be the best person I can possibly be. She has helped me get to some amazing times and through some bad times. She has helped me learn more about myself, the world, and those within it than I ever thought possible. Her bright, kind attitude is something I aspire to replicate every day.

All of this brought me to where I am today. My experiences have taught me that being well rounded is critical. As I look to become a better leader, some lessons never change- people need to be treated the way they want to be treated, operate with honesty, and that great things can be achieved with the appropriate effort.