Professional

I’m a 24 year old serial entrepreneur and have been working for myself as a software developer for the past 8 years. I have no formal education in software or business, but instead learned from a combination of wonder and passion. I’ve brought several products to market from scratch on my own, but ultimately realized it’s too much work as a one man show. After struggling on my own, I joined up with a friend of mine who had similar interests and we eventually formed Syndicate Theory back in 2010.

We managed to bootstrap ourselves via service work, and built our first successful product which has officially launched and is generating revenue for us within the first year. Now, we partner with other passionate entrepreneurs and help them build the technical portion of their business.

Being both a developer and an entrepreneur has given me what I believe to be quite a unique life perspective. I’m constantly analyzing the world around me: both in how things work, and more importantly, why. Given I spend 8 hours at the office working with software, I’ve realized I get much more value studying business, economics, and human behavior. Scott Adams, the author of Dilbert, posted something which really made me appreciate and understand my skill and what I can ultimately contribute…

I can draw better than most people, but I’m hardly an artist. And I’m not any funnier than the average standup comedian who never makes it big, but I’m funnier than most people. The magic is that few people can draw well and write jokes. It’s the combination of the two that makes what I do so rare. And when you add in my business background, suddenly I had a topic that few cartoonists could hope to understand without living it.

Being great at a few things that compliment each other is far likelier to get you anywhere than specializing in one thing – especially as an entrepreneur. When I realized this, I stopped pushing so hard to be the best developer. Getting 80% there and spending more time on how or when to apply technology is far more valuable for someone in my position.

Personal

I married my wife Shantelle at 21, and we now have two little girls ages 3 and 1. Having the family support has really kept me motivated and balanced. Before that, I’d often be up until 4am working from home, completely dead to the real world. I value my time far more than I used to, and also strive to be a well-rounded person. After struggling for a while, and working long hours, I now see the importance of taking care of myself and the consequences if I don’t. It is amazing watching kids grow up, struggling their way through basic tasks, and then seeing them triumph.

Working long hours, one thing that keeps me in positive spirits every day is music. I played a little piano when I was young, played sax throughout school, and then went on to play guitar. I’m not great, but it sure helps me understand, appreciate and ultimately enjoy music a whole lot more. I find the slight artistic side keeps me and also gives me a creative outlet.

The other thing that, quite literally, keeps me going is coffee. I was given a personal coffee roaster a few years ago, and since then I’ve gotten quite addicted to a good cup of coffee. We order green coffee beans from all over the world and roast and brew them at our office. Despite the negative connotation coffee addicts get, it’s quite a relaxing process. Like my other outlets, it has made me appreciate different types of coffee a lot more, and also gives a lot of insight into the massive coffee industry. Similar to food, there is healthy food and fast food. Coffee chains sell fast coffee.

I’m very grateful for the opportunities I have been given, and I’ll never forget the massive community of family and friends that have helped me get this far.