Version 1.5.0

The best way to motivate me that is ethical is to give me a challenging problem that technology can solve.

Creation brings me joy - taking an idea and making it real, seeing something come to life.

Manifestation is my superpower, which I define as visualizing a future state with high levels of experiential energy, allowing for serendipity and aligned forces to create the outcome. I’m also great at getting a lot of things done daily, effectively solving a company's most challenging problems for breakfast.

My best character attribute is my continual quest for self-improvement. I value truth over ego and crave feedback for anyways I can improve.

My love language is Acts of Service; please tell me something I can do for you. I’m fueled by gratitude. 🙏

On a somber note, my father died when I was 10 years old. I share that not because it defines who I am today, nor do I seek pity.  It is an essential part of my story growing up - I was effectively the “man of the house” at 10, accelerating my growth. I also had my risk tolerance set high very early on, because I’d already survived something so difficult - the rest of my life’s challenges seemed trivial by comparison. It’s been an essential part of my path.

I had 4 children by the time I was 23. I skipped college and started providing for my family. I’m a self-taught software engineer. Without a formal education, I took advantage of the meritocratic nature of technology to rise to the top quickly.

I've held many successful technology leadership positions. I’m usually the first technologist at a company that builds the initial version of the product and then hires & scales the team. In addition, I’ve actively participated in the technology ecosystem across many roles: founder, technology leader, meetup/community organizer, startup mentor, advisor, and investor. I did Silicon Valley very well, working 80 hours a week for 18 years, under the promise of not having to work 40.

My technology career has generated millions of dollars in value,  with a nice exit along the way.  There have been many industries - digital media, consumer web, ad-tech, fin-tech, and crypto - with a consistent theme of teaching computers to understand people.

In 2013, I read the Bitcoin whitepaper. All lightbulbs went off; Bitcoin would be a revolutionary technology. It would enable Trust through validation vs. Trust through reputation. So I threw my career behind Bitcoin in 2013, creating ChangeTIp, a Bitcoin tipping engine for Social Media (acquired by Airbnb). ChangeTip was a gratitude and appreciation engine for the web, or as I like to call it - a Love Button for the Internet. I’ve been known as a top CEO/CTO in crypto, and I’ve been called a “Top 25 Mind in Bitcoin” - that was easier to do in 2015!

In March of 2023 I took a hard right out of crypto and decided that the best thing I could do with my career was to become excellent with AI. I'm the author of AICodeBot 🤖 and another big project in the AI space to be launched soon.

I've been working on the healthy intersection of technology and humanity for many years. We don't need to live into the Hollywood cold dark dystopian future where machines take us over. There's at least one Universe where this all works out well, and we peacefully co-exist with the machines in an upward spiral - I'm putting my energy toward that one.

Here’s a visual representation. The first ring represents the high-level core values, and the outer ring is made up of examples.

Note: My process for generating the above graphic was to start with a list of values, select the ones that applied to me, and then thoughtfully group them with Xmind. If you’re inspired to do the same, I’d love to see yours!

• I do some of my best work on the massage table. It’s a good forced meditation time that inspires a lot of creative thought, where I solve challenging problems for us
• I count cards at blackjack, very well. I’ve been backed off at casinos multiple times and refer to going to Vegas as “Going to the ATM”.
• I’m a Burning Man )’( artist and a pretty romantic one at that
• I’ve written a guide for taking care of women called The Goddess Guide
• I’ve got a third nipple. Don’t ask to see it.
• I co-founded and sit on the board of a foundation called Upward Spirals that is dedicated to rebalancing masculine and feminine energy.

• Unclosed loops
• Misinformation
• Mismanaged expectations
• Distracting my team
• Being told I can’t do something
• Onion & Everything bagels! Seriously - they ruin my bagels. Who wants to bite into a plain bagel and get a sneak attack of onion or garlic?!
• Waste in any form - time, food, energy, or money
• Dishonesty

• Food: Cherries
• Alcohol: Tequila
• Movie: The Matrix

Are you looking for something to start a conversation with me? In no particular order, here are some interests of mine:

• Software development process
• AI Automation 🤖
• Mindfulness & Trans-tech
• Impactful stories of YOUR life that have shaped who you are
• Productivity and Efficiency (Individual and Team)
• The new story of Money
• Heart-Centered Leadership
• Biohacking
• Burritos
• Burning Man )’(
• Keto & Intermittent Fasting
• The Universe

I don’t usually like being bucketed, but according to this article describing the 6 types of CEOs, I’m a Global Missionary.

I see my primary responsibilities as:

1. Holding the vision of what’s to be built
2. Align incentives and pull energy to the cause
3. Solve the most challenging problems to free up momentum

My secondary responsibilities include

• Leading by example - to be emblematic of cultural values
• Attracting, hiring, engaging, and developing world-class talent
• Fundraising to make sure we have sufficient fuel

I’m a technologist at my core.

Some other tips that I’ve learned for effectively running companies

• I love Conscious Leadership - it’s a fantastic framework for us to align on values and behaviors to run the company well
• Please beg for forgiveness rather than ask for permission, and know that you are responsible for the impact of your decisions, so I trust that you’ll ask for guidance when it benefits.
• Critique is cheap; craftsmanship is priceless.
• When others see friction in markets, I see opportunity!
• Bias towards action. Find the “No Regrets” moves to make progress in uncertain environments
• Failure is celebrated - as long as we learn from it.

If I’m stressed, it’s usually because I have too much to do. You can help out by taking something off my plate, or by helping me organize myself.

1. Maintain a healthy field of trust with me. My framework of trust includes 4 pillars.
   1. Integrity: Living by your own values
   2. Reliability: Consistently deliver on commitments. Note: This doesn’t mean consistently hitting deadlines. I love it when people reset expectations when circumstances change.
   3. Fidelity: Making choices that consider the impact on others, not just yourself
   4. Competence: produce high-quality work, and be self-aware enough to ask for help when you are over your head.
2. Demonstrate that they are aligned with me and the company’s goals
3. Are a joy to work with!

I crave feedback, as it is one of our best tools for self-development. I embrace vulnerability because that’s where connection and trust are built. I consider myself excellent at receiving feedback, but I want to hear from you if you feel otherwise. 😉