Took the 508 Cascades Amtrak from Seattle to Portland.

Old fashioned train stations make me smile. They also make me curious. What was life like back then?

Made the trip to visit my good friend from Buffalo, Peter. Peter's a really rad dude - and him and I have both developed similar interests in Personal Development as we look for guiding principles for life in our 20's. (Peter also talked me into signing up for a Tony Robbins event, but I'll save that post for later. I was stressed leading up to my visit as I had a major midpoint presentation for my MBA internship. I was really looking forward to resetting.

Our mutual favorite character in the Personal Development Space is Tim Ferriss. Tim's podcast and books have been absolutely instrumental to shaping our 20's. I appreciate finding elegant solutions to life's problems. We talked about how this has inspired us, and really shaped our lives.

Peter specifically talked about focusing on personal health and fitness. This is especially important to help Peter deal with his narcolepsy. Peter found that controlling his diet and exercise have been key parts of this puzzle and was inspired to share this journey with others on his website - http://www.narcolepsycoach.com/

Anyways, I had a great time catching up with an old friend. We had a jam packed Saturday eating, walking, exploring, eating some more, and even hosting a house warming party and seeing Bill Burr. On Sunday we had the highlight event where we joined Peter's yoga studio - YoYoYogi Portland for Vinyasa at the vineyard. An extremely well run event with an amazing staff and community. This was the perfect event to a perfect weekend and give myself a total mind and health reset. 

Can't wait to visit again.

Cross-Posted to LinkedIN
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Trillions is extremely thought provoking, I read this as an audiobook on my walks to work for my internship as a Senior Product Manager for Amazon as I was working an IoT device. I really enjoyed the book.for a few weeks and really enjoyed it. The broad themes of persuasive design, generative architecture, data liquidity, and taming complexity made all my gears turn. 
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1. Persuasive Design: I appreciate the design fundamentals sprinkled throughout the book, and the vivid narratives of what the future might be like. My favorite was the hardware store of the future. How can we simplify our everyday electronics into components? What would that look like? Would shopping for a replacement IoT component be like picking up a 2" diameter right angle pipe at Home Depot when your plumbing broke? Fascinating thoughts.
2. Data liquidity: We have all of this data being transmitted from trillions of devices, what is going to be the innovation that streamlines all of it? What is the protocol that will be analogous to the shipping container in the 1950s that will create an explosion of growth?
3. Generative Architecture: I loved the theme of buildings things with strong fundamentals and having good architecture.  There is an interesting trade off in software development that is going on between the open source wild west programmer and structured programming as if we're electricians following building code. (If you've ever read Snow Crash, this made me think of the government programmers vs. the hackers delivering pizza). The example of the Mississippi River, how farmers could alter the banks by creating small channels and change an entire course of a river. We need to build products that tame complexity by having this good, generative architecture. 
4. Taming Complexity: I can't stop thinking about how complexity is conserved. Another amazing example with the 420 sailboat. Now, I know nothing about sailboats, but understanding that the complexity stayed the same as the design evolved, it just got transferred to how it was manufactured instead of a frustrating consumer experience. How can we tame complexity in the products that we build?

There was a LOT of reference to Maya Design, which I loved. It really helps give context as to why these three guys wrote this book. It was great to hear the stories and anecdotes from Mickey, Peter, and Joe. This came through excellent on the audiobook, providing additional context and clarity to each chapter's concepts. 

Overall, I'd recommend this book for folks in the technology space and people that are curious as to the impacts design has for building good products as we climb up "Trillions Mountain"

Amazon.com - Trillions: Thriving in the Information Ecology

Top 10 Business lessons for Trillions Mountain

1. Persuasive computing is the next information technology paradigm. Connectivity is the seed of this inflection point.
2. Your current business risk is much higher then you think. What is the malignant complexity in your business.
3. Move beyond open source and towards open components.
4. Good News - Trillions is a very big number. new business model based off of little bits of information. understand the value in your information.
5. Complexity is inevitable. But bad complexity will kill you. Have architectural thinking.
6. Design for generativity and emergence. Get in the practice of building dynamic simulations of your entire business ecosystem early and often.
7. Design is not a paint job, user interface, a styling. Design is the whole shooting match. If your organization is not design aware, it's a dinosaur.
8. Make sure Computing is Human Literate.
9. Computing should fade into the woodwork so humans can come into the forefront. Think about Anti-lock brakes.
10. Explore ways you can simulate and foster strange bed fellow relationships now. Make sure you become part of the information flow. What would happen if you partnered with someone you weren't thinking about.

​

Photo Credit: MAYA Design - ​vimeo.com/49392667

Woah.

Finished the first quarter of my MBA at Simon Business School! 5 more quarters left!

Haven't announced this yet, but I'll be headed to Amazon this summer in Seattle as a Senior Product Manager intern! Shout out to my support system Adrian Finch for encouraging me to go back to school and then dealing with the fallout of my crazy schedule. Also thanks to all the family and friends for letting me vent and supporting me as well!

Here's a quick recap of everything that's happened:

• Made friends with a diverse cohort of classmates from all over the world! I think we have over 20 countries represented in our class, and I'm amazed at everything I've learned form my new lifelong friends..
• Said friends are helping me add Hindi to my LinkedIN languages... ask me about the words I know off-line :)
• Made it to the final round for 2 big case competitions
  
  • Duke University Fuqua Energy Week - Expanding off-grid solar access in Kenya - Presentation here 
  • Carnegie Mellon University - Technology Innovation Challenge - Future of Mobility - Presentation here
    
• Landed an amazing internship with the help of the Simon Business School Career Management Center! - Amazon, Senior Product Manager Internship in Seattle.
  
• MVP of Simon Turkey Bowl. 
• Selected to represent my class cohort as the first year representative for the Graduate Business Council (GBC)
• Competed in 4 total case competitions in 3 weeks. Would not recommend, but would do again :)
• Travelled with friends to Philadelphia, Atlanta, Raleigh, and Pittsburgh
• Learned a ton in areas I've never had exposure to before (finance, accounting, economics), now I'm thirsty for more.
• Went to my first Bills Game in 5 years (GO BILLS!)
• Hit my goal to read 20 books this year 3 months early
  

As I pack my bags for my upcoming global immersion in South Africa with Simon, I'm so grateful and excited that I made the choice to go back to business school. Stay tuned for my next update about my travels and learning what it's like to do business in South Africa from 12/4 to 12/21! Can't wait to explore a new continent.

Meliora!

Highlights:

• Traveled to Armenia!
• Made awesome friends
• Worked abroad for 3 months! London, UK
• Farnborough Airshow!
• Reconnected with lost Friends
• Rejoined ESW via the National Team
• Couch surfed
• Moved out of Boston 
• Went to Seattle, Fort Collins, Boulder, and Denver

Highlights:

• Went Skydiving
• Ran my first 10k!
• Ran my first half marathon! 
• Gave myself plantar fascitiis :(
• Went to Denver, CO - Built a fort out of blankets and pillows, while staying up all night and watching Star Wars.  Excellent vacation.
• Made my way back to California, visiting friends and family in Temecula and Encintas 
• Went horse back riding
• Completed my first full year in the 'real world' - Insert John Mayer lyrics
• Lived in Boston for an entire year.
• Bought my first brand new car!
• Celebrated a fantastic three year anniversary.
• Helped my parents move into a new house

Not sure if I kept up with my plan to strike out new paths, but I am definitely looking forward to 2014.  

Right now, I feel the urge to head back to Buffalo, walk down to my parent's basement, pick up my beautiful sunburst Strat and start bouncing sound waves through the air.  To me, there are few things that compare to this.  Well, maybe at the peak of a jam session - when everyone is right on the same groove and feeding off it, guitarist singing licks, bassist rumbling away and the drummer just dropping a great beat.

Anyways, I've been a musician since forever, and here are my weapons of choice:

• Guitar
  
• Violin
• Drums
• Bass
• Piano

My musical career was all sparked by the tinge of jealousy that I felt watching my older brother play violin.  Being the seven year old little brother, I HAD to do what the older bro was doing!  So, I begged my mom and she signed me up for lessons.   Every Monday afternoon I'd head down to the Monaco's basement (Paul) from 1st til 8th grade, progressing from scales through the Suzuki books, learning the importance of keeping the count, the wiggle of vibrato and the sweet hush Pianissimo and veracity of triple forte.

This lead me to spend my mornings playing second violin in the Williamsville East/South Orchestra with Mr. Moose.  He was a great teacher, inspiring, passionate and always left you with a feeling that as soon as you thought you knew something, there was some even finer detail and nuance that you could strive for.  I loved all those early mornings and some late afternoons in Pit Orchestra for The Wiz.

Sometime during all of this, I realized that the opposite sex doesn't find violin as sexy as other instruments - so I picked up guitar.  That, and my dad always tried to get my to learn how to play.  The first song that I ever learned was Seven Nation Army on bass, leading me to The White Stripes, to Nirvana, to Pearl Jam, to Metallica to Clapton, to Led Zeppelin, to Zak Wylde, landing somewhere between Jimi Hendrix, Stevie Ray Vaughn, and John Mayer (Yeah, that guy can play the hell out of a guitar!).  

Currently, I stick to playing guitar in my small studio apartment, waiting for the chance to get my hands on a drum kit or bass along with a group that can play any and all of them.

This is my motivation for the year.  I can't wait to strike new ground.

Concerts in a small venue.

Closer.

More community as you smell the sweat and feel the energy.

Personal

No one is sitting.

No wasted space.

Feel the energy.

More visuals.

Better acoustics?

Mosh pit.

I think it was the West Coast feel.  Compared to where I was from, everyone seemed relatively laid back.  I spent the summer of 2011 interning for a software company and living in the Mission district (with a quick stint in Berkeley!).  Looking back, I regret all of the nights that I stayed in my apartment thinking about myself, or browsing the internet.

I just want to live.  Here is me looking back, I'm feeling a little bit nostalgic after watching Five-Year Engagement as I sit here in Boston.

People.  Ambitious would be a good way to describe everyone that I met out in SF.  Techy would be another cool word.  However, it's hard to put a feel on it.  I felt like I was surrounded by people that I was one beer away from following my dreams and starting a company.  I really loved that.  I also loved how people (for the most part) didn't really care who you were, who you liked, how you dressed, etc.  Made me feel welcome and made me want to be accepting and welcoming.

Working. It is more about just showing up with a suit and a smile on, putting in your 8 hours and clocking out.  It was hard for me to adjust to this, even as a college student with no schedule.  We are taught that you go to school to get a job to clock in that 9-5.  Totally different here.  I remember the first day of my internship seeing another intern with just a t-shirt and jeans wondering how he was able to pull that off as I sweated through my suit.  I began to realize that it's not about when you show up, it's about what you're really doing and how do you really contribute.
This was the hardest part for me to adjust, and I believe that I could have done a better job adjusting.

Living.  You are 4-5 hours from amazing sights.  Wanna see mind-blowingly huge trees!? Wanna see millions of dollars worth of sports cars zig zag on the Pacific Coast Highway?! Wanna grab some awesome seafood in Monterey?!

Dining.  As with any city, you get the various ethic neighborhoods with deep food culture.  SF's was unique.  No drunken night can be complete without a donut from an chinese-donut-pastry-whatever shop liken Bob's donuts.  Mission had some stellar Mexican and I for sure as hell miss the food trucks in the downtown area for lunch.  Filipino food?  Yes!

Coffee.  I miss the jetfuel that they served at Philz coffee.  I would pay an obnoxious amount of money for a Mocha, a touch on the bitter side from Philz out in the Mission.

Drinking.  So many watering holes for whatever scene you are interested in.  Cannot go wrong.  

Parking.  This was the bane of my existence in SF.  I would dread having to find a parking spot for my car within a mile of my apartment and at least somewhere near a subway station.  If I could do it again, I would have found cheaper living, and maybe parked my car somewhere farther away, but accessible by public transportation.  I'll never forget the time that I was about to get ready for work, heard the street sweeper from my window and realized that my car was on the wrong side of the street.  I grabbed my phone, keys and wallet and headed out the door in effectively nothing.  The officer was writing my ticket for my car, as I (without saying a word), got into my car and drove off.  I headed to the beach area, as I realized that I hadn't been there yet.  I spent the morning walking along the beach just enjoying the sea smell and early morning atmosphere.  I was late for work, but enjoyed the freshness of the early morning.

Weather.  After suffering through a long hard winter in Buffalo (Okay, it wasn't that bad), I was excited to have a California summer!  I was definitely disappointed when I came to San Francisco and found out that summer is delayed until the traditional fall months.

All in all, I had a fantastic time out there in SF.  I really hope to find myself in the Bay Area for work sometime in the near future.