“AN IDEA MAN.”

This was the response when my parents asked a younger me what I saw as an ideal career. They weren’t enthusiastic about that answer. Nor were they when, for a high school project, I labeled myself a future movie producer — largely because I couldn’t say what a movie producer actually did.

Well, fast-forward a few (dozen) years — past filling an HR-type role in the U.S. Air Force; past college and a lieutenantship at the school paper; past column/review/feature-writing for the local alt-weekly; past many other career-building but largely miscast stints as “marketer” — to arrive at today. Now, I am an “idea person,” whether it’s a real thing or not. And I’m a movie producer, even if it just means pointing my own video camera at things. I’m other things, too: doting father of triplets, husband, DEI+B warrior, writer, photographer, web dabbler, t-shirt designer, dog lover, voice actor (sort of), and on and on and on.

Not to undersell, but here’s an admission: I am not the world’s greatest at anything I do. Never have been. (One day, maybe. I’ll keep working at it.) What I excel at dreaming. And adapting. And working well with humans (and dogs). And stacking skills (AKA synergism). And learning, relentlessly. And improving EVERYthing I touch.

So, what kind of collaborator can you expect in me? One who can edit video but also proofread the script, titles, or copy he’s given. One who can draft a narrative but also lay it out on a webpage. One who can lead a team but also follow explicit instructions. One who can, and will, leave you feeling better about yourself at the end of the day.

If given the opportunity, I invite you to talk with me, even for just a few minutes. At worst, you’ll have the ear of an empathetic freethinker. But you never know: In just the right situation, maybe partnering with this “idea person” could improve your life — or change the friggin’ world!

P.S. I appreciate getting paid as much as the next human (so I can upgrade my camera gear once in a while); but even more so, I love a good cause and/or a great story. Do you have one of those to pitch me? I’d love to hear it.