When someone told me I couldn’t, I said, “Watch me.”If someone told me I shouldn’t, I took the leap anyway.I measure my life in NBDBs: Never Been Done Befores. Starting and scaling businesses ranging from user-centered design to elite motorsports, I’ve created new markets and transformed others.I succeeded when I shouldn’t have and I did it with people who’d never done it before. We succeeded by applying an old idea in a new way: Craftsmanship. It’s a word steeped in excellence and demands courage. It stands in opposition to apathy. Freed from dusty workshops and calloused hands, modern trades can be held to higher standards, whether in zeros and ones, dollars and cents, or data and insights.Its origin is disarmingly simple: “What you make makes you.” The leaders and teams who understand it must make individual courageous decisions. They must shun the status quo. The cumulative effect is a commitment to crafting a life well-lived.The results are inarguable.- I bootstrapped my first company with revenue exceeding $25M, successfully completed numerous acquisitions, and produced valuations in excess of $50M.- I led Avon’s first digital launch after 14 years of failure, reducing legacy systems from 134 to 32, and positioning it for acquisition.- I created the first totally configurable online banking experience (Versant) capable of connecting any backend financial system with a vibrant user interface and liberated a once stagnant market.Challenges outside the digital space have gone just as well.- I commissioned the most powerful luxury motorcycle in history, earning 14 patents.- I modeled and built the first accredited peer-education program for general dentists, returning millions in revenue.- I constructed, staffed, and operated an underground restaurant that sold out every seat for a year, becoming a coveted destination on a world stage.You get the idea. I’m not (just) an adrenaline junky. My NBDBs create revenue where there was none, transform markets once stuck, deliver patented innovations, and increase shared value. I make teams more resilient and productive. We exceed expectations because we expect more from each other. If you’re facing a new, serious, or hard-to-define challenge, let’s talk. Better yet, let’s build something that has never been seen before — something the world needs right now.Business Builder • Transformational Leader • 21st-Century Master-Craftsman