“We’re terminating your employment effective immediately.” Blindsided. I’ll never forget the whirlwind of emotions that came that day as I looked back on my path to the top of one of the largest staffing agencies in the country. Six words took two years and a $2M book of business away from me.The conclusion was simple: this was either the best thing to ever happen to me or the worst. Building a book of business for another employer after seeing how fast it could be ripped away was out of the question; either I do this for myself, or I leave the industry. Within 48 hours, I had my answer. At age 26 with $16K to my name I became a bootstrapping solo entrepreneur. Paying rent on credit cards, eating on $50/wk, and building a business on a shoestring was a challenging endeavor. I can attest that building a company from scratch is not for the faint of heart, but that transformative experience became the most rewarding chapter of my life. My initial thoughts of running a solo shop quickly evolved into more, much more in fact. I wanted to provide a home for the industry leading professionals who were tired of working for private equity owned employers where EBITA driven metrics stifled their ability to provide superior customer service. I wanted to build the most respected company in the industry. Suffice it to say that the most respected company in the industry would live or die on bringing together the right people. More than anything else at Norwood, I am most proud of the team we have. I am filled with gratitude to be able to work with such amazing people on a daily basis. Every member of our team is a polished professional that operates with proven integrity. Since establishing a team, Norwood has achieved triple digit YOY growth. We remain privately owned with no investors or equity partnerships. In my free time you can find me playing with my red lab, Rojo, exploring the great outdoors, or planning my next adventure—20 countries and counting!“Day by day, what you choose, what you think and what you do is who you become.”― Heraclitus