At 12 years old, I got my first job as a paper boy in El Cerrito, California. The hills were big and my legs were short. I did what I had to do to deliver papers and maximize my tips. In those days, you had to collect as well as deliver. Once a month, I’d go to each of my clients and beg them to pay their bill for the month of $3.25. Sometimes, they’d give me a tip. Usually, they’d at least pay the minimum. Sometimes, I’d get stiffed (I mean, can you imagine telling a cute 12-year-old you won’t pay him? Well, I wasn’t cute).

Where I really found success was when I was asked to go with a group of boys my age to sell new subscriptions. Some guy would show up in a van from the newspaper and all of us would climb in the back and sit on the floor. He’d drive us to some subdivision so we could walk door-to-door asking people to sign up. At the end of the night, we’d get pizza and he’d give a few dollars for each sale and a few dollars to the kid who sold the most. Almost every night I went, I got the few dollars for the most sold.

Over the years, I had various positions where I’d sell something. When I was 22, I learned how to be a graphic designer on a used Macintosh computer and started selling my graphic design services. I used the skills there to teach graphic design for the web at the University of Utah.

Between sales and my understanding of graphic design, my career took a shift a few years later. I began working for Canon USA as the Color Systems Specialist for the Western United States. My entire job was to work with copier dealerships to teach them how to use and sell our color systems. It was my first opportunity to coach and train outside of a classroom setting.

I was hooked.

Fast forward to 2007, I started a digital marketing agency called Tribute Media. Over the years, I had earned a degree in IT Management and an MBA, both from the University of Phoenix and was ready to call my own shots. After Tribute Media’s services were established, I found my passion was helping others grow. My favorite was coaching and consulting.

Because I knew that so many business leaders could use help, I wrote a book, “Do It Right: A CEO’s Guide to Web Strategy.” Then, I wrote another book, “Tweet It Right: A CEO’s Guide to Twitter.” (Both of which are a little out of date now). Those two books provided the basis for a number of years of training and coaching for many clients.

Brett and I go back a few years. He was a client of mine when I led Tribute Media. I’m honored he has chosen me to help lead his new company and take the curriculum he has developed to other DVMs. There might be a lesson or two that I’ll teach in our video curriculum (so, get excited) but his experience is what allows us to be successful. As a certified DiSC facilitator, I look forward to helping DVMs on the marketing and business side of their hospital. Business and marketing is what do. Coaching is my passion.