Project: Network Building & Environment Design
Objective: Building relationships outside the boardroom.
A few months back, I spent a morning out on the lake with Elan Lee (renowned designer and creator of Exploding Kittens) and Kevin Kliman (Founder of Humi).
Objective: Building relationships outside the boardroom.
A few months back, I spent a morning out on the lake with Elan Lee (renowned designer and creator of Exploding Kittens) and Kevin Kliman (Founder of Humi).
We weren't there to talk shop, pitch deals, or "network" in the traditional sense.
We were there to learn. Elan was teaching me how to eFoil.
We were there to learn. Elan was teaching me how to eFoil.
If you’ve never tried it, eFoiling is a humbling experience. It requires a paradoxical state of mind: you have to be completely focused, yet totally relaxed. If you tense up, you fall. If you overthink the balance, you crash.
The Great Equalizer
There is something grounding about being a beginner again, especially when you are alongside high-level operators like Kevin and Elan.
The water doesn't care about your exit strategy or your cap table. It only cares about your balance.
In my work, whether building The Haven or scouting for the next venture, I’ve learned that the best relationships aren't built in boardrooms. They are built in these moments of shared vulnerability. It’s about seeing how people handle the "chop." Do they laugh when they fall? Do they get back up with curiosity or frustration?
Soft skills are hard skills. And sometimes, the best due diligence, and the best nervous system regulation, is just spending time with good people in nature.
Visual Interlude: A Different Perspective
Living in The Beaches offers a unique vantage point. It’s a village within a metropolis, a place that feels removed from the noise of the downtown core.
Recently, I’ve been capturing the shoreline from above. These drone shots, looking straight down, strip away the context of the city. You don't see the skyline or the streetcars; you just see texture, light, and the rhythm of the waves.
It’s a reminder that sometimes, to solve a problem on the ground, you need to change your altitude. You need to pull back until the chaos turns into a pattern.
The Open-Air Office
This connection to the water isn't limited to the morning hours. You will often find me here in the middle of a Tuesday, laptop open, working from a bench or taking a strategy call while walking the boardwalk.
I’ve found that my best strategic work, whether building the CPG Growth OS or drafting a deck for a client, doesn't happen under fluorescent lights. It happens here.
There is a concept in deep work: Environment Design. By removing the walls, I remove the constraints on my thinking. The Beaches isn't just a place to live; it’s a productivity tool. It offers the calm required to think long-term in a world that is constantly demanding immediate reaction.
If we are going to build businesses that feel human, I believe we need to spend more time in environments that are human.
From the Air to the Walls
It felt wrong to leave these images sitting on a hard drive. In a digital world, I believe art, like community, needs to be tangible to be fully felt.
I recently selected a series of these prints to hang permanently at The Haven Cafe.
For me, this completes the circle. We spend our days in the shop serving the neighborhood, but these prints offer a view of that same neighborhood that most people never see. It brings the calmness of the water into the energy of the room, acting as a window to the lake even on the busiest mornings.
If you’re in the area, come by, grab a coffee, and take a look. They look different on canvas than they do on a screen, there is a texture to the water that you just have to see in person.
Why Place Matters
I choose to build my life and work here because environment dictates mindset.
As Naval Ravikant puts it:
"The single most important decision you make is where you live. It drives your business opportunities, relationships, food and water supply, politics, activities, and day-to-day quality of life."
As Naval Ravikant puts it:
"The single most important decision you make is where you live. It drives your business opportunities, relationships, food and water supply, politics, activities, and day-to-day quality of life."
I believe in playing long-term games with long-term people, and I’ve found that the water attracts a certain frequency of person.
People who value clarity.
People who are willing to slow down to speed up.
I’m grateful to call this neighborhood home, and even more grateful for the friends, old and new, who are willing to paddle out with me. If you're ever in The Beaches and want to trade the boardroom for a bench by the water, reach out.