My dad was a theater professor whose focus was stagecraft. Needless to say, I pretty handily won most Halloween costume contests as a kid. In my formative years, I was encouraged to always say “please” and “thank you” and to exercise my imagination, curiosity, and creativity daily—habits I still practice to this day.

My superpower, if you call it that, is turning chaos into calm—something that’s served me well throughout my 25+ years in the design industry. I tend to come up with my best ideas when I’m balanced between two rolling wheels, so I try to spend as much time in that position as possible.

Over the years, I’ve worked across industrial design, environments, events, retail, branding, advertising, and more for brands like Disney, Nike, LEGO, Adidas, Li-Ning, Gatorade, and Pepsi. I’ve designed everything from theme-park attractions to shoes. I’ve even designed a parade float or two, which I’d be happy to tell you about over a hot or cold beverage of your choice.