For years, I helped global brands tell their stories. I was good at it—really good.

But somewhere along the way, I realized something I couldn’t ignore: I had lost my own.

On paper, life looked great. A growing career. A steady relationship. A home. The whole thing.

But the pace, the pressure, and the constant push to perform slowly pulled me out of alignment. I was living a life that looked successful… but didn’t feel meaningful.

So I paused. Not because I had it all figured out—because I didn’t.

I packed my life into a backpack and walked 2,000+ miles on the Appalachian Trail.

The trail didn’t make me an expert. It made me a student again — and that’s the posture I bring into every room.

What started as a physical adventure became something much deeper—a stripping away of noise, pressure, and performance. Somewhere between the blisters and the breakdowns, I found what I’d been missing:

You don’t need to become someone new. You need to come back to yourself—again and again—especially when life is loud.

Presence became the foundation. Authenticity (hiking my own hike) became the practice.