LEAD WITH STRATEGY
I believe great creativity starts with strategic clarity. Before the first concept takes shape, I focus on uncovering the story behind the business problem—understanding the audience, what drives them, and how they connect to the mission. From there, I collaborate across teams to define the essentials: brand personas, positioning, messaging, and the visual frameworks that bring it all together.

I work to distill complex strategies into clear, actionable visuals that align teams and inspire decisions. Together, we uncover the brand’s core—its purpose, values, voice, and tone—and use that foundation as a springboard for creative work that isn’t just beautiful, but purposeful, scalable, and built to drive measurable results.

RAPID VISUALIZATION
Once I understand the brand voice, audience insights, and strategic objectives, I guide teams through focused, high-energy ideation that prioritizes clarity, alignment, and creative breadth.

We begin with low-fidelity sketching and open exploration, pushing multiple visual pathways without the constraints of software or style guides. This early-stage freedom allows us to think systemically and uncover the narrative threads that can transform complex strategies into stories people connect with.

From there, we distill and refine the strongest directions into visual solutions that are strategically grounded, scalable across platforms, and designed to resonate with the audiences they serve. The goal is always the same: use visual storytelling to solve the problem, align teams, and move decisions and people forward.

MILITARY SERVICE
My eight years in the United States Air Force built the foundation for how I lead today with clarity, discipline, and strategic intent. Coordinating teams under pressure and delivering mission-critical communications taught me the value of precision and alignment when the stakes are high.

That experience sharpened my ability to manage complexity, translate strategy into actionable visuals, and lead with purpose. It also instilled a deep respect for collaboration and clear communication, skills that continue to shape every visual framework and storytelling solution I create.

UNDERGRADUATE AND GRADUATE STUDIES
My academic path began with a foundation in graphic design and expanded through graduate work in art history and doctoral studies in anthropology. This multidisciplinary journey gave me a deep understanding of how people interpret visual language, cultural context, and symbolic meaning.

It also taught me to connect historical insight with contemporary business challenges, using that perspective to craft visual strategies that are not only relevant and resonant but also solve problems through purposeful, culturally aware storytelling. This background helps me translate complex ideas into clear, actionable visuals that align cross-functional teams and drive strategy forward through design.

CREATIVE LEADERSHIP
Leading award-winning teams across New Mexico, New York, and Texas has shaped my approach to leadership: inspire with vision, guide with purpose, and support with empathy. I’ve had the privilege of mentoring diverse, cross-disciplinary creatives, helping them expand their skills, sharpen their thinking, and deliver meaningful work.

Whether steering high-stakes campaigns or building systems that align teams, I believe great leadership is about creating the conditions where ideas flourish, strategy and creativity move in sync, and complex problems are solved through clear, compelling visual storytelling. The result is work that not only engages but also drives measurable results and lasting strategic impact.

HIGHER EDUCATION
As an Assistant Professor of Graphic and Media Design at Russell Sage College, I had the privilege of guiding emerging designers through their formative creative years. I taught core principles in ideation, visual strategy, human-centered design, and production, equipping students to think critically and create with purpose.

That experience strengthened my ability to distill design thinking and visual storytelling into clear, teachable frameworks—helping the next generation of designers build the skills and confidence to solve problems, align ideas, and bring meaningful solutions to life.

LEADING CREATIVE TEAMS
My path to creative leadership has been anything but linear. From military service to architecture, professional wrestling to anthropology, and eventually design and visual strategy, it’s been a wild ride filled with inspiration, frustration, breakthroughs, and the occasional burnout. Along the way, I’ve worked with remarkable mentors who taught me to lead with empathy, vision, and grit—and with others who, by contrast, showed me exactly how not to lead.

Each step sharpened my ability to guide diverse creative teams, translate complex ideas into clear narratives, and shape culture from the inside out. I captured many of those lessons in my book Leading Creative Teams, a candid and practical roadmap for aspiring creative leaders. It’s the book I wish I’d had when I started, and a tribute to the messy, rewarding work of guiding others through the creative process and solving problems through purposeful visual storytelling.