“The First Pancake” draft of this page of the site. Because it’s never a perfect, fluffy circle when you start making it.

In 2019, I decided to that I was going to do art stuff and not care about whether it was good or not. Other than some basic art skills from grammar and middle school and the occasional Sip and Paint, I had no formal training. But I did have a 10x20 room in my garage (technically, a barn that’s been standing since the American Revolution). This was coupled with a yearning to physically PRODUCE SOMETHING creative in the real world (i.e. anything other than PPT decks and ‘online things’). This yearning arrived right around the same time as the COVID lockdown, which gave me a lot of time to practice art and incorporate it more into my life.

The inspiration to action was inspired by two cosmic-ish connections: The Big Orange Splot by Daniel Pinkwater, my favorite children’s book about a man named Mr. Plumbean that authentically expressed himself as an invitation to connect, and my friend Hilary Williams, an amazing artist who - like Mr. Plumbean - gave me the best gift: permission to create without worrying about whether it was “good.” So I did. And something unexpected happened—I found a flow, a connection, a way of making that felt like me. That room evolved into The Space Barn.

I love the Space Barn. It’s weird. It glows. And the best part is that to really see what it is - it can only be experienced live.

It’s not for everyone, and how could it be? That’s another thing that I’ve come to appreciate about authentic expression. It’s never everyone’s cup of tea. And I’d say about 10-15% of people that see it … see it like I do.

And somehow, this little personal story took on a life of its own. A talk I gave about it at a company festival turned into official corporate training: Find Your Splot: The Joy of Embracing the Stories that Made You. Over 1,200 associates and consultants have now heard it, and in the two years since, it’s only gotten bigger. And I’ve expanded a bit into the garage.

But if you really want to see The Space Barn, come visit if you can. And if you can’t but you want to know more about it, I have a presentation that I fully updated during my unemployment that I’d be happy to present anywhere.

MUCH LIKE THE ORIGIN OF THE SPACE BARN, this page of my website has been ‘hidden in draft’ for a while. When I create this website (with help from Joe Meersman and Nick Giapponi, thanks guys) I was told I needed to credential myself as a leader in XD. The Space Barn wasn’t going to get me a job. But in April of 2025 after a Take Your Kids to Work Day event we did at Chubb, I felt like I’m at a point where this is who I am and the people I love to work with all seem to get it. So I’ve typed this up for now and I’ll likely mature it over time but for now… consider this a long draft. :)