I Picked my Career When I Was 13 Years Old

The Field Review: TFR-017

The headline is a little bit of a stretch, but looking back, it’s really not that far from the truth. My career path wasn’t shaped by some grand plan; it was instead a collection of seemingly insignificant moments strung together over time.

I realize now that these experiences weren’t random; they were interconnected moments that, together, formed the foundation of what I now recognize as my first steps toward developing a Personal Strategy—a framework that was quietly guiding me before I even knew it.

The Vacation that Changed My Life

My wife and I are currently traveling through Italy, which reminded me of the last time I was here back in 2010.

Fourteen (wow) years ago, I had the incredible opportunity to travel to Europe with my family on a Mediterranean cruise. This was my first time out of the country, and it was an eye-opening experience that exposed me to different cultures, histories, and ways of life.

It was during this trip that a seed was planted—a curiosity about the world beyond my small-town Ohio roots. I didn’t know it then, but this trip was the first building block in what would become a lifelong interest in global cultures.

Those two weeks spent exploring the Mediterranean with my parents and grandparents not-so-subtly shaped my existing worldview.

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The Ripple Effect

Fast forward a few years to my junior year of high school. My small, somewhat rural school introduced a "Global Scholars Program," offering a select group of students the chance to study abroad in China for a week over Spring Break. The curiosity I still held for international travel made me eager to seize this new opportunity. China was a world away from anything I had ever known—ancient, complex, and vastly different from Europe—which only fueled my international interest further.

I remember telling my aged (yet ageless) lacrosse coach that I was going to miss a few practices only to be met with a… “you’re going where??”

The experience was transformative.

Walking through the streets of Beijing, seeing the Great Wall stretch into the horizon, and immersing myself in such a rich, diverse culture left a profound impression. Shanghai, in particular, was a shock to the system—a fascinating collision of six thousand years of history and twenty-five years of rapid urban development.

And for the record: I hate cities.

I have a strong disdain for New York, no love for Chicago and you won’t catch me anywhere near a California metropolis. But Shanghai… let me know when you’re going.

From a social, economic, and political standpoint, the world’s relationship with China has definitely shifted since 2014… but that trip still holds a special place for me.

I went to China as a high school kid and returned home a young adult looking for my next move.

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From Experiences to Strategy

When it came time to choose a college and a major, travel was still at the forefront of my mind. Without that initial trip to Europe, I might never have developed the curiosity that led me to explore international cultures. Without the experience in China, I might never have decided to pursue a major in International Economics at The Ohio State University.

Even if I didn’t see the full pattern at the time, the threads were clearly connected.

Choosing Chinese as a minor wasn’t just an academic decision; it was the natural next step from the interests I had cultivated through those travel experiences. I spent another summer studying abroad in China, this time as part of an exchange program, which solidified my path in international business. Looking back, I realize these weren’t just academic decisions—they were strategic moves, fueled by a desire to understand the world and carve out my place within it.

The Strategy Takes Shape

By the time I graduated, I had already made a series of decisions and experiences that led me to a job as an International Ecommerce Analyst at Abercrombie & Fitch Co., working specifically on Tmall, China’s largest online retailer.

This role felt like the perfect culmination of everything I had been building towards—the studies, the travels, the language skills—all coming together in a way that made sense.

It was the result of small experiences that, one by one, shaped my interests, guided my decisions, and set me on a path that I might never have found otherwise.

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The Power of Unconscious Strategy

What I’ve come to realize is that Personal Strategy isn’t always a conscious process. Sometimes, it’s about following your instincts, pursuing your interests, and letting your experiences guide you.

But when you start to see the connections between those experiences—when you understand how they’ve shaped your path—that’s the power of Personal Strategy.

The Path Isn’t Always Perfect

While I credit my experiences with helping me craft a path that seemed great on paper, I eventually realized that it wasn’t the perfect path for me.

Even though I had set myself up for success in that first role at A&F, it became clear that I needed to shift course.

The beauty of having a solid foundation in decision-making is that it equips you to adapt when necessary.

And that’s exactly what I did—I adjusted, recalibrated, and set myself up for success in my next career move.

How I made that pivot? Well, that’s a story for another time.