Over a 30 year career in corporate North America Shawn made an indelible mark in the business community he worked in. He was hard working, determined, and always refused to accept “can’t” as the ultimate answer. To some he was considered obstinate or perhaps arrogant. To others, he was a person who could analyze a problem, and find the solution to overcome it. In other words, a person who could be counted on to find a path forward. No one has ever accused Shawn of being purely conventional. He is a creative mind always willing to think outside the box to consider alternative solutions.

Shawn was good at what he did as a Sales Manager. He recognized that successful sales managers build trust with their customers by committing to solving their problems. Serving a need is the most obvious reason a customer could be motivated to buy. Defining that need and addressing it makes the sales person valuable to the customer. This was the secret Shawn used masterfully in order to become a top sales performer throughout his career.

But success had a price. He became consumed by career success. He was traveling all over North America, spending almost 100 nights each year in hotels. While the challenges were exciting and rewarding, it began to erode his health and family life. In simple terms, his lack of balance was sending him on a direct course with burnout, or worse.

It was during a flight to Tampa Bay that Shawn got a wake up call. Corporate restructuring gave him cause to reflect on the imbalance in his life, and what the implications could become. When the landing got delayed, the plane circled for nearly 20 minutes over the Gulf of Mexico. Suddenly a scene of floating communities brought him back to a simpler time in his life, when he would spend hours on his sailboat, floating on whatever lake he could find.

Desperate to find balance, reconnect with himself and his family, Shawn convinced his family to go sailing. To do so he left corporate North America and started his own business; A business that he could run from anywhere, so long as he had access to his laptop, cellphone, and a nearby airport. When his son graduated high school he proclaimed that his first year of college would major in living. His wife took a year’s leave of absence and away they went in search of the balance they each needed.

Now he’s on a mission to help others find success by remaining focused on living a balanced life.