Thinking

Essays on Building, Leading,
and The Price We Pay.

These are not posts. They are not takes. They are long-form essays written from the inside of a company that has been through things most companies haven't. Read them slowly.

01

Building Without a Map

On founding something the world isn't ready for

There is no playbook for building a company in an industry that doesn't want you to exist. The funeral industry had been doing things the same way for a hundred years. I walked in with a shovel.

12 min readRead Essay
02

I Built the Wrong Thing

On the moment I realized what Return Home was actually for

I spent two years building an environmental company. On the first day we opened, I sat with a family and understood with complete clarity that I had built something entirely different from what I thought. It was better.

9 min readRead Essay
03

The Best Mistake I Ever Made on National Television

On breaking the rules in front of the most intimidating investors in America

Every shark said no. Mark Cuban later said publicly that they blew it. Here is what I was thinking in that room, and why I would do it exactly the same way again.

10 min readRead Essay
04

Leading Through Grief

On what death teaches you about running a company

We sit with families on the worst day of their lives. We hold that space every single day. What I have learned about leadership from standing in those rooms is something no business school teaches.

11 min readRead Essay

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