From Pure Thoughts and Scripture to Violence, Porn and Rock: Me at Microsoft and Me at Shopify, a Year Later

The recent articles about high-profile resignations — one from Goldman Sachs, another from Google — reminded me that it was about a year ago when I decided to move on from Microsoft and join Shopify. I don’t regret that decision at all: look at the difference it’s made! (Microsoft me is pictured above on the left, Shopify me is the guy on the lower right.) I’m living a rather untethered, start-uppy life, playing with cool tech, making a difference in ways you might not expect, and smiling all the way — expect when I’m showing my violence/porn/rock “O-face”, of course.

I don’t think it’s quite time to put the whole story of my departure in print, but it should suffice to say that it’s high-larious and spoken of loudly and with much laughter over beers in many a pub, and quietly with much side-to-side glancing within the halls of The Empire. What I will say is that I signed my Shopify offer letter in the lobby bar of the Omni Austin Hotel in the wee hours of the morning at South by Southwest 2011 and filed my resignation over a Shiner Bock at the bar by near my gate at Austin Bergstrom airport. I’ve been knee-deep in violence, porn and rock ever since!