I asked Andrew, "May I quote you on that?" He told me that if he says it, he's not uncomfortable with being quoted on it. I try my best to surround myself with people with that kind of authenticity and tenacity. Andrew is not one who's short on ideas. Since our previous years spending time at HQ Raleigh, a collaborative co-working environment in the City of Oaks, we've spent hours dissecting concepts. The day we had this interview, Andrew had just gotten back to Raleigh from the Bay area to visit. What did we talk about? The topics ranged from cryptocurrency, one-to-one marketing and life in the Silicon Valley. But, the conversation that stuck out to me the most was education."I think of skills as something organic. It happens little by little," Andrew stated. As someone who's read books on concepts like "essentialism", economic development, charity and consistently has experienced mentors in my life, I would agree with Andrew. We both believe that sustainable education happens outside of the classroom. Not to say that it cannot be cultivated in formal education; I think that's where it should be catalyzed. But, when students get off the school bus and go home, they need to be passionate about learning something by their own initiative. "It brings me joy to see young people taking advantage of opportunities to grow and do things," Andrew expressed. He doesn't care so much about the "Elon Musks" of the bunch. Andrew cares about the 17-year old kid from Johnston County that he found on Twitter who obsesses over web development and teaching through videos after finishing homework. Andrew and I harbor the same passion of discovering young, hidden and audacious talent in the unknown crevices of our community. It's because there were leaders who found Andrew and I years ago. What's ironic is that, even if they didn't discover us, we were going to chase our fears and put our drive to grow at a position of prominence, regardless. That discipline looks like apprenticeships, buying leaders coffee to pick their brain, carrying a journal everywhere we went, reading, reading, reading and refining our craft. It also looks like reading. I don't think a piece of paper is needed to validate someone's intelligence. You can grasp some of their curiosity in their presence, words and actions. Educate yourself on what you truly desire.