hey, it’s tyler. nice to see you.

this website is always changing as i change. i’m probably more like you than different. i like deep conversations, building on ideas, and learning through people. i’m interested in the places where technology, taste, ambition, and capital meet, ideally over food.

i’m still figuring things out, but i know i like building, learning, and finding new ways to live.

i grew up in southern california. for part of my childhood, my family shared a house with three other families. i was always curious, and in third grade my dad gave me rich dad poor dad. i’ve read a lot since then, but that book was the first one that made finance, ownership, and people feel connected. it gave me my first small push toward wanting to understand how the world works.

in middle school, i tried to start a vending machine business. it failed, but it was fun while it lasted. later, sneakers became my first real business education. i got scammed, bought bad shoes, lost money, and learned the hard way. eventually, i started flipping shoes and made what felt like a fortune at the time. more importantly, i learned about taste, timing, demand, trust, resale, and negotiation. everything started to look like some version of buying low, selling higher, and understanding what people value.

the more personal side of my life came through service. when i was younger, i would go with my church to homeless shelters. i remember being told that i made someone’s day, even though all i did was smile. that stayed with me. it taught me that people want to be seen, and that sometimes the smallest gesture can make someone feel human again.

i carried that with me into organizations like operation be kind, where i helped create and distribute goodie bags with deodorant, toothbrushes, toothpaste, and other essentials. later, after my mother was diagnosed with arthritis, the arthritis foundation became personal to me. every year, i help organize a 5k run at angels stadium with a team of people working to raise awareness and support for those affected by arthritis.

after high school, i was still trying to understand who i was and what kind of life i wanted to build. i read a lot, questioned a lot, and became interested in purpose, leverage, and how people choose the work they give themselves to.

then i worked at a startup. the hours were intense. at 17, i got a small taste of what execution actually feels like. it taught me the difference between liking entrepreneurship and doing the work. it also taught me that life is a game of leverage, and that the right people, systems, and ideas can compound.

i came to uc irvine, had a ton of fun, joined a business fraternity, and eventually found something i really enjoyed: finance. i blame the sneaker business. i set investment banking as my north star before i really knew whether i could get there. the process changed me. it shaped how i think, how i talk to people, how i build my environment, and how i stretch toward things that feel slightly out of reach.

recruiting taught me to focus on what i could control. stress became a signal that there was work to do. a lot of nights were spent staring at screens, pressing send on emails, reading more, and trying again. eventually, i got there. that experience reaffirmed one of the core ideas in my life: you are only one yes away. multiply your luck.

right now, i’m taking a gap year for 2026 to 2027 to find something meaningful to work toward. i’m doing venture work, exploring entrepreneurship through acquisition, spending a summer in new york, meeting founders, building projects, and trying to become a little better than i was yesterday.

this site is a record of that process.