Ever stare off into the distance and start to visualize an idea? A system for delivering news online, perhaps. Something so seductively simple that you're inspired to share it with the smartest people you can find. And all of the sudden their collective passion has you up late at night learning new skills to make the idea a reality.

That describes my 13 years with NBC News Digital (formerly msnbc.com networks). Officially, I'm the VP of Creative Development. Something of an executive creative director or head of design. I prefer Idea Guy.

The team I lead is multi-talented: designers, developers and ad experts. We want to make news addictive. And we'll tackle site design, monetization strategy, technical infrastructure, content workflow, analytics--anything that advances our goal.

I worked my way up as a storyteller who could design and code. Interviewed movie moguls, Olympic athletes and politicians, turning their insights into news games. Helped invent a way to deliver 360-degree video I captured in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. Even won top honors from the Online News Association, Knight Foundation, Society for News Design, among others. What a wild ride.

When I'm not imagining the future of news, I dabble in danger, up for anything that slides on water, snow, wind, dirt or pavement. Or I'm helping out as a board member of tSB, a youth mentoring and snowboarding charity here in Seattle.