Learn About Me
This is the story behind over a decade of building products, websites, brands and other media to engage and activate.
My Origin Story
As a millennial who grew up through the late 90s and early 2000s, I discovered my creativity with a backdrop of Clarissa Explains It All, N*SYNC, Tamagotchi, JNCO jeans, and frosted tips.
Like many, my artistic side first manifest via paper and pencil, but I eventually graduated to painting and digital art. In high school, I would even hold my own exhibition in my town's creative arts center. But as encouraging as they were of creativity as a hobby, my family was adamant that there's no living to be made in the arts.
Fun Fact #291
I was a show choir kid. (Yes, I pretty much lived the show Glee.)
As much as I loved being creative, I didn't want to make the wrong choice, which made me indecisive about what I wanted to study.
Growing up in the DMV—i.e. where Virginia, Maryland, and DC sort of blend together—I made frequent trips to visit the National History and American History Museums at the Smithsonian, the Air & Space Museum, and the Baltimore Aquarium. I became enamored by the limitless capacity for human creativity across history, from the cave paintings of Lascaux to painting with an Apple Pencil.
Education
After graduating a year early, I realized attending an out-of-state university was going to be tricky for a minor. Since I still wasn't sure what I wanted to study, I figured I'd enroll in a local school and use the time to explore different fields before turning 18 (and transferring).
Fun Fact #037
I lost track of how many times I changed my major as an undergraduate, but it was enough for it to take me 5 years to get my degree.
That transfer was very close to happening in 2008.
I was accepted into the New York Institute of Technology 5-year architecture program and was so close to transferring that I actually attended the orientation, had been assigned my dorm, and was actively in the process of choosing and registering for my classes.
Ultimately, too few of my credits were going to transfer, which would have meant starting a 5-year program fresh.
When I graduated a couple of years later, I opted to pursue anthropology at the University of Mississippi.
Shepherd University
University of Mississippi
I'm thoroughly impressed! He was honest and had numerous ideas to help push me forward and take it to the next level.
He stays one step ahead and seems to know what is needed before the company even realizes it. You can feel how passionate he is about his work and he takes it seriously.
Dane drives the creative process with impactful solutions and unique strategies, and has a vision for details while hitting key deadlines and managing multiple projects at once.
Let's Connect
I share the techniques, hacks, strategies, and other practical insights I've accumulated over more than a decade in the industry over on LinkedIn.