Who Needs a Watch These Days Anyway?!

April 20, 2017

If you want to know how valuable Chris Wilson is to me without my “brother from another mother” I’m not sure I’d still be married today

20 years of doing anything together is a celebration worthy wouldn’t you agree? The marketers tell us we are supposed to purchase platinum jewelry for our spouses after being together that long. Historically businesses recognize this milestone by giving employees watches. Fortunately, I’m not married to any of my teammates so I don’t have to worry about platinum but the reality is watches are just way too vanilla for my style.

My philosophy on living a good life is that it’s best enjoyed by creating special experiences with your family and the other people you love.

That’s how I found myself yesterday chasing wild boars behind baying hounds in backwater Georgia! Chris Wilson aka “Mini-Me” is an outdoorsman extraordinaire who’s starting his 21st year at Aquascape. My newly established goal as a business owner is to do something unique and ideally adventurous with every teammate who survives the 20-year mark working with me. I traveled with my longest teammate, Ed Beaulieu, to West Papua Indonesia last fall for a successful Scientific Expedition with Heiko Bleher that fulfilled a lifetime bucket list of his by discovering seven new species of fish!

Like everyone who’s been at Aquascape as long as Chris we literally grew up together. These guys all feel like the brothers I never had. Chris has a special place in my heart as he took over my baby, the Aquascape Winter Seminar tour, that consumed my life traveling to over 60 cities every year. Not only did this earn Chris the moniker “Mini Me” since he literally memorized verbatim, my entire training seminar, but by doing so he kept my wife happy by allowing me the luxury to stay home with our newborn son.

You spend more time with the people you work with than anyone sometimes even family. I’m a blessed man to not only love what I do but love the people I get to do it with as well. Here’s to 21 years together and counting Chris Wilson. Thanks for your loyalty and friendship