That phrase filled my notebooks starting back in sophomore year of high school. I’d find myself in class daydreaming of trekking through the jungle in Southeast Asia or exploring the savanna in Africa. My heroes were Steve Irwin and later Anthony Bourdain, men who explored the world through the lens of their passion and shared their experiences along the way. I aspire to do the same thing albeit doing so through the framework of what I’m passionate about: people,  construction, cooking, geography and sport. 

I credit much of the fascination of the world to my pops. He instilled a love of geography and a love of people in me. He would always ask someone where they were from and would bring out an atlas to see exactly which town or neighborhood they grew up. He desired to more clearly understand how a place shapes a person and a culture and so do I. This  hereditary instinct lead me to skip math homework in high school for studying maps.  I tried to identify different languages on the street and researched specific economic factors that influenced places. This led me to study abroad for six months in Hanoi, Vietnam when I was 19. A year later, I studied in Barranquilla, Colombia for another six months. I graduated from Colorado State University with two degrees – one in construction management and another in Spanish. I used these concentrations to achieve a childhood dream – to build landmark projects in Colorado. I can honestly say I achieved that dream, working for Mortenson Construction as construction engineer on the Denver International Airport Transit Center & Westin Hotel, the Colorado State University Football Stadium (Canvas Stadium) and the Mission Ballroom.

Through it all, the phrase Be a Man of the World was always in the back of my head. To me, it is the ultimate goal. It is a constant call to action rather than a title that you achieve. It represents self-awareness in a global setting no matter if you’re in Nebraska or Hong Kong. It means being open to new perspectives but simultaneously being courageous and standing up for our own convictions. It means maintaining our curiosity, constantly learning and challenging one another to expand past our comfort zones.  It means learning how things are built and the realities of global development. It means knowing how to be respectful in different parts of the world. It is NOT gloating about how many countries you’ve been to, but rather humbly extracting as much from each interaction and each place. I hope you share this wonder of the world and join me as we explore foreign places, learn human stories and meet other men and women who profoundly experience the world.   -Lane