From a young age, Ethan found his thought processes differed from his peers, which made understanding and communicating with people extremely difficult. It wasn’t until his late 20s that he discovered he likely had undiagnosed Asperger’s, finally giving him a better understanding of his situation. Rather than viewing it as a hindrance, Ethan turned this communication challenge into a superpower.

For Ethan, people are at the heart of everything. The cybersecurity expert and educator’s life has been shaped by his relationships and interactions with others. He says the most important outcome has been the many individuals who have been inspired by him and wanted to join forces to achieve their aims.

Ethan’s passion for mentoring stems from a realization in his youth that he wanted to surround himself with open-minded, genuine people hungry to learn. When he began sharing his own love of learning, he found himself creating environments that attracted like-minded individuals. This led him to education and teaching, fields he sees as critical for fostering open-mindedness, growth, and protecting society – whether through collaborative music performance, cybersecurity, or his “trauma-inspired education” approach of helping people overcome limiting beliefs. Ultimately, Ethan believes humans are innately good, and by gaining awareness of our thought patterns and facing our personal demons, we can all become trustworthy people who act with vision and conviction.