Surprising Things Podcast Guests Do in Their Spare Time

Amy Young

After being gifted a home brewing kit for her birthday, Amy Young, who structures strategic partnerships in financial services for Microsoft, has taken up the hobby of brewing craft beer. She says it pairs well with her love of entertaining: “When you have 10 gallons of beer in your basement at any given time, it’s a good thing to have other people come around and help you drink it,” she said.

Ken Dychtwald

AgeWave CEO and founder Ken Dychtwald, PhD, shared a tradition that’s as touching as it is unique. Each year on their anniversary, he and Maddy, his wife of over 40 years, get remarried—each time in a different place and with a different religion. When they were first married in 1983, Ken said to her: “This was so much fun, I’d love to marry you every year.” They’ve done just that.

Jeffrey Levi

Jeffrey Levi, principal at Casey Quirk Deloitte, shared that he is a “big player of bocce.” He and his group, the Ridgefield Eight, currently hold the Guinness World Record for the longest bocce marathon: They were on the court for 33 hours. Impressive.

Lori Hardwick

After moving to Rehoboth Beach, DE, WealthTech Legend Lori Hardwick took up a new hobby in her spare time—oyster gardening. She says it only takes about 20 minutes a month.

Cheryl Nash

When we last spoke with Cheryl Nash, President, APL at InvestCloud, she shared a heartwarming story of a special Christmas gift she gave to each of her daughters—a cookbook filled with her recipes and those from her mother and grandmother.

Steve Gresham

Steve Gresham of Next Chapter is a repeat guest who’s answered this question in several ways, each one more interesting than the last. Jack especially enjoyed when Steve showed him a bowl that he carved from local cherry wood, displaying his master woodworking skills.

Ainslie Simmonds

For Ainslie Simmonds, president of BNY Pershing , “one startup isn’t enough.” She put her passion for sustainability into action, co-founding with her husband a company with the goal of digitizing recycling.

Matthew Gray

Matthew Gray, vice president, employer markets at Allianz Life, has a goal to climb the high point in every state. So far, he’s done 22 of the 51 (if you count Reno Point in Washington, D.C.). When he last visited the podcast, he was preparing to give Mount Rainier another try.

Ryan VanGorder

A self-proclaimed “masochist for adventure and fun,” Opto Investment CEO Ryan VanGorder shared his passion for the multi-disciplinary endurance sport of adventure or expedition racing. The sport is intense, sometimes with days-long team races consisting of sports such as mountain biking, kayaking, and running. The sport has taken him all over the world as he has completed more than 30 expedition races.

Scott Stolz

The former managing director of iCapital is an avid collector of sports memorabilia. Scott Stolz owns a book with pictures of every single baseball card printed by Topps from 1951 to 1985. He’s currently on a quest to get as many signatures from the players on those cards as possible. After 15 years, he has the signatures of 260 players and over 500 total signatures. 

Mark Paulson

Mark Paulson is the vice president of global hedging business development at Allianz Life. In his spare time, he enjoys restoring fiberglass boats from the late 60s to the mid-80s. “I can clean them up, get the engine working, use them and enjoy them for a season or two, and then let someone else enjoy it,” he said.

Mike Capelle

Modern Wealth Management co-founder and co-CEO Mike Capelle shared his hobby of growing fruit trees. His backyard orchard in Southern California contains apricots, plums, oranges, avocados, and figs.

Fred Barstein

Fred Barstein, founder of The Retirement Advisor University and The Plan Sponsor University, has meditated two hours a day for the past 12 years. He also attends a 10-day silent retreat annually. Fred credits meditation with boosting his productivity and professional success.