Today we’d like to introduce you to Dan Higgs Matzner.
Hi Dan, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
Generally, I see myself as an average person. Although, when I write it out, it can sound a bit more fantastical. I’m an adopted Korean and Filipino kid who grew up first on a Rammstein Army Base (where my dad was stationed) and spent time in both Louisiana and Farmington, MN before my family made our final relocation to Wauwatosa, WI, where I did grade school through high school. After graduating from high school, I moved to Minneapolis to attend the Bachelor of Science: Visualization program (as it was known at that point) at the Minneapolis College of Art and Design. I had lofty dreams of being a film director but found a similar vibe in some projects I helped manage in my classes. I’m married with two lovely kids. My partner, Emmy, is my consistent “Let’s get it done” person. It is the perfect foil to my “Wouldn’t this be cool” mindset. I joke about it a lot, but I often mean it: my successes in life have usually come from working with people who are way more talented than myself. I put exciting and talented people together so that they can make cool stuff. A fantastic team is invaluable in my professional and creative life outside of work.
Let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what challenges have you had to overcome?
In my own opinion, I think my life has been pretty damn smooth. I’ve (probably in a vain way) tried to come up with a sweeping growth story where I overcame incredible odds to get where I am if I were ever to be interviewed for an inspirational personal profile. (Oh, hi!) As I said, I was adopted from Seoul, South Korea, when I was 6 months old to two loving Midwestern parents, Dawn and Don. I have a brother who is 5 years older than I am. I often think about how adoption can lead to different “finding myself” story arcs, but being a brown kid of a white family, I didn’t really have any questions about being adopted. My family loves me, and I love them. I grew up in a middle-class Midwest home where we didn’t have a lot, but I never felt like I went wanting. We didn’t have a lot, but I never went wanting. I never truly felt discriminated against for the color of my skin, although I’ve found since then that my parents often did a pretty broad job protecting me from instances where it may have come up. I feel all the building blocks of an inspirational made-for-TV biography are there, but honestly, whenever I’ve had it hard, I can still find 100 different ways that I’m a fortunate person living a very charmed life.
Thanks – so, what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
In my professional life, I work with Best Buy on their Affiliate Marketing team. In short – Affiliate Marketing is paying other websites to send traffic to your website to buy something. Once again, I rely on more talented teams and individuals to help me succeed. What I love and thrive on from my job is the relationships I get to build. I love talking to others. Internally, external partners are building things for us at Best Buy, and vendors are making our products. There’s plenty of forecasting, prepping, and asset management, lots of your standard “Big Company” functions that I need to do, but there isn’t quite anything like sitting down with a partner to talk about “what’s next.” I’m great at talking about nice-to-haves; my real job is to try and surround myself with enough of the people that can make it happen. Outside my professional and family worlds, my most significant commitment is the soccer league I co-run with my good friend Aaron. MPLSSL is an adult co-ed soccer league that has grown to 10 teams with over 120 active members and has been running for 12 years. Aaron and I were granted the responsibility of running the league from its founders, Evan and Elena, in 2022. The league is a community-funded and run collective where the Number 1 Rule of the league is “Don’t be an a******. We’ve continued to grow the community and now play all year round, moving from our summer location at Windom Park in NE Minneapolis to 9th Street Soccer and Coffee in the winter.
Any advice for finding a mentor or networking in general?
I am horrible at asking for help, and I’ve learned through regularly messing up that you need to listen to those people who tell you how it should have gone afterward. That person might only sometimes be correct, but opening yourself up to listen and take even a piece of their advice onboard is very important. One of my former bosses gave me one of those growth or career parables, essentially equating to “Don’t be the smartest person in the room.” That’s not very difficult for me, but hearing, learning, and being inspired by others who have grander experiences than I have become invaluable. Involve yourself. Even when you don’t know what’s going on, if you’re interested, someone will be there to foster that interest and help you grow.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dhmchronicles/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/danhiggs9/
Image Credits
Dan and Emmy on a beach on Anna Maria Island.
