Jarvis Boards

Tony Smith, Founder

I was selling mutual funds before starting Jarvis Boards. I was good at it and enjoyed it. But it just wasn’t quite there. I was always building things as a kid, and was so passionate about it. That rewarding feeling and the joy that comes from seeing something tangible that you’ve made. I just can’t fathom how bad it would’ve been if I never took that chance to see if I could’ve made it with that. You see other, older people who never took that leap, and there’s a real regret that eats them up later in life. A lot of people say, ‘I’ll do that when I’m older.’ But they don’t do it — life happens. They lose the zeal. And I think that seems like a sad way to live, to have that longing of not having at least tried. I’ve met others who’ve followed a similar path as mine and there are very few people who’ve regretted taking their leap, whatever it was. And the few who do end up regretting it, they figure it out. Like with us — we’re growing, but if it doesn’t pan out, I can always go back to selling mutual funds.

Tony’s Austin Must: You’ve got to eat some barbecue. The best ones are Franklin’s, Terry Black’s, Rudy’s and la Barbecue. They’re all gonna be really, really good. Or head to Lake Travis, on the outskirts of town. There’s cliff jumping and rock climbing. It’s really cool.