“From Avocation To Vocation: How I Turned My Hobby Into A Career” with Brian Morgan founder and CEO of Adventure Life

As a part of our series about entrepreneurs who transformed something they did for fun into a full-time career, I had the pleasure of interviewing Brian Morgan is founder and CEO of Adventure Life, an adventure travel company with trips worldwide. He founded the company in 1999 with little more than a cellphone and a laptop. Since then, his company has grown to serve more than 7,000 travelers each year with 43 full-time staff in Missoula. Adventure Life has been nationally recognized for its outstanding itineraries in such places as The New York Times, USA Today, National Geographic Traveler and more. Outside Magazine has repeatedly honored Adventure Life as one of the Best Places to Work in the U.S., and Inc. Magazine has included Adventure Life five times in its list of 5000 fastest growing companies. In addition to Adventure Life, Brian is on the College of Humanities and Sciences Advisory Board at the University of Montana, is a mentor for the Blackstone LaunchPad at UM, has served on the board of Missoula Medial Aid and volunteered regularly with UM’s Business Startup Challenge. His other business pursuits include building several small apartment buildings in Missoula and investing in a local bank.

Thank you so much for doing this with us! Can you tell us a bit about your “childhood backstory”?

I was born and raised in Havre, Montana, a small town of approximately 10,000 people where the next larger town is nearly two hours away and only about 60,000 people. As a kid, it was idyllic. During summer breaks, I remember being gone all day playing with neighborhood friends with the only requirement being to come home for dinner and before it got dark. Later in high school, it seemed like the world was happening far away, so when I left to university in Missoula, I just kept going. Doing an exchange to South Carolina, then to Moscow, Russia, and then just heading off to Ecuador after my degree rather than taking a job right away.

What was the catalyst from transforming your hobby or something you love into a business? Can you share the story of your “ah ha” moment with us?

Not so much of an “ah ha” moment, as an evolution. After spending almost a year in Ecuador with time in Peru and Bolivia, too, I decided I should come home to figure out how to have a career in Montana. I was determined to make it here, and I wanted to do something interesting. While I was applying for jobs, I thought I could put together a small group to take to Ecuador. I thought I would do this once a year to go visit friends. I made a two-week itinerary and plastered fliers up in coffee shops and at the University of Montana. No one called! Still, that process led me to this world of tour companies, and I thought to myself “I can do that.” So, then I figured out my mistakes the first time around, launched a website with help from a friend and told myself I’d do nothing but this for three years. At that anniversary, I decided I would review if I was making it or not. I guess I made it.

There are no shortage of good ideas out there, but people seem to struggle in taking a good idea and translating it into an actual business. How did you overcome this challenge?

Starting at age 25 has its advantages. Sure, I didn’t have any capital, and no bank was going to loan me money just so I could eat and pay rent. Still, I didn’t have many expenses. No health insurance, no car, no student debt, thankfully, either. I just figured this was like going to college. I had to give it everything I had. I lived like a student for a while. Working during the day to pay rent, then working all evening and weekend at Adventure Life. I think I spent around $500 per month for food and rent then. Still, my company needed my time more than anything else, so that’s what I gave it.

What advice would you give someone who has a hobby or pastime that they absolutely love but is reluctant to do it for a living?

It has its pros and cons. The pros include doing something all day long that you are passionate about. The cons are about the same, too — your passion can lose its luster from time to time. Still, I think starting a company related to something I was passionate about is one of the best decisions of my life.

It’s said that the quickest way to take the fun out of doing something is to do it for a living. How do you keep from changing something you love into something you dread? How do you keep it fresh and enjoyable?

I had to find other joys in the company. When I started, it was because I wanted to share some of my favorite places and experiences with others. As the company grew beyond my own personal experiences, I realized that I love problem-solving and building systems, too. So, now I focus on hiring exceptional people, empowering them and thinking about how to adapt to an ever-changing technology environment. I do so surrounded by people who love travel as much as I do, and this is where I keep finding joy in it.

Can you share what was the most striking difference between your actual job and how you thought the job would be?

I sit at a desk! Really, that’s it. Sure, I get to travel to amazing places, but my job has me at my desk. Without this discipline, I’d have no company at all.

Has there ever been a moment when you thought to yourself “I can’t take it anymore, I’m going to get a “real” job? If so how did you overcome it?

Someone once told me that self-employed people become “unemployable” after seven years of running their own business. I don’t think I can work for anyone else at this point. I suppose that is one motivation for me to keep Adventure Life successful! But more seriously, I enjoy the problem-solving, and at this point I can choose the projects that I do and delegate others. It’s really a wonderful place to be.

How have you used your success to make the world a better place?

I’d like to think so. We’ve had a small grant program open to any NGO in the regions we travel. Several employees who are most passionate about giving back choose the projects we fund. We are also deeply involved in International Galápagos Tour Operators Association — a trade group that raises tens of thousands annually for conservation in the Galapagos Islands. Beyond charitable donations, we have inspired some of our travelers to go back repeatedly to some destinations in order to volunteer. I think inspiring people to get involved in conservation is where the real impact has been.