We had the good fortune of connecting with Paul Fuzinski and we’ve shared our conversation below.
Hi Paul, what habits do you feel play an important role in your life?
I think that being consistent and staying on a regimented schedule have really helped me stay on track over the years. I wake up everyday and do what needs to be done whether its edit video or audio, research guests that are coming on the podcast or making sure everything is being uploaded and files are being managed properly. I also feel that doing things often that make me uncomfortable or that I perceive as being above my sill level really help keep me able to continuously push forward, whether those be physical or mental challenges.
Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I’ve always been drawn to the creative fields. I started my path in going to college for graphic design but then learned that it was not for me so I switched paths and got a degree in anthropology. From there I didn’t really know what I wanted to do with that so I thru-hiked the Appalachian Trail to see if I could figure things out. My passions of learning, asking questions, travel, story telling and the outdoors all merged together when I created Aptitude Outdoors. Here I am able to pursue all my passions of video, audio, the outdoors and conservation all under one roof. Aptitude Outdoors is all about educating people on topics in the outdoors that are often misunderstood and sometimes that means having hard conversations but that’s important and never not worth it. It definitely took a lot of floundering and tough decisions to land here and it is still a work in progress, but I love the challenge of trying to create something from nothing. One of the things I’ve learned along this weird journey is to stay bullheaded because not everyone is going to see your vision and people will say its a waste of time and think you’re crazy but that just comes with the territory. If you think what you’re doing is the right thing then just go full speed ahead and while you’re moving at mach speed you wont be able to stop and hear all the negative things everyone is saying. It’s definitely not an easy path, but it is rewarding at the end of the day knowing that I get to do the things I enjoy.
Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I’m not from Colorado so I’m not sure I’m qualified to answer this question but I do travel quite a bit and am always ending up in unfamiliar places. My first order of importance is to look up a wild place that I can grab a day pack and my camera and head out for a few hours whether to get some wildlife photography or some stunning landscape photos. Then it s either find a place to camp or a rustic Air Bnb to crash where I can cook some food and get some time to take in the scenery.
The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I think a lot of the awesome things I have been able to do have come through the ability to have freedom and the ability to learn about not only business but also about how to manage time and to attempt to create good in the world and nobody embodies that better than one of my mentors and good friends Tony Stuart owner of Friends for Life Residential Care. He has taught me a lot about operating in the world of business but also how to believe in what you are doing even when nobody else sees your vision.
Website: aptitudeoutdoors.com
Instagram: www.instagram.com/aptitudeoutdoors
Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/company/aptitudeoutdoors
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Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aptitudeoutdoors
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/aptitudeoutdoors