I have a unifying thesis to my existence:
REMOVE FEAR FROM EVERYDAY LIFE.
Whether advanced through the companies I create or invest in, the stories I tell, or the social impact and innovation I support, this is my raison d'être.
Neil St. Clair
POLYMATH WITH PURPOSE
I take a truly interdisciplinary approach to life, interconnected by one theme: whatever it is I am doing, it must remove fear from somebody's life. Fear is one of our most powerfully hindering emotions—imagine if we could control it, or even abolish it.
I am a tech founder, investor, and former television journalist and marketing leader. Today, I work with founders and next-generation family office principals on developing their social enterprises and fintech startups. I am also a partner in an insurtech VC/PE firm and make personal investments through my own vehicle, NES Impact. I tell stories on a variety of platforms, including my blog and podcast, and convene interesting people through my private membership society, The Corsair.
Finally, I endeavor to bring men, non-intrusively, into the causes and rights of women through my NextMen Foundation. I've also spent the last several years mentoring underrepresented venture founders while fighting to raise awareness for child sexual abuse prevention. But, at the end of the day, family comes first, and I remind myself, I'm just a high-class Jersey Boy.
TO BE AN ACTOR RATHER THAN A CRITIC.
It is better to be making the news than taking it;
Sir Winston Churchill, The Story of the Malakand Field Force (1898)
Founder
REMOVING FEAR OF THE ECONOMY, RISK, & FAILURE
I'm a six-time founder with ventures in media, insurtech, membership clubs, financial technology, and secondary marketplaces. A few succeeded, a few didn't. I'll let you guess which ones and from which I learned the most. I'm currently working on several new projects as a founder and investor all while sharing my confusion and network with rising entrepreneurs. I'm also serving as a senior operating partner with several early-stage companies and venture funds.
It is not the critic who counts; not the [person] who points out how the strong [person] stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better.
THE CREDIT BELONGS TO THE [PERSON] WHO IS ACTUALLY IN THE ARENA
...so that [their] place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.
President Theodore Roosevelt, Citizenship in a Republic (Delivered at the Sorbonne, Paris, 1910)
Storyteller
REMOVING THE FEAR OF IGNORANCE, SILENCE, & BEING UNSEEN
I've been fortunate to spend much of my life telling stories—as a television show and podcast host, an on-camera journalist, a national columnist, docuseries executive producer, and I even dabbled in a little poetry and formal debate. I continue my efforts as a digital impresario and creator, and, shortly, will add author to my curriculum vitae.
MY CURRENT THINKING
provided my deeds live after me.
I care not though I were to live but one day and one night...
Cú Chulainn, Ancient Irish Mythological Figure
Philanthropist
REMOVING THE FEAR OF PHYSICAL HARM, INEQUALITY, & THE FUTURE
I have a broad passion for using innovation and investment to create social impact. More specifically, I focus my philanthropic efforts on making the world more just, equitable, and inclusive for children, women, and those seeking enlightenment through the worlds of competitive debate, entrepreneurship, and the arts.
