The Moment | Erik Newcomb

We believe that life is a collection of Moments. Some ever so big, some fleeting, some small. It is in these Moments and the choices we make within them, that shape the people we become and what our lives will stand for.

We are reaching out to the most interesting, inspiring & successful leaders around the world to ask them about their Moments. In the spirit of our number one value, collaboration, our goal with this series is for you to experience development and enrichment from today's most inspirational leaders. 

You will find Erik on the pristine beaches of Sydney, Australia chasing sunrise with his trusty sidekick Blue. In his spare time, Erik is leading the explosive global growth of coveted eyewear brand Bailey Nelson.
Hailing from Michigan and spending time building his career in Chicago, LA, Vancouver + Sydney. Erik is an inspiring individual, deeply connected to his personal development + on the continuing quest of discovering his own true purpose and highest contribution. As a leader, his inner peace and generosity set him apart in a way that only comes from experiencing this life in all its abundance. 

Erik, tell us about the moment.......

You realized you were in the presence of a great leader/teacher...
I have been fortunate enough to cross paths with a number of really talented and inspiring leaders/mentors in my journey, but what we going to do right here is go back, way back, back into time… to one of my first and most impressionable coaches during my teenage years. #tbt to freshman year of high school, the basketball team, and Coach Smiley.  It was the first time that I experienced a leader that not only motivated me to do well in sport, but also took time to care about each of us on the team as individual people with great futures ahead.  Aside from the normal basketball skills practices, we had “classroom sessions” on things like setting goals, defining success, being upstanding young gentleman around school, on the court, and in our personal lives... and ok maybe a few tips on talking to the ladies, or strategically using our trapper keepers to cover up excitement from said talking to ladies now that we were in grade 9!  I mean, sure we got drilled with running laps until our legs gave out, but being taught what it really meant to be part of a tightly connected team…all while feeling individually valued and that he had our backs at any time on and off the court was such a rewarding feeling.  Did I mention we went 28-0 that season?  On the more recent, and professional side, I was part of an executive self-development program and was partnered with 2 leaders in my group who taught me so much about myself through embodying the highest levels of leadership, execution and most importantly fun themselves.  My admiration is quite high for these two.  (C & T, you know who you are)

You knew you were on the right path in your career......
Sometimes I still wonder if I’m yet to have found that right path.  I love what I do, but there is a sneaky little feeling that keeps popping up saying “maybe there is something else that I am meant to be doing…”  The path that led me to where I am today, while quite fun and rewarding, has largely been evolving with each day and each role that comes along.  I started in retail, somewhat accidentally, when my dreams of sexy investment banking didn’t unfold as planned.  (I hated wearing suits anyways) From then on, it’s been a series of steps into the unknown… I moved from Retail Operations to Asset Protection without a lick of experience or knowledge of what roles & opportunities lay ahead, I moved from a widely popular apparel brand to a newer company with a tiny team and no real knowledge of what the future department would even look like, and most recently I took a leap around the world to grow into the start-up space.  The adventure and enjoyment has been real, and the learning curve keeps it fresh… but am I on the right track?  I feel that I am where I am supposed to be for now, and that my biggest step in the right direction is yet to come.

You failed.....
2012 when my brother passed. I failed often and I failed hard. I was used to being able to shape my life around me.  Job, social, dating, emotions (to a fault) … all consciously & subconsciously manicured for a comfortable and safe little life. But what I didn’t see was that I was probably too selfish, too rigid, too afraid of who knows what, and too protected by a giant wall of safe-guarding that it prevented me from just letting go and living a fun and positive life.  So when I got the news that he passed, and as the grief took its ice-cold grip (something I absolutely had no control over whatsoever), it hit me HARD.  I went through a very rough patch where I tried to make it still look great on the outside, but lost it all on the inside. I closed myself off to my friends, lost the love of my life and relationship that mattered the world to me, struggled to keep work going and just wasn’t myself to anyone around me.  It has now been 5 years and I still struggle often.  But it also taught me such a valuable lesson of what you can and can’t control in life.  About what really matters in life.  About how to learn & adapt, and what really matters in how you treat those you love around you, and even when its ok to ask for help and understanding where needed. 

You chose something different than what was expected of you....
I struggle with this.  I struggle with how things look to others, what people are going to think of me, what is expected of me, and subsequently fall back into the shadows of a conservative and sheltered day-to-day life without taking much chance.  Sometimes my choices and actions feel quite repetitive, predictable, and boring vs going out and seizing adventure and new experiences, even though my inner voice is telling me that I would enjoy it. Is it better to get the same thing on the menu that you know you’re going to absolutely love, or try something new that might be sh*t or might expand your horizons to something you never knew possible?  I don’t know… maybe that is how I got the nickname Eeyore from Winnie the Pooh?!  Monotone, slow, frumpy, and predictable in response.  Ha! 

You wake. And the ritual you have to start your day....
The Ocean, the waves and being one with nature. It calms me and puts me at peace.  A sunrise surf, paddling out at dawn, through the ocean mist and smoothly gliding over the glass-like grey water before the sun comes up.  Once you’re past the white water break its almost silent.  You, your thoughts, and the serenity of nature before the hectic day begins.  If it’s not a surf, then it’s a walk with my golden retriever Blue down the beach.  (#walkswithblue) I try to approach mornings at a leisurely pace… fresh out of the water from an early morning surf, I have coffee & breakfast in hand and start the day when I’m relaxed and ready, not when the clock tells me to.

You made your best hire....
You are the company you keep. I have worked with strong teams and inspiring people at each of the companies I previously worked for.  I am most proud of my team at lululemon that came together over a few years of departmental growth and strategic hires.  What makes it the best is seeing how passionate they are and how far they have come along as they have grown into their roles.  They achieved amazing results, but what I really loved seeing were the new responsibilities they took on and strong positive recognition they received for being stand up individuals and showing up as business partners first, Asset Protection partners second, that make me the proudest.  To have my successor from my previous role write a few months after I left and say how proud I should be of the team I helped develop and lead was a really special moment for me.

You felt the most successful in life....
When I moved from Chicago to LA in 2009 I hit a stride and uncovered a future that I didn’t know could exist.  West Coast, Best Coast right? For me it was transformational in a sense that I realized I had choice in my life. Many graduates from Michigan end up in Chicago, following the Big 10 stampede to the big city, as did I for an amazing 7 years.  But then I moved out west, and I uncovered a new lifestyle based on being active instead of which bar had the best all you can drink special for example.  I started to expand my horizons into new friends, new sports, new ways of looking at life politically, religiously socially and things started clicking for me in life.  New achievements, new levels of growth and new levels of satisfaction unfolded almost in sync.  That stride then unlocked a whole new potential in me.  It started me on a path of great friends and great contributions at work, without which I wouldn’t be where I am today.  (I mean if you had told the Chicago Erik that the LA & Vancouver Erik would then be into things like surfing, long mountain hikes, reiki, kombucha and acupuncture he would have laughed 10 times over!)

You received feedback that was hard to hear but worth listening...
“Why do you think this keeps happening to you… you’re never going to learn if you don’t look inside first and make changes instead of only looking outwards and finding what’s wrong with everything/one else.”  Hard truths in life, love and happiness all centred around selfishness, blame, and not taking responsibility. 

You chose to walk away from someone or something...
Leaving a great life in Vancouver for a chapter yet to be written in Sydney – part a global adventure, part “holy fuck I’m half way around the world and what did I just do…”  It took me a good 12 months to fully come around on that one. But for each door that closes, a new one opens, and while it might be scary heading into the unknown, it usually yields some pretty great opportunities on the other side.   Who wants to come visit… no seriously?

Bit of more than you could chew....
When frustration or judgement creep in, I tend to go to a place of “I’ll just do it” or “here, give it to me, I can do it better.” That certainly doesn’t serve me or others well. While I can thrive in high stress and heavy workload environments, it has also fallen down on me more times than I care to count.  I have learned to put trust in those around me and to empower others to contribute to my life in their own unique and creative ways. You’d be amazed at all that you can learn and uncover that way.

Saw yourself & your true potential...
I was chosen to present at an International Asset Protection industry conference to a few hundred of my peers.  I knew we had a great story to tell based on the work my team was doing, but to be able to create an experience for people attending, that challenged thoughts, potentially pushed some buttons, but most importantly brought them along on the innovative journey we were on triggered a belief in me that shattered thoughts of “not enough experience,” “too junior,” or “not in line with the industry…”  I saw my ability to lead, to engage others and to carry a vision forward in that moment and haven’t looked back since.

You understood advice your parents gave you (what was it?)....                                                 

“Say please and thank you, and always greet people with a smile.” I might have fought them tooth and nail growing up around rules, life lessons & such that I couldn’t fully understand and appreciate at a younger age.  And I certainly didn’t appreciate that my perceived “strict parenting” at the time was them just caring for me as much as possible until much later.  Now I look back at it so fondly and am so grateful for the invaluable things they taught me, mainly to be a stand-up gentleman.  Of course, there is also “drive for show and putt for dough…” from my dad. I never did spend enough time on the practice putting green!