One of many stories
The “tell me about yourself” introduction to any new interaction always feels like a ridiculous, rhetorical question that no one could possibly answer. So when I’m here writing an About Me page, it feels like a culmination of all those conversations that are met with surface-level responses that don’t begin to tell anyone much about anything. But I can try to break Ian Standard down here as we start to get to know each other.
Today, I’m a coach, a husband, a dad, a friend. I’m a novice runner, mountain biker, skier, woodworker, chef, bike mechanic, and teacher. There are plenty of other things I do and have experienced, but I don’t let them define me.
Mostly, I’m just a person looking to help others live a happy life, even when shit gets hard.
I’m a man born and raised in the heart of the US where “Midwest Nice” thrives in every nook, cranny, and cornfield. The politeness that’s stereotypical of midwesterners always felt superficial to me. People were all hiding little bits of themselves. Even as I hid my authentic self from the world too, It never sat right with me.
As a teenager, I started exploring the outdoors, discovering more of myself through engaging with nature, and learning who I could become. Through the awkward growing pains of my teen years and early twenties, many things came and went as I struggled with my identity but the outdoors was a constant. And to be honest, without my time in nature, my life, my identity, and everything I do would be defined by everyone around me, rather than by myself.
My adult life has been a path through wild and tame spaces alongside those trying to become better. I worked as a mentor in wilderness therapy, and an educator bringing leadership and personal growth into schools around the world. Now, my path has brought me to coaching, where I work with people who are in the same spot I was a while back.
Being a person can feel really hard.
Being a happy one doesn’t have to be.
Home is in the mountains of Greece where I wander and play with my loving partner, our son, and dog alongside us ready for wherever we may end up.