What are your hobbies or relaxations?

I grew up in San Diego near the water and started swimming competitively when I was 5. As a family, we spent nearly every weekend at some swim meet in San Diego County and as a result, I developed a true appreciation for what San Diego has to offer. My hobbies today still revolve around the water: swimming, surfing and paddle boarding. We are huge fans of both the Chargers and the Padres. From a relaxation standpoint, there’s nothing better than just spending a weekend day with my wife and kids at a quiet beach.

Did you ever have a mentor and what did he/she teach you?

I have been so fortunate to have had a number of incredible mentors throughout my life. Starting with my parents who taught me the importance of family, education, integrity and compassion; to my athletic coaches in high school and college that taught me the importance of setting and achieving goals, about competition, discipline and most importantly about sacrificing for the good of a team. From my lifeguarding days at Mission and Pacific Beach, the older guys taught me about working with people from all walks of life and about crisis management in life or death situations. Professionally, I have had exposure to some of the most successful and influential people in San Diego’s history. They have taught me the value of relationships, about striving for excellence and about vision and leadership, and the responsibility that goes along with it. To this day, I continue to try to learn something new from one of my mentors every single day.

Five years from now, the banking industry will…

Look dramatically different than it does today. There will be continued consolidation throughout the financial services industry. The investment banking business will be very different. From a community banking standpoint, the names will be different due to some failures, additional consolidation and undoubtedly, there will be many new banks as well.

What keeps you up at night?

Lately, a number of things, it just depends on which night. The economic environment, our housing situation and since I also lead our health care banking group, the rising cost of health care. Ultimately though, I can usually go back to sleep knowing that I work for a company that embraces our position of leadership and our ability to make a difference. Our belief in the U.S. consumer should be very obvious based on some of our recent strategic decisions. Our commitment to San Diego, the place that I love, runs so deep that most people really can’t fully appreciate all that we are doing in the community.