Episode 39: Hoby Darling - From small farming town to public company CEO

Today’s guest is Hoby Darling. Hoby is an accomplished C-suite executive and passionate athlete and adventurer. On the business side, he has been a senior leader for brands such as Nike, Converse, Skullcandy, Astro Gaming and Volcom, as well as being a board director or advisor for organizations in endurance sports, physical regeneration and recovery, and human performance private equity. On the athletic side, Hoby is a certified Crossfit coach, former personal trainer, and multiple time Ironman finisher. Today, his focus is on helping unlock human potential and extending human capabilities as a Senior Executive at Logitech, a global consumer electronics company, and as a Founding Partner at The Liminal Collective, a broader Collective of world-class human performance experts on a mission to push forward the limitless potential of humans. In this interview, we get into Hoby’s small town upbringing, his winding journey from lawyer to CEO of Skullcandy, human performance and well-being, and his current roles at Logitech and Liminal Collective.

Timestamps

00:02:48 How did he get the nickname "Hoby"?

00:04:25 Growing up in a small town

00:13:18 Park City, Utah

00:15:31 Being a product of your environment

00:17:28 College

00:19:31 Dropping out of college and moving to Mexico

00:22:02 The injury that changed his life

00:22:50 Identity changes

00:27:39 Days as a personal trainer

00:30:56 Career aspirations in college

00:32:46 Transition into law

00:41:50 Days as a corporate lawyer

00:49:15 Leaving law to go to Volcom

00:53:15 Learning everything, and outworking everyone

00:55:42 Contrast between Latham and Volcom

00:58:40 Moving to Nike

01:03:38 Role at Nike and working with the best athletes

01:06:21 Demystifying human performance

01:10:34 Becoming the CEO of Skullcandy

01:12:55 Skullcandy turnaround

01:19:02 Leaving Skullcandy

01:22:30 Genesis of Liminal Collective

01:28:08 His driving force

01:29:10 Advice for the busy professional around maintaining an active lifestyle