Meet Steven MacLeroy

Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Steven MacLeroy. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Steven, so great to have you with us and thanks for taking the time to share your thoughts with the community. So, let’s jump into something that stops so many people from going after their dreams – haters, nay-sayers, etc. We’d love to hear about how you dealt with that and persisted on your path.

The haters and nay-sayers are the exact thing that has driven me to come this far. When I was first telling people that I was moving across the country to start my own company, I was met with a lot of confused faces and doubt. A lot of people thought I should just get a regular 9-5 and that it would be stable and I would be happy. I have known for a very long time that staying still is not for me. I am 22 and have already been to 31 states. In all of those journeys, I have met some of the most amazing and encouraging people. Those people have helped me come this far, but the haters and nay-sayers are what drive me. It’s like a big “I told you so” when things go my way. It also just proves to myself that I am able to do it. Is running the company what I do full-time? No. I work as a swim instructor in Denver. That’s because we aren’t making enough money to not work another job. Although, we are quickly working towards that goal. Hopefully within the next year, this is what I do full-time.

Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?

What I do can get a little complicated but here goes nothing. Myself along with two other guys that I graduated college with have started a company called FST Dynamics, but we are slightly better known for our storm chasing brand the Twister Fisters. FST Dynamics is an instrumentation company mainly. We build weather instruments and we can also be contracted to do a number of things. Whether you need new code written for your instrumentation package, you need help maintaining your weather station network, or you need us to run your radar, we have experience doing it.
The Twister Fisters on the other hand, is us going out and documenting our storm chases and collecting scientific data near tornadoes. While the name may be a little silly, this side of the company is meant to be this way. We are out there bridging the gap between science and entertainment. We already have several datasets from very close to tornadoes that we have been combing over, the most recent was actually just on June 5th. We were only 80 feet from a strong tornado and measured a wind speed of 97mph in the outer circulation of the tornado. We are still going through data, but we will be posting it soon on our social media platforms. We are also excited to launch our merch line, there is no set release date yet, but it will be pretty soon. We did just move across the country 2 weeks ago after all, so we are still getting settled.

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?

Three things that definitely helped on my journey was being sociable, never stop learning, and adaptability.

Being sociable helped us majorly, whether we were at networking events, conferences, or just out living life, we’ve met some incredible people who’ve supported us in big ways. You never know who you’ll run into or how that connection might help down the line.

The second point on this list was never stop learning. I’ll admit, when I first started this journey, I knew nothing about running a business, writing contracts, or managing taxes. That list could go on forever. You’ll never know everything, and that’s okay. Ask for help when you need it. I’d much rather someone tell me they don’t understand than pretend they do and cause a bigger issue later. There’s no shame in learning as you go.

Finally, be adaptable. Being adaptable will help you in the long run. Sometimes the thing you’re most trained in isn’t what’s needed in the moment. Learn as much as you can in as many areas as you can, it’ll make you more useful to your team and much harder to replace. The more versatile you are, the more valuable you become.

Alright, so before we go we want to ask you to take a moment to reflect and share what you think you would do if you somehow knew you only had a decade of life left?

If I only had one decade of life left, I would travel as much as I possibly could during that time. I would make sure to go to my dream destinations, but also to those places where you think on and wonder how you ended up there. I would want to see as many cultures and meet as many people as possible during that time. It it one of the things I love to do now. When I travel, I always try and meet knew people, talk to them about their lives, and ask for advice that I can use in life. I have met so many amazing people and done so many things, all without leaving the US, than I ever imagined possible. One person that sticks out to me is Bob that I met in Illinois at a Love’s Truck Stop while I was headed to North Dakota. That seems like the only way I would want to spend my last decade.

Contact Info:

• Website: fstdynamics.com & twisterfisters.com
• Instagram: @twisterfisters
• Twitter: @twisterfisters
• Youtube: Twister Fisters

Image Credits

Steven MacLeroy (me)