Why I joined Heartland Ventures

I was born at the Ohio State Medical Center and spent the first 18 years of my life within 15 miles of that hospital. The Midwest is an incredible place to grow up, but it was generally accepted that you had to get out — to New York, LA, San Francisco — if you wanted any real opportunity to be successful. Geographic FOMO. This “success” was never really defined, but it was clear that many people thought the coastal metropolises were somehow superior to a city like Columbus.

I now know I was wrong, and yet I fear the perceived…