Hello, HQ

Carry the flame. 

The spark. The embers. The fire.
Go out into the world: Collect, reflect, and tell the stories.
Our story. Her 17.3 story. Their shared story of rebuilding. 
Note: If your eyes started scanning already for the length of this post, and you don't feel like reading the middle section, please feel free to fast-forward to the last paragraph. Otherwise, pour a cup of some jet black coffee, and let's connect on this screen you're reading. 

Media, from the mindset to the mechanics of it, continues to take fascinating turns with each new day. What used to work as a billboard designed in an upscale high-rise for use on the side of a highway has now been replaced [Editors note: Hold up! Edit this out. What you were going to say replaced the billboard has now been replaced in the time spent writing this paragraph. Snapchat, no now Instagram stories, no... wait, FB is bringing it back now.. phew these are fast] … well, it’s been replaced by something else that fits in the hand and is shared with millions instantaneously. 

And yet, no matter what the medium, and no matter the message, the flame of CrossFit burns true through them all. It takes a special team to carry the flame. To remember the old stories, and find the new ones. It takes some special talent to recognize and translate that. It takes doers. Listeners. Seers. Doers who understand what it means to breathe fire. Doers who understand what it means to keep a spark of hope alive for those out in life’s cold seasons who might one day find a home in a puddle of sweat on the floor after getting their first rope climb. Doers, and carriers of the flame in their eyes because they care about you, and you, and her, and him, and even that one tucked away in the back of the room when it comes to 3.. 2.. 1.. Go. Doers who want the best. Who bring the best.

CrossFit HQ, my name is Paul Farmiga. I am a carrier of the flame, and one of the first 200 or so accounts the @CrossFit account followed on Twitter. (Yeah, I notice things like that. Who gets followed how/when/why is an unspoken interesting pattern builder and world-view exposer.) My methods are mechanized in social media, web, tech and the digital world, but my mindset carries the timeless art of storytelling and connecting with people. Old school rules. New school capability. Some call it marketing. Some call it media. I call it “just what I do, and just what you’re looking for.” People matter. I believe that character counts.. and I just so happen to be surgical with social media character-counts and messaging. Click around on Twitter, scroll through my Instagram (@recordstyle), and see a glimpse through the lens of who I am and what I see. 

At work, I manage the accounts for multiple high-profile athletes including Phil Mickelson, Stacy Lewis, and worldwide events such as the KPMG Women’s Leadership Summit and KPMG Women's PGA Championship which include the active participation of Dr. Condoleezza Rice. You better believe that my eyebrows were raised when I saw CrossFit's announcement involving IMG recently, as I regularly work with one of their competitors, CAA. Client side, events side, and working with the agency is a norm.
I've produced TV commercials seen worldwide.
I'm the one corralling the Getty photographers, and I'm always willing to push the envelope for next-level creativity, from drones to Snapchat to Live to 360 cams to cool “what if” projects with the video team that get massaged and picked apart for hours, and hours, and hours, and (…Mariah, Ian, Heber, Ian and team posted a taste of these moments no?) in the studio. You're not looking at a tech junkie or social media addict.. I regularly disconnect and still strive to find the beauty in all that I create and do. 
LOVE my Leica Q!
Similar to ‘the Russels”, I’m monitoring actively and am part of a quick-response risk assessment team should anything arise in the media or on any channels for leadership to be aware of.
Away from the screens, it would probably interest you in hearing that 3AM call-times and working high-speed with an A-Team of 10 or so specialists is a normal operation as I travel the country regularly and put on world-class events for high-profile Fortune 200 C-level execs and understand the high-pressure events work lifestyle. VIP's, confidentiality, and keeping it cool between the ears are standard. The CrossFit Games and other CF events resonate, and Team #TDC gets two-thumbs up for the methods and madness and awe-inspiring attention to detail. 

But wait. You might be wondering if I'm too corporate for you, or if my worldview is too far from CrossFit's. 
Sure, I currently work at a massive corporate accounting machine. "Guilty, but..."
I’m not a corporate guy.
I don't do accounting.
I'd rather do 100 burpees and 100 cal on the Assault Bike than sit in a cubicle.
But..
Cannot stress this enough.
I willingly embraced being uncomfortable, and walked into the fire. 
I built something from scratch on the most unique terrain.
Me being here is purposeful (as I shared with Coach years ago when we met at a NYC chess function through Karianne Anthes) in that I purposely chose a large-scale ‘dead and lifeless’ place from the perspective of a creativity vacuum to treat as my own laboratory and introduce social media, apps, cool technology and.. here’s the cool part.. introduce a cultural revolution in an old-boys club to teach people how to go and do and create on their own.
All my friends went to start-ups and agencies. [Yawn..] Boring. Dare to be uncommon. I picked the place where no one dared to raise a ruckus, and I'm pleased to say I succeeded. Funny, I see the parallel of a certain trainer back in the day going and raising his own ruckus because he dared to see past the veneer and nonsense of the fitness industry. 

My resume hints at what I've planted and grown here at KPMG, and what I continue to work on with regard to running all things digital and social for Guerrilla Fitness CrossFit Montclair/Paramus (and work regularly with CrossFit Morristown as well) as part of the management leadership team for multiple affiliates. Again, should you read any paragraph in this post, my hope is that you read the next one most diligently. 

My heart gets fired up when I see what, how, and why CrossFit changes lives. People matter. Our stories matter. The multi-faceted toolkit I bring translates to nearly any aspect of HQ, and you are reading the words of a man who will gladly roll his sleeves up (you probably don't do the sleeve part much in CA now that I think about it) and help carry CrossFit into tomorrow. I look forward to connecting with you further, and look forward to the first time we high-five and smile in appreciation for a job well done in whatever it may be, together.