Tell me a little about yourself:
Ciao! I’m Andrea, I’m Italian and six years ago, right after the Brexit referendum, I catapulted myself into London and what seemed to be an increasingly faltering United Kingdom.
It turned out to be a successful and fortunate last train for me. While the effects of Brexit are still pretty much unknown or yet to be fully priced in, the positive impact that this country (and its people) has had on my personal and professional development has been far beyond imagination since then.
Today, I’m married to Katy, and we have just welcomed our daughter, Ginevra. We live in London and often travel back to Italy because, as much as we love this country, we also want to keep alive the memory of great food and beautiful landscapes.
What motivates you?
The relentless pursuit of a better understanding of how our system functions and evolves. Here, the learning curve is steep, non-linear, and punctuated by continuous back and forth with oneself.
If Thomas Sowell was right in saying, “It takes considerable knowledge just to realise the extent of your own ignorance”, then what motivates me is the desire to continue studying and learning from, through, and with others.
Being part of a team on a tough journey is what brings out the best in me.
Where is your favourite place to go to unwind?
My beloved Dolomites. Either in the summer, by hiking and rock climbing, or in the winter, by skiing and enjoying the snow and freezing temperatures.
We live in hectic cities, constantly surrounded by things and people endlessly moving. For me, unwinding means staying active but surrounded by infinitely silent and immobile natural beauties, such as my beloved mountains.
What is the best advice you have ever been given?
My grandpa always used to tell me, “Remember to keep the tiller to the centre” – meaning make sure you navigate your life in a well-balanced manner, both physically and mentally. That advice not only fully embraced the concept of body-mind harmony from ancient Greek memory but also wisely guided me on how to approach our modern world. For instance, use technology, learn about it and grow with it, but never become dependent on it. Instead, focus on human relations, self-education, physical and mental training, trying to balance out as much as you can.
How would your wife describe you in three words?
Non-practical. Great thinker.
(Only two words, but being at the extreme opposite, they already encapsulate quite a lot about me. What’s in between is still a work in progress.)
Name a thing you do that is totally unrelated to work
I write poems from time to time when inspiration kicks in, and I’ve learned from experience that we are the primary trigger and driver of that inspiration. Perhaps we are just too lazy and deaf to hear it mounting.