Coworking with Dan Shuffleton is one highlight of our Haven journey. Dan’s upbeat, joyful personality is infectious. It’s impossible to spend more than a few seconds with him before breaking out into a smile or a laugh. (Try it; we dare you.) Dan’s and entertainer and this passion for entertaining is just one of the reasons he’s so great in his sales career.
Dan is passionate about what he does and it shows all over his face. He’s a sales representative for Milliken, a commercial flooring company, where he often goes somewhere new every day, sees different people, and “makes a difference”. You might question whether it’s possible to make a difference with carpet, but Dan not only says it’s possible; he says he does it every week.
I asked Dan why he’s so passionate about Milliken. His response, “Why would I be all hot and heavy about this particular carpet manufacturer? My company is head and shoulders above everyone else in quality, design capabilities, and health and wellness benefits. In my world, I sell iPhones and everyone else sells flip phones.”
For some people, finding your passion or skill can take time, but Dan knew he was an entertainer from a young age. He majored in theatre in college and tried his hand at acting in Hollywood. Today, he not only uses his talents in his job, but he does live improv theatre shows, and hosts a ski show on YouTube called Shuff’s Ski Show.
We’re inspired by Dan’s ability to tap into his improv skills as a way to take his passions in new directions. By saying ‘yes, and’ to life, he’s created more than 80 marketing videos for Milliken. He then leveraged that video experience to start Shuff’s Ski Show for sharing his passion for skiing with a wider audience.
I frickin’ LOVE to ski. I’ve been doing it since I was 3. I seek the spirit of skiing, the true meaning of why people would slide down a snow-covered mountain, on boards strapped to their feet, in the freezing cold, quickly going broke at great personal risk. I want to share my love of ski resort adventuring and exploration.
Looking back, Dan’s career may look like it’s taken some big turns from acting to sales, but he sees it as refining the dream. He says, “When I was acting in LA, I had cardboard furniture and ate sardines for dinner. It didn’t matter, I was following my dream. I changed the dream a bit and now I’m a suburban dad who loves home improvement projects and has a killer minivan. I still eat sardines, just higher quality.“
This positive outlook is uplifting. He’s mastered the mindsets that we are often trying so hard to switch to and we LOVE it.
To connect with Dan Shuffleton catch his improv at the Nest Theatre regularly (team Finch) at its new location on North High Street. Subscribe to Shuff’s Ski Show on YouTube where he has 18 episodes scheduled this season (IG: @shuffsskishow). For all your commercial carpet needs, make sure to follow Dan on IG @danthemillikenman. And stay tuned, because he is in pre-production for a movie projected to be released in 2021.
And when you connect with Dan, make sure to let him know that he’s doing a ‘damn good job’!