Meet Austin's Super Connector

While studying film at the University of Texas and working part-time for his dad, Marc Nathan found a passion for connecting people. Marc is now on the client side at the Austin law firm Michael Best & Friedrich and considers himself a super connector.

How did you get into this line of work?

“My dad was an attorney, boring bankruptcy and tax law. So what my dad did was, after the clients went bankrupt, he would figure out ways to help them raise their next funding round so they can get started with their new career. So I started helping companies out, figuring out what their pitch was and then who to tell their pitch to. It sort of became a career by default.”

Let’s walk a mile in your boots. What’s your average day like?

“I wake up around five or 5:30 every morning without an alarm clock. I get about two hours of reading and listening to my podcasts. Then, I'm hitting one of the major coffee shops: Houndstooth Coffee downtown, or Cosmic Coffee and Beer Garden on South Congress. Swedish Hill, before the first one shut down, was the absolute No. 1 place you could see every professional in Austin. I'm typically at lunch with somebody. I like to stack my meetings — I get to introduce the people that I'm meeting with as they transition.”

Why does your work matter to Austin?

“Sales is not a four letter word. It can be considered to be really slimy and really gross. And I try very hard to avoid that, even though it’s not easy all of the time. But the reason it matters, (is) because the language of Austin is business. We’re very laid back. We’re very chill. We’re very cool. We'll definitely have tacos or barbecue and cervezas by the lake, but it all is based on the fact that we all know how to do business together, to eat with each other and for each other.”