Get to know Andrew Norcross, the founder and lead developer of Reaktiv Studios, an agency focused on solving complex problems with killer WordPress solutions, in today’s speaker interview.

After quite a few years in the finance industry, Norcross switched to coding and hasn’t looked back. He’s got skin in both the service game — Reaktiv Studios is a WordPress VIP Featured Partner, helping top-tier clients with their WordPress development— and the product game, with Reaktiv’s flagship plugin, Design Palette Pro, continually being developed and supported. An organizer for WordCamp Tampa, Norcross loves to keep giving back to the WordPress community with free plugins, education talks at conferences, and core contribution to WordPress. Norcross lives in Tampa, Florida with his amazing son and a rescue dog that believes he’s a human.

What should we know about you that you haven’t included in your brief, third-person, professional biography?

I’m not totally sure I would call my bio “professional”, but I’d like to think I cover the basics pretty well there. The biggest thing that isn’t mentioned is that I’m pretty low key about life. I love what I do, and I enjoy the community that surrounds WordPress, but I’m not a big “party” guy.

What about programming and web development stole you away from the finance industry?

I never really planned on having a career in finance to begin with. I just sorta did it. I kept showing up, they kept paying me, so I rode it out until I had a better idea. I began programming out of boredom, and loved the idea of solving puzzles and being able to see what I had accomplished.

How did you learn how to program? What would you say is the best way for someone to learn?

I began programming when I was 8, but quit when I was 10 because I decided it was more important to be cool. This was pre-internet, when being a nerd meant you’d likely get beat up. I started again around the age of 25 because I was bored. For me, I learned by reading source code, and finding working examples of things. I would make changes, see what broke, and learn to fix it. That’s still sort of how I learn now.

For others wanting to learn, I would simply suggest starting with a tangible goal in mind. Instead of “I want to learn PHP”, try something with more scope like “I want to build a form to organize my notes.”. Programming can seem endless, so having a clear-cut measure of success (I believe) is crucial.

What is your dog’s name, Is your dog, in actuality, a human, and would please share a photo with us?

His name is Toby. Black Lab / American Bulldog mix, 90lbs of pure love and affection. While at times he may act like a person, he is in fact 100% dog.

Toby wearing some sweet shades

What’s the most exciting thing Design Palette Pro can do for WordPress website owners?

I built Design Palette to fill a gap I saw in site development. There are people who need a full service development agency (like my own), and people who need literally nothing other than a basic template. But there are those in the middle, who want to have the ability to style and personalize their site, but don’t need all the bells and whistles (and cost) associated with having an agency or freelancer build their site. I think Design Palette fills that space rather well.

Andrew will be running a workshop, Plugin Architecture Basics, our first Developer Jam Session at WordCamp Los Angeles on Saturday, September 10, 2016 at 9:00am.