But back in 2013, when I first met Chip, Airbnb was still just getting started. Though we had nearly four million guests staying in homes around the world, most people saw us as strictly a technology company. But Joe, Nate, and I knew we had more to offer. We knew that we weren’t just in the business of home sharing. We envisioned a community that helped people with not only where you stay, but what you do—and whom you do it with —while you’re there. In other words, a complete end-to-end trip. What we were actually selling was hospitality.

And from how he’s translated Maslow’s hierarchy of needs into a hierarchy of hospitality, to his deep understanding of Joseph Campbell’s revolutionary approach to storytelling, I knew his knowledge would be invaluable.

He affirmed that we all have a story to share and something to learn from one another. That if we take time to connect, we can learn anywhere and from anyone.

I was learning the less there is of me, the more room there is for the person I was mentoring.

Whether it was the pace of growth of a “unicorn,” cultural trends of millennials, or how to size up the needs of Silicon Valley investors, Brian taught me as much as I taught him.