Honored Alumnus Chris Washburn shares how his humanities education taught him to appreciate the small moments in life.
The College of Humanities recognized alumnus Chris Washburn (Japanese ’90, MBA and JD ’95) during the university's 2025 Homecoming celebration. After grading from BYU, Washburn's career took him from finance and strategic planning at Nissan Motor Corporation in California to leading EV Global Motors and eventually to becoming the founder of Fezzari Bikes, now called Ari Bikes.
During Washburn’s visit, he shared a message with faculty, staff, and students about how his humanities education has shaped life. “You can get a humanities degree from many other universities, but you cannot get a humanities degree the way it is taught here,” he said. “That is the most profound thing about BYU, that we seek learning from the best books, and we seek learning from study, but we also get it from faith.” The combination of faith and his humanities education have played a key role throughout his life.
Washburn began his presentation describing a Japanese parable where a man finds himself trapped hanging from a vine in the middle of a small canyon. Tigers on either side eagerly await him, and mice gnaw at the vines. His doom seems imminent. Then suddenly, the man notices a strawberry growing on the vine and takes a bite of the delicious fruit.
The man’s actions in that moment help describe a Japanese expression that was the key to Washburn’s message: mono no aware, which means to appreciate or capture the beauty in the moment.
“We all have tigers; we all have mice,” he said. “But you can choose to find those places of joy—those places that are fleeting, the sunsets, the beautiful cherry blossoms, the exchange with a loved one—all of those are things that put you fully present.”
Washburn shared three personal stories that helped him understand the value of such appreciation and holding true to our values throughout our lives. Early in his career, he attended an important meeting with his boss, Lee Iacocca, who was president of Chrysler Motor Corporation at the time. When a prospective investor used intimidation to press a bad deal, Washburn spoke up—risking his job but earning Iacocca’s respect. “Be true to your values,” Washburn said. “Remember what you represent, and the Lord comes through.”
His second story involved taking a big career risk in response to spiritual impressions: Washburn had been traveling 50 weeks a year for work and came to a realization that he had been missing out on important family events. Leaving such a promising career trajectory, however, also meant letting go of stable and well-paying income. Nevertheless, he decided to prioritize being present with his family and created a company he could run locally: his own bicycle company. Washburn initially had to do everything for the company, from designing and building bikes to writing training manuals. Early on, an investor wanted to provide a huge cash infusion, which would have been a big boon. But Washburn felt another spiritual prompting, this time to turn the offer down. Following those promptings has been key to his success.
But perhaps most impactful was his third story. Just eight months ago, he suffered a tragic mountain bike crash, leaving him paralyzed below the chin. In his own humble way, Washburn referred to a series of miracles that have not just reduced his paralysis but also allowed him to walk. Although Washburn jokes that he walks unsteadily now, he does so with a smile on his face and gratitude plain to see in his eyes. “I’m so grateful for the small victories in those dark moments.” He said further, “There were two gifts that I received, and one was the gift of gratitude. I was grateful to just be alive. . . . The second one is the gift of love.”
Washburn closed by inviting attendees to remember the strawberries in life and to “be present where you are at and in what you are doing.”
He said, “If you can walk your path with purpose, every path that you’re on will become holy ground.”
Watch Chris Washburn’s full Honored Alumni lecture here.