I grew up in the Central Valley of California in a small farm town called Kerman.  Spending the majority of my childhood on our family farm, I learned to be self sufficient, creative, and that there was always another angle or way to solve any problem I was faced with.  I was raised to be proud of my Portuguese heritage and that I could accomplish anything just out of the pure fact that my last name was "Couto".  This was my edge, and I heard it repeatedly from my parents, my grandparents, and my cousins.  If I did well in sports or school, it was because I was a Couto.  If I came up with a great solution to problem I was experiencing, it again was because I was a Couto.  If I built something extraordinary using the limited resource I had available to me, you guessed it, it was because I was a Couto.  Before long, I began to truly believe my CoutoNESS could take me anywhere I wanted to go in life. 

Armed with the "Couto" factor, I have always felt that I could take on the world and win.  The odds, they never mattered as I knew I could out work, out think, and out determine anyone, at any place, at any time.  Heck, I am a Couto after all!  This wacky way of thinking gave me the confidence to start my first company (Somnio World Web Solutions) at the peak of the DotCom Bust.  Even through the tough times that followed and seemingly insurmountable challenges, it was my Couto confidence that helped me march on.  Then, In 2004 after building Somnio World into a successful company, my partners and I sold it and I moved on to start the appropriately named "Couto" Solutions.

This time around, the economy was better and I was armed with the knowledge of how to build a successful company and that experience paid dividends as business really took off.   Along the way I partnered with my cousin Billy Souza (Portuguese Power!) and the business began to grow even more.  6 years later we are going strong due to the best team a business could ever hope for. 

In 2006 I married my wonderful wife Rosa who supports me, my wild ideas, and my long, long, long hours at the office.  In our free time Rosa and I love spending time with our family and friends.  We are active people as we love riding our bikes, snowboarding, traveling, and trying out the next crazy extreme sport that comes out.  Jumping stilts anyone?

For personal fun I love riding my Yamaha YFZ 450 in the Los Padres Forrest with my friends.  I also like to learn new programming techniques and expand my knowledge of all things technical.  Yeah, I know, it's a geek thing and as you might have guessed, I am proud of it :-).