Christopher Souza, 33

Never tell Christopher Souza the odds. Even if you did, it likely wouldn’t stop him.

At 22 years old, with no formal work experience, he applied for a CEO position. Of course, the billionaire running the company had his trepidations about the kid from Boston. 

Photo by Mark Wemple

“And he told me, ‘You're inexperienced, you're too young, and the goal of this company is to get in front of billionaires. You can't do that.’ And I said, ‘got it,’” Souza recalls. 

A study abroad trip landed him in Santiago, Chile, the native country of the man who questioned him. He took a two-hour Uber to the main office and waited. “I told him, ‘I'm here. I got in front of you again. I can do it to anyone in the U.S.’ And he was blown away. Hired me on the spot.” Although he didn’t ultimately land the CEO position, he was in the upper crust of leadership and thus began a trend of proving anyone doubting him wrong.

“The people that question me, I think it's a huge benefit. I think it's a huge positive, and I don't resent anything toward them. I want to prove them wrong, but I also appreciate their feedback and their honest thoughts on the situation, and I'm always trying to prove those people wrong,” Souza says. 

Part of his strategy is learning from the people around him. “Know what you don't know,” he says, “And I think something that I've tried to do a lot is know someone who knows, or figure out who knows, and don't be the ego. Throw your ego out. And call that person and say, ‘Hey, I don't understand this. Can you help me? Can you teach me? Can I hire you to help me?’ Whatever it may be, because you're only as strong as your team.”

Souza takes that approach with Oasis Amenities, a Tampa-based firm he oversees that designs, builds and operates "world class amenities," according to its website. The list includes springs, lazy rivers, water parks, splash pads, and commercial pools, the website states, and also includes recreation, hardscapes and buildings.

To the dozen or so employees of Oasis Amenities, he checks in and asks how things are going and what they might want to try or learn. “I think helping people grow and being a support and a mentor, because I had that, is important to me.”