Jonathan Sims, a New York City-based software engineer, has many hobbies. He plays chess, trains in Muay Thai, and lifts weights. 

“I realized that at every single hobby that I went to, people were asking about the other hobbies and I realized I was passionate about teaching them,” he said. 

His chess partners asked him about how to get started in weightlifting. His Muay Thai buddies expressed interest in learning to code. Sims says that inspired him to create a platform where people could exchange skills or services without the use of money. 

Click the audio player above to hear Sim’s talk about Barter Bloc, the skill-sharing platform he’s building.