Brian Matlock

Career path: He started as an audit associate in a small local firm, eventually becoming a KPMG alternative investment partner specializing in oil and gas funds.

Advice to young professionals: Keep your principles -- stand firmly against unethical business practices “even when alone” in views. And, “if you love what you do, success will find you.”

Day to day: “One day I might be working with a Ph.D. from Dubai who is developing a multibillion-dollar project, and the next day, I am working with the owner of a single well in East Texas. This level of diversity really makes one appreciate the world we live in, and I don’t think any other industry compares to the diversity found in oil and gas.”

Whirlwind romance: “In 2000 I was attending college in Fort Worth, Texas and a tornado came through the area. The university moved everyone to the basement for safety reasons. But I had never seen a tornado before, so I wanted to stay outside. That is when a beautiful girl said, ‘Hey, dummy, you are about to get killed.’ It has been love ever since, and [my wife and I] are now celebrating our 15th anniversary. The lesson is, no matter how bad the circumstance, something positive can always come from it.”