He graduated from Newton South High School and entered Harvard College in the fall of 1977, concentrating in applied mathematics with an emphasis on computer science.
During the Cashmere design, Brodie came up with the idea of the Combo box (a combination text box and drop-down menu widely used today), the Ribbon (a strip of buttons at the top of the screen used to display and change formatting), and the squiggly red underline that checks and flags spelling errors automatically.
[5] Between his stints at Microsoft, Brodie embarked on a self-improvement quest, taking numerous courses and participating in retreats, seeking an answer to "why money and success didn’t make me happy.
Apart from his careers as a programmer and author, Brodie has found creative ways to integrate his love of sports and games into his professional life.
[8] In 2023, Brodie bested 440 players on his way to winning the 32nd annual World Recreational Gambling Poker Tournament (WRGPT) after 221 days of play.