Author Archives: Rusty Rueff

About Rusty Rueff

Rusty Rueff, author of purposed worKING. Rusty Rueff is the former Chairman Emeritus of The GRAMMY Foundation in Los Angeles. He most recently completed the successful 16 month leadership role as Coordinating National Co-Chair for Technology for Obama (T4O) for the reelection of President Obama and ten-years of Board service and President of the Board of Trustees of the American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco. Corporately, most recently Rueff was the Chief Executive Officer at SNOCAP, Inc. until the acquisition of the company by imeem, Inc. in April 2008. Before joining SNOCAP in 2005, he was Executive Vice President of Human Resources at Electronic Arts (EA) from 1998 until 2005. He was also with the PepsiCo companies for more than ten years, with the Pratt & Whitney division of United Technologies for two years, and in commercial radio as an on-air personality for six years. Rusty holds an M.S. in counseling and a B.A. in radio and television from Purdue University. In 2003 he was named a distinguished Purdue alumnus, and he and his wife, Patti, are the named benefactors of Purdue’s Patti and Rusty Rueff School of Visual and Performing Arts. He is a corporate director of Glassdoor.com and runcoach. He is the co-founder and Executive Committee Member of T4A.org, serves on the Founding Circle of The Centrist Project and a founding Board Member of The GRAMMY Music Education Coalition. He is also the co-author of the book Talent Force: A New Manifesto for the Human Side of Business. Rusty and his wife, Patti, reside in Hillsborough, CA and Charlestown, R.I.

day 2115: What A Difference A Storm Makes…

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“As they sailed across, Jesus settled down for a nap. But soon a fierce storm came down on the lake. The boat was filling with water, and they were in real danger. The disciples went and woke him up, shouting, “Master, Master, we’re going to drown!” When Jesus woke up, he rebuked the wind and the raging waves. Suddenly the storm stopped and all was calm. Then he asked them, “Where is your faith?” The disciples were terrified and amazed. “Who is this man?” they asked each other. “When he gives a command, even the wind and waves obey him!”

Here in our sleepy little part of Rhode Island it can get very hot, humid and sticky in the summer (just the way New England is supposed to be).  Sunday was one of those days.  There were storms all up and around the northeast but we were avoiding them but getting the side effects of the heat and humidity.  On Sunday night we went to bed with it nearly 75 degrees outside and the humidity percentage level well above that number.  And then sometime in the night, the storm came.  We woke to 65 degrees, light breeze from the north, clear skies and little to no humidity.  As I was running yesterday morning, I said to myself, “What a difference a storm makes”.  Then I thought of all of the craziness in politics over the weekend and the storms that ensued from a few statements here and there.  Along with these stories there were business stories of one storm after another causing management changes and organizational alignments.  All of this reminds me that storms are always present in our lives and businesses and when they blow through sometimes they can be the best thing for bringing clarity, fresh perspective and thinking.

In Luke we are reminded that even Jesus faced storms while He walked this earth.  He also faced the fiercest of all storms when He died for us.  The Disciples were afraid during the storm on the sea of Galilee, even though Jesus was on the same boat with them (did they really think that God was going to let Jesus drown?).  And even here we are reminded that in our faith when we are in a storm, Jesus will bring calm on the other side.  Invariably we will have our storms, even today, but let’s be reminded of all the difference that a storm can make!

Reference: Luke 8: 23-25 (New Living Translation)