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 1583: Waking Up Early?

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“The people got up early the next morning to sacrifice burnt offerings and peace offerings. After this, they celebrated with feasting and drinking, and they indulged in pagan revelry.”

If you are part of the US that practices Day Light Savings (DST), then it’s been a little harder to wake up early.  It’s funny how hard it is to spring out of the bed early unless we are going to be doing something really fun, really challenging, or really unique.  The rest of the days, we might lie in the bed for a few extra minutes rallying to go ahead and get up versus roll over for a few more minutes?  Here is a thought for the day.  If we are feeling this way, then why wouldn’t every other person in our company, or on our team feel just the same?  What missed opportunities are there just because we don’t have a talent force of people who are waking up early excited about what they will be doing today?

In the Old Testament account of the Israelites creating the golden calf idol to worship when Moses didn’t come down from the mountain in what the people expected was “timely”; they got so excited about the plans to worship the idol that they got up early to get the party going.  I was struck by this when I read it because it proves once again that we are fast to get excited about the things of the world while we are waiting on God.  We must be careful that we don’t find ourselves duped into thinking that we can replace God and His promises for us.  When was the last time we woke up early, on our own, excited to go to work for God?  What can we do to rekindle that fire in ourselves today?

Reference: Exodus 32:6 (New Living Translation)