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 1524: Uniforms

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“Clothe your brother, Aaron, and his sons with these garments, and then anoint and ordain them. Consecrate them so they can serve as my priests.”

A couple of weekends ago Patti and I attended a church in Savannah, Georgia.  The service was held in a theater and the service was oriented to the students at Savannah College of Arts and Design (SCAD).  The pastor was preaching from the book of Exodus and he was describing the specificity of God’s instructions for those who were building the ark of the covenant.  As he was going through this he mentioned the clothing of the high priests and how their clothes were so detailed and ornate that the kings wanted to be attired in them. He went on to say that how we dress is an interesting part of being human.  We will buy a new outfit or wear something special just so we feel good and more confident in ourselves.  It made me think of the uniforms that some people are required to wear to  work and how that uniform can either add to the pride of their work and job, or be a serious detractor and demoralizing effect. If the uniform/attire we are asked (expected) to wear only brings us down, or worse embarrasses us, then we are pretty sure to be looking for another job before long.

What we wear does also say something about us.  I don’t consider myself a prude, but I am careful about what images or words show up on clothing I wear.  There is the popular French clothing store that has a four-letter word that if one isn’t paying attention the mind makes us think of the expletive. I won’t wear that brand.  I also don’t wear tee-shirts that either suggest something that might offend or cause confusion.  That said, I probably under dress more than I over dress and some might perceive me as being too casual or not taking all as serious as I should.  The point here is not to be a fashion police or a sartorial expert.  The point is actually that how we carry and present ourselves makes a difference.  If daily we put on the attire (figuratively) of Christ and we hit the door with an upbeat, encouraging and caring attitude, then it makes a difference in the eyes of others.  But, if we drag ourselves into the office as if we are wearing a leaden straight jacket, then that too tells a story. So, what will be the outfit for today?

Reference: Exodus 28:41 (New Living Translation)