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 1176: Social Better Than Solo

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“Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.”

We’ve all known it and sometimes it just takes time to get it and figure out how best to apply it to our businesses; social is better than solo, at at least when it comes to advertising.  This week New Balance running shoes releases a new advertising campaign called “Runnovation”.  In their ads they break away from the traditional focus on one athlete (typically a celebrated runner) and instead start to show running going social with ads that show women running together in the “Redefining the new Girls Night Out”.  There is also an online profile of a Running Club in Boston where we can get a little of the reality TV feel.  The point that New Balance is trying to make is that showing social activity will inspire us more to want to participate because we will see ourselves there and imagine that we too can truly participate.  Aspirational ideals to be the like the best in the world (if Roger Federer wears a Rolex, so should I, right?) aren’t going to go away, but when we try to reach the everyday, what feels like the ordinary, we might well stand a better chance by taking the position social.

Out faith, while built upon a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, was never meant to be a faith of the solo. We are commanded to spread the Good News.  We are told that the presence of Christ increases with more than one gathered in His name.  He chose and taught many disciples to carry on the message of Christ throughout the world and through the ages.  Today, at our fingertips, within key strokes, we can make the message of God’s Love always social.  Let’s ask ourselves today, what are we doing, with what we know and have available to us to make God’s message more than just solo?

Reference: Matthew 28:19

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