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 423: Money Pits

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We many times refer to money pits as old houses and expensive toys that we might have that just keep draining dollars day after day and if not one thing with them, it is another. But, sometimes business can feel just the same. We get caught in a cycle where the numbers don’t add up and there doesn’t feel like more that can be cut on the expense side and we find ourselves hoping and praying that everything goes exactly as budgeted and planned. Invariably though, we all know that no business runs perfectly or without hiccups. These can be tough times in our jobs and after the last couple of years the thought that our economy could take a double-dip has the anxiety level at threat level red throughout corporate America. None of us want to have to go back down to the bottom of the corporate money pit and go through what we have felt recently. This is a time when the optimistic, the courageous, the confident and the faithful will shine. Others will seek out those who can stay steady and positive through the times of adversity. It is hard, and for most they do not have the foundation or well of strength to draw from. This is the time that those who draw upon the strength of the Lord will be noticed. I recently was in a church where the Pastor taught on the book of Hosea. If you want to see a bleak picture of a country, read what Hosea says about the future of Israel. The Pastor tried to extrapolate this book of prophecy to America. He didn’t capture me totally, but the message of a downward spiral is not pretty, regardless of the country. But, there are also verses of hope and faith in Hosea that do apply to our time. Hosea 12:6 says much for us as we face our money pits; “So now, come back to your God! Act on the principles of love in confident dependence on your God.” There is a message and lesson that allows us, regardless of the depth of the pit, to stand before others with confidence and hope for the future. This means that there is no pit that can be dug that is too deep for our God to pull us out of, if we only reach up to grab that hand that is there waiting for us.

Reference: Hosea 12:6 (New living Testament)