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 187: Window Office Views

Every company has some form of hierarchy and perks, even companies who say they don’t, still do. A reoccurring perk that can be found in a company is where does one have their desk and chair located. While many of the technology companies and start-ups abandoned offices years ago for open cubicles and an open environment, even there where your cube or desk is located comes with title and stature. In an office environment the most coveted location is the “corner office”. In that location you get at least two sides that have windows. I have gotten in my career a chance to visit some pretty cool corner offices and what makes them stand out usually is the view that you have either overlooking a city, sitting just above street level or looking out over the countryside. Regardless of what company, the window location is usually prime. I once worked in a manufacturing factory location where my office didn’t have any windows and I can remember days where I had no idea what was happening outside and I had to get up and walk outside or go down the hall to a window office just to get a glimpse for perspective. I find that being able to look out the window and take in the activity, whether it be city or open landscape, can be good for opening up one’s mind. And, when you look out and take stock of what you see, you can see God’s creations which should always be a trigger and reminder for us of the true bigger picture. One nice reminder whenever I see a bird and think about God putting that bird here on this earth is the verse out of Psalm 91:4; “”He will cover you with his feathers. He will shelter you with his wings…” Today as you work and during the times when you get a moment to look out the window and let your mind wander for a moment, look for one of God’s creations and then put that small creation in perspective to you and what you are doing for God and what He is doing for you. Like that bird on the sill or in the air, God has put his feathers and wings over each of us to give us protection and covering. The view from the window is all about perspective and as we know, the perspective we take and have about our work and life can and should be different from others. Today, take your covering from God and your broader perspective and see if you can share with it someone else who may be looking and in need for a little of both, and who may just need a new window view of life.

Reference: Psalm 91:4 (New Living Testament)