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 2855: What Once Was

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“On that same day, as the Book of Moses was being read to the people, the passage was found that said no Ammonite or Moabite should ever be permitted to enter the assembly of God.“

The past. We like to say, “Put the past behind us”, but it is easier said than done.  The past informs for the future so knowing and understanding history is important so that we learn from mistakes and don’t make them again. So, the past can’t be blotted out, but it also can’t be ignored, and it also can’t be dwelled upon.  It takes open minds to accept the past for what it was and then apply it to the present and the future and move forward.  When minds are closed then we get the acceptance of only what the past can bring that confirms the present of what we now want.  If we desire our businesses and ourselves to grow and be better for the future then we must be open to seeing all sides of what we call history.

There is an account in Nehemiah when the priests were reading from the book of Moses that they learned, unbeknownst to them at the time, that they were violating one of the laws of Moses.  The people then had a choice to make: Ignore the past law because it was old history and not relevant for the present, accept the law as a discovery of the past and then continue to violate it, or to accept the past as the law and change their ways.  They chose the latter.  The Bible doesn’t go into it, but let’s be sure that that there were those who wanted to do one of the former choices, but I am sure after much debate, prayer, counsel, etc., the people collectively accepted the past and made it a part of their future.  We will have these moments too and we will also have to make choices on whether to adopt, adapt and change or be stuck not just in and with the past, but stuck from the future that we could have.

Reference:  Nehemiah 13:1 (New Living Translation)

PS: I took two weeks to try and have a digital detox vacation since a geographical change “vacation” wasn’t in the cards.  I did, “okay”, but  will have to try again in the Fall.  Thanks for giving me the time away and sticking with me now.