Max James - The Harder I Fall, the Higher I Bounce: Life Lessons From the Entrepreneur Dubbed the King of Kiosks by Fortune Magazine

I love how Max demonstrates the rewards of overcoming seemingly impossible obstacles. He fought through tremendous disappointments to succeed not only in business but also to become a world-class philanthropist. He is an MVP in the entrepreneurial arena.

Steve Young, NFL Hall of Fame Quarterback

This is a fascinating book and should be on the reading list of every young aspiring entrepreneur. Max vividly captures his early experiences as a cadet at the Air Force Academy and how they shaped and guided him for a very successful business career years later. With a good deal of humor and humility, he describes how failures in life, if honestly recognized, can be a powerful learning tool ultimately leading to success in whatever endeavor one chooses.

Harry Pearce, Vice Chairman of General Motors (Retired)

Max James The Harder I Fall, The Higher I Bounce, is a wild and hilarious ride thru the challenges of growing up as a disadvantaged young man in Tennessee thru the tremendous challenges of the Air Force Academy thru Vietnam combat to the peak of the business world. I could not put this book down as Max winds his way thru one spectacular adventure after another. You will love this book. I strongly recommend Max James new book The Harder I Fall, The Higher I Bounce. Its a great read!

Paul Madera, Co-Founder, Managing

Director, Meritech Capital Partners

The storied career of Max James jumps from his heroic actions as a rescue pilot in the jungles of Vietnam to the highest board rooms of entrepreneurial America. In all cases, Max has been on the leading edge, whether it be failure or success. His unvarnished accounts of his failures are educational grist for all and his many and varied successes. Interwoven in his story is a legacy and practice of honor and character we all can aspire to. This is not a complicated read but a man reflecting the old fashioned basic American values in fascinating personal history. This book is hard to put down with wide-ranging and pervasive lessons for all.

Please feel free to recommend this book to anyone. I enjoyed it, and it spurs me to talk further with Max to know more about his successful and quirky career.

Dick McConn, Chair Emeritus, National Defense Industrial Association (NDIA), Chair, Emerging Technologies Institute (ETI)

In my career in the Venture Capital business, I witnessed much success and much failure. People often ask, What is the most important quality for a successful entrepreneur to have? In my opinion, unfailing resilience and ceaseless determination rank right at the top. The title of Max James book says it perfectly. He shares with the reader invaluable real-world lessons on how to succeed by never giving up. Everyone who has undertaken an entrepreneurial venture or is thinking about doing so will learn greatly from reading this book.

Bart Holaday, Oxford Scholar, Former Managing Director of the UBS Private Markets Group, Former Officer and Board Member of the National Venture Capital Association

In The Harder I Fall, The Higher I Bounce, Max James has written an immensely readable account of a young farm boy, wearing shirts made from old flour sacks, who becomes a highly decorated Air Force officer and later a remarkably successful businessman. His narrative explores not only the highs and lows of an extraordinary career but lessons learned along the way. It is required reading for anyone who wants to achieve more than what seems possible. A truly inspiring story.

John Fox, Distinguished Graduate Award from USAFA and Founder, Chairman,

and CEO of Markwest Energy Partners, LLC

For those that think they cannot overcome adversity, Max James will teach you how and why you can rise to success despite the seemingly endless barriers. I watched him do it in the late 1980s at Days Inns. His career will help anyone who wants to make it happen. Read and learn.

Mike Leven, former President the Las Vegas Sands Corp,

Holiday Inns and Days Inns

Extraordinary! Follow the adventures of Max James, a modern-day Odysseus, as he careens from one improbable, impossible situation to another, and another, and another...

William Wecker, Ph.D., Professor University of Chicago,

Stanford University, and University of California,

Davis (Emeritus), Chairman, Wecker Associates, Inc

In his book, Max James, my dear friend for over sixty years, lays bare the highs and lows of his business and financial life with brutal honesty and humble humor. Intertwined are pithy Maxs Maxims applicable not only for would-be entrepreneurs but as sage life lessons.

General (Ret) Michael E. Ryan, 16th U. S. Air Forces

Chief of Staff, former Board Member USAA

The Harder I Fall, The Higher I Bounce is a very engaging book! Max James has lived an interesting and adventurous life that most readers will enjoy. Learning about his folksy writing style adds to the enjoyment of learning the lessons Max teaches, and I believe entrepreneurs will especially find it interesting and helpful. Max is candid about his failuresand there were a number of them! Most entrepreneurs need to learn the lesson that the number of their failures may exceed their successes, although one big success can overcome a lot of failures.

Darryl Bloodworth, Attorney, Author, Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers, Retired President, Central Florida Chapter of American Board of Trial Advocates

Max and I were classmates at the Air Force Academy, and we were both Founding Directors of the AF Academy Endowment now the AF Academy Foundation. We experienced many situations in common, and he provides an excellent (accurate, understandable, and enjoyable) description of those situations, adding a perspective that I often missed. He also shared several experiences that we didnt have in common, and I learned new things - including several remarkable things about Max. This is an extraordinary story about an extraordinary guy.

Honorable Dr. Paul G Kaminski,

Chairman and CEO of Technovation,

Inc. Former Under Secretary of Defense, National Medal of Technology and Innovation recipient,

Member National College of Engineering

Insightful and fascinating autobiography of Max James, a gifted and heroic young military officer whose professional aspirations led him to the less structured career of an entrepreneur in the private sector. With exceptional candor and focus on character, he describes the highs and brutal lows of his professional and personal voyage.

Dr. Erv Rokke, (Lt. General, USAF Retired)

Max, early in his life, encountered many forks in the road and chose paths not normally considered the right thing to do. His success is based on his assessment, not just on immediate issues but also on a unique ability to look far ahead and anticipate and prepare for future needs. Hes done all of this while demonstrating exemplary integrity and character. The Harder I Fall, The Higher I Bounce certainly is a source document for entrepreneurs but has equal application to any field of endeavor. I highly recommend that you read and refer to this book repeatedly throughout your career.

Honorable Fred Gregory, NASA Deputy Administrator, NASA Astronaut, USAFA Col (ret), Helicopter Combat Rescue Pilot

In The Harder I Fall, the Higher I Bounce, my classmate Max shares his many life lessons learned growing up on a farm, persevering through four years at the Air Force Academy, and serving as an Air Force air rescue pilot in the Vietnam war. Then, by expertly applying those experiences to his numerous business exploits, he provides several meaningful lessons to those pursuing their entrepreneurial dreams.

Hugh H. Williamson, Past Fortune 500 Chairman and CEO, Chairman and CEO Finna Sensors, Inc