Julian - God Is My CEO : Following Gods Principles in a Bottom-Line World

Dedication

To my Lord, Jesus Christ.

Thank you for the privilege of it all.

Story 1 Finding Your Way Home
B ILL G EORGE
CEO, M EDTRONIC

Story 2 Serving a Higher Purpose and Making Money
C. W ILLIAM P OLLARD
C HAIRMAN AND CEO, T HE S ERVICE M ASTER C OMPANY

Story 3 From Success to Significance
B OB B UFORD
F OUNDER , L EADERSHIP N ETWORK

Story 4 From Me to We
J ERRY C OLANGELO
O WNER , T HE P HOENIX S UNS AND T HE A RIZONA D IAMONDBACKS

Story 5 Having the Courage to Walk Away
A L Q UIE
F ORMER G OVERNOR , S TATE OF M INNESOTA

Story 6 Having the Courage to Overcome Tragedy
M ARILYN C ARLSON N ELSON
C HAIRMAN AND CEO, C ARLSON C OMPANIES

Story 7 Pressure from the Outside: Sticking to Gods Plan Produces Results
T ONY D UNGY
H EAD C OACH , T AMPA B AY B UCCANEERS

Story 8 Pressure from the Inside: Trusting in Gods Plan Prepares You for Success
A RCHIE D UNHAM
C HAIRMAN AND CEO, C ONOCO I NC .

Story 9 Moving from Doing for God to Being with God
J EFFREY H. C OORS
P RESIDENT AND CEO, G RAPHIC P ACKAGING C ORPORATION

Story 10 Demonstrating Your Faith by Living Your Faith
J OHN D. B ECKETT
P RESIDENT , R. W. B ECKETT C ORPORATION

Story 11 Relinquishing Control
T AD P IPER
C HAIRMAN AND CEO, P IPER J AFFRAY C OMPANIES

Story 12 Cooperating with Uncertainty
J IM S ECORD
P RESIDENT , L AKEWOOD P UBLICATIONS

Story 13 Discovering the Win in a Lose-Lose Situation
L INDA R IOS B ROOK
F ORMER P RESIDENT AND G ENERAL M ANAGER , KLGT-TV

Story 14 Finding Hope in a Hopeless Situation
B RENDA J. S COTT
CEO, M OBILE C ONVENTION AND V ISITORS C ORPORATION

Story 15 Bringing Out the Best in People
J IM B ERGESON
C HAIRMAN AND CEO, C OLLE & M C V OY , I NC .

Story 16 An Uncompromising Respect for People
H ORST S CHULZE
CEO, T HE R ITZ C ARLTON H OTEL C OMPANY

Story 17 Changing Win-Lose Dilemmas into Win-Win Solutions
A NDREA R ITCHIE
P RESIDENT , N ORTHWESTERN T RAVEL M ANAGEMENT

Story 18 From Profits First to People First
K EN M ELROSE
C HAIRMAN AND CEO, T HE T ORO C OMPANY

Story 19 Keeping the Important Things Important
S. T RUETT C ATHY
F OUNDER AND C HAIRMAN , C HICK - FIL -A

Story 20 Appreciating Whats Important
R OBERT O. N AEGELE J R .
F ORMER C HAIRMAN AND C O - OWNER , R OLLERBLADE

Dear Lord,

Almost six years ago, I wrote my first words dedicating this book to you. Thank you for somehow guiding me through a process completely foreign to me. I have now come to understand how You bless me through others.

To my wife, Sherri, who has blessed me beyond my imagination. Very simply, this book would not have been written without her. She is more than my wife, she is my hero. She defines what a wife of character is. My feelings are best summed up by Proverbs 31:29, Many women do noble things, but you surpass them all.

To our two children in heaven, who taught me that life is a gift to be received and to be given away.

To our newborn daughter, Grace, who has brought to life the true meaning of Gods grace.

To our families, who support us through their prayers and unconditional love: Ma, Dad, Lolly and Matt Pisoni, Scott and Judy Hackett, and Steve and Lesley Hackett.

To my mentor and friend, Monty Sholund. Not only did you teach me, but you supported me, and encouraged me to pursue God with all my heart.

To Lamar Hamilton, for his desire to serve God and for being Gods instrument in connecting me to the most important people in my life. To Ron James, who taught me to be at peace where I am. He always seemed to appear at a time I needed him. To Bill Hardman, who shined Gods light to help me during my darkest moments. To Marc Belton, who gave me encouragement and support in every step of the book-writing process.

To Tanya Dean, who taught me how to write a story, then encouraged and guided me through the process of writing an entire book.

To Minneapolis business leaders Stan Geyer, Jay Bennett, Kenny Owen, Warren McLean, Frank Brantman, Rick Collins, Mike Sime, Jackie West, Jim Gabbert, and Larry Youngblood, who share my love for the Lord and showed their support for the book in so many ways.

To my fellow speakers Glenna Salsbury, David McNally, and Dick Schaaf, who showed me how to traverse the trials of authorship.

To my good friends Jim Walter, John Zapalla, and Marty Sinacore for 30 years of friendship. To my friends Dwight and Rhonda Schneibel, Doug and Melanie Peterson, and Steve and Barb Gretch, for their constant support and prayers for Sherri and me over the past three years. To my friends Kevin McArdle, Steve Waller, and Andy Anderson, who have supported me, past and present.

And last, but not least, to the 20 leaders who shared their stories. They gave not only their time, but they gave their hearts so they could be a blessing to us all.

For a man is a slave to whatever has mastered him.

2 Peter 2:19

I was recently asked to conduct a leadership program for a group of San Francisco sales executives. As part of my preparation, the leader asked me to weave in a module on stress management. During the program, I discovered that the entire group was on the brink of a collective nervous breakdown. They were all under relentless pressure to produce results. All felt as if they were strapped to a treadmill whose speed kept increasing.

I wanted to help them find the root cause of their situation. The group, however, wanted me only to equip them with skills so that I could help them run their treadmill faster and better. In essence, they wanted me to teach them how to go down the wrong path more efficiently.