Acknowledgments

For some, writing is a solitary affair. This book was a barn raising. I found myself in constant communication with about 30 of our inner circle. I needed their expertise and help to validate stories and details, poke holes in my reasoning, and to give an oft-needed kick-start. I traveled several times just to sit with some of my guides. Meeting face-to-face was so much better than connecting by phone or Skype. In many cases, I only wanted them to tell their story one more time, like my kids wanted to hear their favorite stories just before bedtime. I already knew the details; I knew the punchlines. I wanted a way to give those words the life and resonance I felt sitting with them. For some reason, the atmosphere, breathing room, and friendship provided that boost I needed.

It took a while to find a voice for this book. It was a chorus of about 100 contributors. Every chapter is an ensemble on its own. Together they turned into a harmonized four-act symphony. It is our most serious work to date, but it also touches the emotions more than any previous projects. Health and well-being quickly turned from research into something very personal for all of us. We began as a collection of the curious and became a cohort of the committed.

Richard Narramore, Wiley's senior editor, led the previous three projects and helped guide us to our unifying theme. He has continuously challenged my thinking, asking, "What book do you want to write? You have three here." This project was no different. My editor, Ed Chinn, and I created an "Editing Floor" section. The strategy was simple: let's frame it up and start writing. Then we can step back and see what book this really is. That strategy asked more from Ed than in past books. His fine-tuned editing eye often found hidden treasure, but also kept an eye out for that common thread. We left another full book on the editing floor. For various reasons - space, style, coherence, consistency - several interviews and companies had to be removed. Seeing them excised was very difficult.

The idea for this project was first birthed at the CBRE headquarters. Lew Horne hosted the session; it was the first time I met Paul Scialla. It was clear there that we were touching a new, vital, and compelling story. We had to dig deeper. Shortly after that meeting, Haworth, Delos, DPR, and The Carter Group enthusiastically came together and said they would fund the effort to explore a new frontier. I am profoundly grateful for their faith and support to launch this mission.

I want to thank Phil Williams and Dr. Mike O'Neill for their willingness to coauthor this book. They both served as guides, interpreters, and scouts. I relied on their expertise and their encouragement. I also enjoyed the many trips that allowed us to piece this story together.

I'd like to especially thank Haworth and Mabel Casey. Without their support 10 years ago we would have never had the opportunity to test the idea that leaders could come together, without permission, and solve common complex challenges. It seems to be working. On a practical note, Michelle Kleyla with Haworth provided the ear of reason and common sense. I have come to call her my handler.

I had several guides and protectors along this journey. Paul Scialla treated me like a nephew and understudy. He opened doors and pulled me back from rabbit trails. I met Leigh Stringer through her book, The Healthy Workplace. It was my first compass into the wilds of wellness. She was also generous with support and introduced me to Mem Senft, who joined early. She was skeptical and had good reason. We had no bona fide wellness experts on our team until we found Mem; she brought others along. She became our guide, conscience, and incredible door opener. Kate Lister and Scott Muldavin were our truth-with-numbers squad. I met and talked with both several times to make sure I was doing the math.

Patrick Donnelly and Drew Suszko were my two closest summit collaborators. They gave time and BHDP's resources to help me better choreograph many of the exercises. Our events became incredible learning and creative labs.

I leaned on other past MindShift graduates, like Bob Fox and Craig Janssen, who challenged my direction for different summits, but also filtered what we produced through their lens as business owners. Randy Thompson, with Cushman Wakefield, generously read and critiqued our first draft.

Part of what makes our experiences so essential is the ability to spend time onsite with some of the most advanced thinkers on the topic. They host and participate. Haworth held our inaugural summit in Chicago. Janelle Weber and PQM brought us into an incredible dining experience and conversation around the issue of hospitality.

Barbara Spurrier and Dana Pillai hosted our immersion into health and well-being at the Mayo Clinic and the WELL Living Lab. Google has been a partner on a few of our projects. Josh Glynn and his work services (REWS) team hosted us in San Francisco and brought Bill Duane to share their new research on well-being. DPR opened their San Francisco offices, providing an ideal environment for our project-based learning. They also gave us behind-the-scenes access to their unique open culture. One of my favorite locations was Denver's Four Winds Interactive. They provide embedded interactive displays that feel a bit like those futuristic touch displays in the movie Minority Report. This summit provided a window into the future of building sensors, personal wellness technology, and interactive media. Rich Blakeman gave us access to their facility. It was an incredible playground to explore the technology of wellness. Our final summit was hosted by Calvin Crowder and Wade Lewis at GoDaddy. That was our book's barn raising summit, and our most creative session as we watched two years of work come together in four different book concepts.

I was able to meet directly with many more leaders and fascinating personalities than in previous projects. I owe that to our members inviting us into their relationships and networks. I met five best-selling authors, leaders of some of the most admired companies on the planet, medical experts and academics who opened worlds I never imagined existed. You will meet and read about them in the book.

Because there are so many people to thank, I've created an addendum to list the participants and contributors.

The roles of some were so vital that we could not have completed this project without them. Michael Lagocki has worked with me on the last three MindShift efforts. His role has grown from event facilitator and live scribe to codesigning events and taking on the role of the ears and emotions of the participants or reader. His advice continues to elevate our events and the quality of our work.

I owe the deepest gratitude on this project to Ed Chinn, my editor. He's much more than that. Ed traveled and participated in each of the summits and was, in many ways, an understudy, stepping in and keeping the process on track while I was pulled away to wrestle with life. At times, I felt like Rocky Balboa with my eye swollen shut and gasping for air in the corner. Ed stepped in, like Mickey, and kept saying, "Dig deeper, you can do it, kid." Creators know the magic in movies and books happens in the editing room. That was Ed's study in Spring Hill, Tennessee.

I want to express my love and appreciation to my family, especially Lisa. It was a hard year for our family, and she shouldered most of that. Lisa stayed positive and always encouraging. Lisa is our guardian of health and has become a gifted caretaker. I've come to see that role as a combination of gentle angel and fierce drill sergeant in giving care. And she can be a lawyer when dealing with the health-care world. She attended several of the summits and insisted we practice what we learned along the way. The hardest new rule she gave me was saying goodbye to bacon.

When I look back, this project feels like one of the wilderness high adventure treks I've taken with my oldest son. They all start with naïve optimism. That disappears with the reality that most of this trip is a three-mile-an hour trudge with a 50-pound pack on my shoulders. It doesn't matter how beautiful the world is around me, I'm still carrying this pack. Every trip gives incredible high points, but most of the time it's one foot in front of the other and finding creative ways to make that feel fun. The finish, however, is hard to describe. Deep satisfaction and a desire for a shower, a steak, something. When I sent my last chapter to Ed for editing, I ran some chores. I was in that happy relief state. The Kwik Lube attendant told me it would take a while to get my car serviced. I was bored with the outdated magazines in the waiting area, and my phone was on 2% battery life when I saw McDonald's next door. "I haven't had a cheeseburger and fries in years. I wonder." So, after a few feeble attempts to talk myself out of it, I succumbed to temptation and walked over. I was "Homered." You'll learn about that in Chapter 9. I ordered a cheeseburger and small fries. They were good, no lie.

When I returned home, I shared the story with Lisa. All she could say is, "What?" Then she laughed. "Darling, you've been cooped up way too long." So, I guess the moral is, wellness is a journey. The good news, I've taken our lessons seriously, and today I am measurably healthier than I was a year ago and the year before that. I wish the same for...