The Purpose-Driven Road Well Traveled

(Part 3 of 3)

By Lance Avery Morgan

l-r: Tim McClure, Roy Spence, Steve Gurasich, Judy Trabulsi, and Duff Stewart

As I sit down to talk turkey—business—with Roy Spence, it’s always a difficult task. There are lots of distractions, such as the red bench outside his office. It was an idea presented to him by esteemed poet Dr. Betty Sue Flowers, who explained to me that that the bench symbolizes “inviting a conversation that matters.” This is so that every corporation can have a zone, such as the red bench, where any topic can be discussed freely and openly.

In sharing more about the insight that went into his new book, It’s Not What You Sell, It’s What You Stand For: Why Every Extraordinary Business Is Driven by Purpose, Spence confides, “I found this out:  you become what you look for. If you look for enemies, you’ll find them. And if you look for hate, it will hit you right in your heart. And if you look for gossip, it will consume you. If you look for fear, it will follow you all your life.” That’s one road.

“But then there’s the other road,” he goes on to say. “You look for friends to be befriended. If you look for love, it will lift you up. If you look for the truth, it will set you free. And if you look for hope, it will take you to higher ground.” Spence’s clarity is startling to those who may not be on the journey of well-being. “I was also writing about all this while I was walking,” he recalls. “What do you see when you get to higher ground? Do you see God, whatever God that is? Do you see clearly whether it is what you want to see or not, good and bad. You hear clearly, good and bad. But there’s no ambiguity. So, I want to be on that road. And that’s part of the book, too.”

When I asked Spence to invite a few folks to a dream dinner party for this purpose, some of the results were surprising. Here’s who he would dine with…

1.    Partners of 40 years at GSD&M, in the “being enlightened” business with Spence.

2.    Bill and Hillary Clinton, his weekend “coffee talk” buddies.

3.    Jim Collins, author of the Good to Great books. “He is my brother in purpose,” says Spence.

4.    Helen Keller, the humanitarian. As Spence says, “She saw it all and couldn’t see anything.”

5.    Winston Churchill. “Although Roosevelt was on our team, Churchill was on that team, too, and he was the one getting bombed,” says Spence.

6.    Thomas Jefferson, because of his life as a farmer, scientist, statesman, and also because he encouraged Lewis and Clark to explore the richnessof the United States.

7.    Social entrepreneur Bill Strickland, who, according to Spence, is “the most enlightened man I know. He took kids from the inner city of Philadelphia and got them involved in a  cooking school.” As Strickland says, “You become what you build.”

Spence is a true testament that he, too, has become what he built. To learn more about Spence, visit our two previous blog entries and read the full article in an upcoming issue of Brilliant.

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