John was born and raised in St. Paul, MN. He attended the University of Notre Dame on a hockey scholarship and graduated with a degree in American

Studies/Communications. After deciding not to attend law school, he started his business career as a local salesperson with WCCO-TV (CBS) in Minneapolis-St. Paul. In addition to serving the station’s existing clients, he developed a passion for successfully creating new customers and watching their business grow.

After seven years and moved to Atlanta, GA for a similar position with WSB-TV (ABC). After three years he was promoted to sales manager and served as a

National Sales Manager and Local Sales Manager. In those roles, he managed 13 national rep offices and a team of local salespeople. He also managed the station’s political advertising. During his time at WSB-TV, the station consistently overachieved its annual budgets and delivered unprecedented market revenue shares.

In 2020, at age 62, he was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease and retired after a 40-year career. But wait, there’s more! There are three intangibles he saw in

himself and always looked for when hiring salespeople. Those are grit, tenacity, and a little bit of junkyard dog. Choosing not to participate in spending the

remainder of his life dealing with Parkinson’s, he leaned on those three attributes which led him to the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN. Where, after three days of testing, he learned he did not have Parkinson’s.

He is currently writing a book about his life-changing experience at the Mayo Clinic and his 40-year business career. His purpose is to create awareness about a treatable condition often misdiagnosed as Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, or Dementia. He will also share his insights on hiring successful salespeople and creating a winning culture.

John and his wife JoAnn have been married for 39 years and reside in Atlanta. They have two children and one granddaughter.