Live From The Festival of Books - April 26, 2010 - Segment Two

Live From The Festival of Books – Betsy and Renee continue their conversation with Daryl Wizelman, author of the book Heart Leader: A Personal Journey To The Heart of Business and Life, as Daryl shares some of his favorite stories and lessons from the book. Among his favorites is the story about “Rotten Ralph,” a street-wise fellow from Brooklyn with a tough exterior who lived with Daryl and his mom for 21 years. As a kid, Daryl used to walk home from school past a McDonalds, where he would typically encounter a bully who had it out for him. One time, when Daryl came home whimpering, Ralph asked what had happened. Once Daryl told him about the bully, Ralph told him to get in his car and they sped off to the McDonalds. When they walked into the McDonalds, the bully was there sitting in a booth. Ralph walked over to the bully, sat in the booth, pulled out a Colt .45 revolver and told him “If you touch my kid again, I’m gonna kill ya.” Obviously, as Daryl remarks, it’s a very intense and non-traditional story for a book about business lessons. But in his case, the crux of the story is for the first time in his life, a parental figure was protecting him, inspiring Daryl to take on that principle as a business owner. As Daryl proclaims, “It’s my opportunity and my obligation to protect the people that work for me.”

2Minutes&More with Betsy Berkhemer and Renee Fraser airs every Sunday at 1pm on KFWB NEWS TALK 980. Tune in for a full hour of tips for business success.