Two Decades in the making
Welcome to a very special episode and a new wisdom mini-series. This four-part series originates from an archive of rare 2004 recordings of wisdom conversations with my mentor, John Wells Jr. In the truest sense this has been two decades in the making.
Sadly, John passed away in early February 2005, after battling cancer. Those conversations and recordings served as a pre-cursor, perhaps even a prequel to this podcast which launched 15 years later in 2019.
Embracing Adversity with Grace and Resilience
Here in Part One of our mini-series, you will hear John share a wisdom lesson with me on the importance of embracing and reframing adversity. Football season is upon us, and appropriately John’s lesson is rooted in a mythical football game. There are victories … and then there are special victories.
More About Our Wise Guest – John Wells, Jr.
John was one of the most effective and influential mentors in my lifetime. He taught, led and influenced me, opening my eyes and expanding my thinking on those things that truly matter. I was deeply blessed to know him.
John was a dedicated retail veteran and community leader who co-founded Wells Home Furnishings after working his years working at R.H. Kyle Furniture Co. Known for his entrepreneurial spirit, he led his business to award-winning success and earned induction into the National Wholesale Furniture Association Hall of Fame. Beyond his career, Wells was deeply involved in civic and youth service organizations in Charleston, including the Boys Scouts, YMCA and United Way, among others, reflecting his commitment to community betterment.
His leadership extended to serving as past president of the National Wholesale Furniture Association, where he influenced industry standards and fostered professional growth. Locally, John was known as an effective, tireless leader and chairperson of several charity fundraising drives.
His excellence was recognized on the national stage. In 2000, John was honored with the prestigious Ernst Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award. He never sought the spotlight, and yet one day the President of the United States, George W. Bush, stood in Charleston and honored John Wells for his service. His legacy is marked by his dedication to his family, his profession and his community, leaving a lasting impact on everyone who knew him.
Resources
YMCA Spirit of the Valley Tribute Video to John Wells, Jr. (2005)
Wells Home Furnishings website
Credits
Special thanks to Motion Masters, Inc. – Diana Sole Walko, CEO/President – for generously supporting and capturing video and audio from these 2004 sessions. Learn more at their website.
Editor + Technical Advisor Bob Hotchkiss
Brand + Strategy Advisor Andy Malinoski
PR + Partnerships Advisor Rachel Bell
Marketing, Social Media and Graphic Design Chloe Lineberg
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Episode Keywords
Wisdom, Struggle, Adversity, Opportunity, Resilience, Leadership, Life Lessons, Legacy, Courage, Humility, Heart, Strength, Football, Family, Cancer, Podcast
Episode Transcript
0:00:01 – Skip Lineberg
I walked into the weight room at the Charleston YMCA. It was late January 2005. Just a bit after five o’clock. I tossed my red gym bag over my shoulder, and I scanned the room. Out of the corner of my left eye, I noticed an older gentleman, thin, gaunt, straining through bicep curls with a pair of dumbbells. Twenty-five ,maybe 30, pounds in each hand. The same weight I, 25 years younger, would normally grab.
His face told the story of a battle with cancer. But his determination, his effort—that told the story of his life.
That man was my mentor, my colleague, my role model, my friend. His name was John Wells, Jr. Less than 10 days later, cancer claimed his body, took his life, but not his spirit. Never his spirit!
John Wells lived life to the full. He led boldly. He loved deeply. He raised millions of dollars to build enhancements to our community, ones like the new indoor pool in that YMCA in Charleston. He gave tirelessly to the Boy Scouts, the United Way and to countless young leaders, including me.
His excellence was recognized on a national stage. In 1985, John Wells Jr was named National Man of the Year for the furniture industry. Fifteen years later, in 2000, John was honored with the prestigious Ernst Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award. He never sought the spotlight, and yet one day the President of the United States, George W. Bush, stood in Charleston and honored John Wells for his service.
0:02:16 – Skip
To me, John was more than all that. He was the man who sat with me, asked the hard questions, the deep questions. He shared wisdom. And he showed me what it meant to live with courage, humility and heart in all my roles in life: as a business owner, as a husband, as a community servant, as a father.
In the fall of 2004, as his health waned, John and I made a decision: we would sit down together, we would record some of his wisdom, his stories, his lessons. Not knowing how little time we had left, those conversations became a gift, a gift I now share with you.
0:03:06 – Skip
Welcome to a special four-part miniseries of The Main Thing Podcast. Over the next several episodes, you’ll hear rare recordings from John Wells Jr, captured more than 20 years ago. These may well be the prequel to this very podcast.
Each episode will feature John’s voice, his perspective and his tireless wisdom.
My hope is simple: that these conversations spark growth in you, just as they did in me, and that they honor the life of a man whose legacy continues to ripple outward.
So let’s begin with John Wells Jr, a leader, a servant, a mentor and my friend.
0:03:58 – John Wells, Jr.
One time, and I think it might even have been my middle son, who ended up being a state champion and being all-state in wide receiver, so he’s received the epitome of the awards. Yet he was the lowest at one time and struggling trying to get to this place. So he was down in the depths of the whole thing.
And I said, “David, if you were playing a championship game, and both teams were undefeated … one of them’s from the northern part of the state and the other one from our part of the state. We were the other team, and this was for the game of all games. The first quarter your team scored four touchdowns. That’d be pretty good, wouldn’t it?”
He said, “Oh, you’re not kidding, that would just be great!”
I said, “In the second quarter, your team would score two more touchdowns. Then it would be the other zero to your sixth touchdown. At the end of the game you’ll have won 106—or whatever it comes out—to zero. Wouldn’t that be a great way to win a championship game?”
He says, “You’re not kidding.”
I said, “You wouldn’t have any opposition at all. You’d be able to go all the way from zero to 100. Sail right through the quarter. Hey, we got the quarter done. No score there.”
0:05:38 – John Wells, Jr.
Halftime. Nobody’s scoring against us. We got this team beat. Let’s all have a Coke. Put the subs in.
Third quarter. We score some more touchdowns. No way they can come back and beat us now. We have got this championship won.
We’re all sitting back with our hands up. The game’s over. Now we’re the champions. We’ve won 106 to nothing.
We all go home. We celebrate at home with a family celebration.
And about 10 o’clock that night somebody says to me, “Huh, no contest to that game, was there?”
“No, but we won 106 to nothing.”
0:06:37 – John Wells, Jr.
Well let’s see…. Let’s start all over again.
Down at the fourth quarter it’s 6-0, and then our team comes in and scores six points. So now we’re six to six.
You kick off to the other side, and they bring the thing down to the 50-yard line. And then they lose the ball.
Now we’re down to two minutes in the game, and you take a drive. You start that drive, and you go all the way down to the six yard line. And there’s only just a few seconds to go.
You’ve either got to run that ball across that line, or you’re going to have to kick a field goal. Well, you’ve got a fair field goal kicker. There’s a risk there both ways.
Well, as it goes, we kick the ball, and we get the field goal. And now we win the game.
0:07:42 – John Wells, Jr.
Now, we’re just talking here …. Do you think it would be better to have won that game today by that margin of three points under those conditions? Or to have won it at 106 to nothing?
Well, the answer from the people in the room was, “Oh, I’d rather won it by the one score.”
I said, “Are you saying to me, then, that you want to make it more difficult to win, and struggle to win? Or that you want it to be easy?”
“Well … I like it being easy. But I’d like to have had more satisfaction out of winning it.”
0:08:33 – Skip Lineberg
It might mean more.
0:08:35 – John Wells, Jr.
“In other words, you’re telling me that the struggle that you would get from the experience would be more satisfying.”
“That’s right. But during the process of playing the game, you don’t feel that way.”
0:08:52 – John Wells, Jr.
The point of this whole thing, as confusing as it may be—is that in life, when we’re struggling and standing on top of struggle … whatever it be, your house burned down, or a disease, or some problem in your neighborhood, or with your family, or what have you. When you’re standing on top of that struggle, you don’t see far enough ahead to see the advantage of that.
And so in a sports game, when you’re playing the game, you don’t want to struggle. You just want to get out of the deal. But it’s only in retrospect that we appreciate the struggle.
0:09:40 – John Wells, Jr.
So the conclusion is that God blesses us with struggle every day of our lives. And the more we can see that struggle as an opportunity, instead of a drag, the happier we’re going to be.
Because it’s the truth. I mean, I have cancer. And I have very little chance of living very long, but that’s okay.
There’s many reasons I feel okay about it, but I can just tell you that the struggle that we live with … there’s lots of love and joy and wonderful things that go along with all of that stuff.
We can be at peace in our heart and our mind, just by saying to ourselves that we appreciate the opportunity that God has blessed us with.
0:10:40 – John Wells, Jr.
Whether you believe in God or what you believe in, I’m not suggesting it’s a religious thing, so much as it is simply a way of looking at the opportunity.
I just know that it’s not going to defeat me. Sometimes we just have to brainwash ourselves into believing these things, because the negativism is all around us, all in the world.
I’m so thankful for the adversity and struggle—that it has become something that I look forward to.
0:11:12 – Announcer
That goes by incredibly fast, doesn’t it? Time flies when you’re hacking wisdom. Thank you for listening to this wisdom conversation. If you enjoyed this podcast and found the wisdom lesson valuable, then I encourage you to share it with a loved one or friend.
Did you know: podcast recommendations from one person to another remain the strongest form of podcast growth worldwide? It’s true, and we’d appreciate you helping spread the good word.
Let’s give a big, hearty, thank you to the crew of the Main Thing podcast. These are the folks who truly keep the wisdom pipeline flowing: audio engineer Bob Hotchkiss, strategy advisor Andy Malinoski, public relations and partnerships guru Rachel Bell, social media and digital marketing expert Chloe Lineberg, graphic designer Emma Malinoski. And, of course, our patrons, those generous folks who provide monthly funding support to help underwrite our costs of production. I couldn’t do it without you, nor would I want to.
Your feedback matters a lot. If you have a question, a suggestion, maybe an idea, or even a nomination of a future show guest, I’d love to hear from you. Contact us here.
Well, that’s a wrap for this show. I’m your host, Skip Lineberg, signing off for now and inviting you to join us again next time for another special delivery of wisdom.
Transcribed by https://podium.page
