Ray Ruecker, The Introspective CEO - Being Left At The Steps Of An Orphanage, Lessons from Being Fired 7 Times, and How Starting a Company Is Like Parenthood

This is one of the most fun interviews on The Corporate Couch with my friend Ray Ruecker. His journey starts at the end of the Vietnam War on the steps of an orphanage. We talk about everything from the almost tragic (the plane he was supposed to be on from Vietnam to the US to live with the parents who adopted him crashed), to his daily, habit started 23 years ago of journalling every day (approximately 8400 days), to college/pro football. Ray is also the author of "How to Score from First Base! (In Sales)" (Ray's Book), one of the best tactical sales prospecting books ever.

Please enjoy my conversation with Ray!

 

Ray Ruecker is the Managing Director of Connect 5000 (Connect 5000), a Kansas City-based lead generation, prospecting training, and sales consulting company. Since March 2010, Connect 5000 has helped countless software, technology,

and consulting companies boost sales revenue with effective lead-generation

campaigns, sales prospecting strategies, and inside sales management. In

addition to providing support to existing company leadership, Ray has also

served as a firm's interim sales leader until they found a permanent solution.

 

Ray holds two Bachelor's degrees from Washburn University in Business

Administration with an emphasis on marketing and management. Born in

Saigon, Vietnam, and raised in the rural Midwest, Ray now lives in Kansas

City Metro with his wife, Kate, their two children, Olivia and William, and

their mischievous Goldendoodle, Millie.