Lessons on Thoughtful Giving and Building Lasting Relationships with John Ruhlin
Hey fellas,
I wanna thank you for listening to this interview today. It’s a very special one, a conversation I had that originally aired back in 2021 with my amazing friend John Ruhlin. Many of you in this community, and many in the entrepreneurial and business world, will know that name, and you likely know that we lost John a month ago suddenly. I’ve been sitting here at my desk, staring at this microphone, thinking about how I might truly honor this man, what I could say about him, the impact he’s had on my life and the lives of so many, how great of a father and husband he was. And honestly, I could be talking for hours.
I’ll tell you that I knew this man for decades. I was a groomsman in his wedding. He was one of my best friends. A couple of weeks ago, I went back and I was looking at my text messages and emails with him, and every single exchange was him lifting me up, encouraging me, introducing me to somebody. John was at the very first ever Front Row Dads retreat. He’s always been there by my side, in my corner. He’s such a giver. That’s the thing — John was such a giver. He was an incredibly talented businessman, but he’s probably an even better family man, a better human.
When I was at his funeral, I just walked away realizing how much of a better person I want to be because of this man. I want you to listen to his heart in this conversation. We’re sharing stories, talking about our failures and our wins, and that’s how it was with John — always the real story. I love his perspective on life. I love his perspective on giving. I’m sharing this interview for a couple of reasons: one, I just want you to know my friend. I want you to hear his message. I think his impact will continue to grow, his legacy will continue to grow.
One thing happened recently that I want to share with you. John’s business partner of 18 years, a wonderful human named Rod, pledged a commitment to the family to remain business partners with John for the next 18 years. So as Giftology continues to grow, Rod will take care of John’s wife and children as 50/50 business partners for the next 18 years.
So, friends of John’s and people in the entrepreneurial space, we wanted to share John’s story with all of you in hopes that, yeah, you know, not only are people going to just use Gift because it’s an amazing company, read the book because it’s an amazing book, but maybe as a little extra nudge today, in honor of John, go pick up a copy, pick up 100 copies, go visit the website, check it out, because when you engage with the Giftology team, with their services, with the products, you’re ultimately supporting John’s family. And I wanted to get that message out to all of you.
John’s work has had a massive impact. If you went to YouTube and typed in his name, you’d see interview after interview after interview. You’ll love the essence of John, the heart of John. He was a deep man of faith, a good human. I think about my friend Cameron Harold talking about how he kept trying to bribe John to say a curse word, and he just would never do it. He never said anything bad about anybody. He was the type of person who always led with his heart. He gave so much of himself at all times. Story after story at his funeral was about how many lives he touched and how so many people felt that John was such a good friend to them. And that’s what it felt like to be in John’s company — you were the only one that mattered in the room. He was all in with you, an incredible presence. I think that was his biggest gift to the world: his presence, his energy, and his spirit.
He also taught some really great business principles that you can practice, and you’ll know that these are rooted in an extremely high-quality human — John Ruhlin. Again, I don’t know what to say, guys. There’s so much. But I just want to say thank you for listening today. This has been a very emotional month for me. I left his funeral saying I want to be such a better person. At the same time, over the last several weeks, I found myself being short-tempered with people, maybe angrier than normal. I didn’t even know where that came from, but I’ve experienced all the emotions on any given day. And I question sometimes if I’m doing enough to love on John and his legacy and to support his family. Sometimes I stumble and don’t know what to text or email or say in a recording like this because it never feels like enough.
But I just want to tell you that this man, someone I love, I hope you enjoy this interview, I hope you laugh, as we do and as we did so many times. And if you feel called or moved, his team put together a document, which you can see at giftologygroup.com/rwa, if you wanted to support the family somehow. There are various ways to do that. But also, if you’re a business person, one of the greatest ways you can help is by helping your company and learning some business skills that are going to help accelerate your message in the world, which is what John would want. You’ll also be helping his family.
So, you can go to giftologygroup.com/rwa, which stands for Referrals Without Asking. That is a program that we want to keep calling attention to right now to honor John and his work, and he wanted this work to be out in the world. So we want to support that. Thank you. I hope you enjoy this conversation. And again, please go give giftologygroup.com and give a look.
Some of my favorite moments of the conversation:
- Why gifting alone can’t save a sucky business and adds insult to injury in a struggling marriage.
- Why the bar is so low in business gift giving – and how to give much more intentional gifts in every area of life.
- The value of facilitating gift-giving within your family.
- Childhood wounds that stick with us into adulthood.
Resources:
- JohnRuhlin.com
- Giftology Group
- Giftology: The Art and Science of Using Gifts to Cut Through the Noise, Increase Referrals, and Strengthen Client Retention
John Ruhlin Bio
John Ruhlin was the founder of The Ruhlin Group, a gift logistics company that helps clients like the Chicago Cubs, Wells Fargo, Caesar’s Entertainment, Miami Dolphins, Morgan Stanley, and The John Maxwell Company execute year-round gifting strategies.
John’s unique approach to relationships led him to become the #1 salesman for a $250 Million direct sales company by the time he was 23 (out of 1.5 Million reps). He now speaks widely about strategic gifting and relationship building and helps CEOs and sales teams drive referrals and open doors to elusive decision-makers.
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