Board of Advisors

Brad Brummel

Ph.D. in Industrial/Organizational Psychology from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

How do you know when you have found career bliss?

You know you’ve found career bliss when you use words like vocation, calling, or identity when describing what you do. You know your work is important for your company's success and you talk about your company as "we" or "us." Career bliss is when you have no plans or desire to retire.

How did you become involved with CareerBliss?

Since 2002, I have been researching and teaching psychology in the workplace both in graduate school at the University of Illinois. I am currently a professor at The University of Tulsa. This work includes writing research articles for academic journals, designing realistic training simulations and surveys on individual differences, and teaching students both in classes and through their research projects. Some people (including my wife) say that I don’t have a real job, and I don’t disagree. It is more like I have 10 interesting tasks that I should at any one point in time. I have a passion for making research practical and accessible, so that everyone can use it. That is why I love my role with CareerBliss.

What makes you happy at work?

Happiness is working on things that challenge and develop my knowledge, skills, and abilities. Helping students develop confidence, skills, and insight make me happy. Finally, happiness is being able to walk to work and back home to an amazing wife (and dog).

See Brad's Happy Facts »

• When I was 10, I wanted to be: A Lego spaceman.
• Books I would suggest to a friend: The Happiness Hypothesis and Lament for a Son.
• Favorite Sports Team: Oklahoma City Thunder (sorry Seattle!) & Detroit Lions.
• Favorite Movies: Legends of the Fall, Heat, and Office Space.
• Favorite Band or Songs: Smashing Pumpkins, Lady Antebellum.
• What I like to do when NOT at CareerBliss: Intramural sports, golf, eat at good restaurants, & spend time with my wife and dog.
• Coolest job on the planet: College Professor.
• Idea to make the world a better place: My undergraduate developmental economics professor, Dr. Abadeer, said the key to improving developing countries and reducing poverty was to educate the women in everywhere in the world. That is the most practical yet impossibly difficult idea I have heard, so I am borrowing it.

Joseph C. Rode

Ph.D. in Organizational Behavior from Indiana University

How do you know when you have found career bliss?

You know you’ve found career bliss when you get up excited to go to work, you find yourself completely absorbed with what you are doing while at work, and you are able to put work out of your mind when you come home in the evening!.

How did you become involved with CareerBliss?

My first "real" (kind of at least) job was as a bartender at a resort town in Northern Michigan. My first "professional" job was as a clothes buyer for a major department store. This was followed by a return to graduate school to earn my MBA, and then four years as change management consultant, which was pretty cool. After returning to school once again for my Ph.D, I joined the faculty in the Management department at the Farmer School of Business at Miami (OH) University. The freedom and flexibility to use my creative abilities as well as the feeling that I’m doing something important makes this a perfect fit for me!

What makes you happy at work?

In work, my happiness comes from doing work that allows me to think in creative and innovative ways, and that makes a difference in other people’s lives. In my non-work life my happiness comes from spending time outdoors with my family, riding my bike, reading great books, and teaching my daughters how to play the violin (even if they are a bit less excited about it than I am!) Happiness in both domains comes from being completely in the moment with whatever I'm doing!

See Joseph's Happy Facts »

• When I was 10, I wanted to be: Professional baseball player.
• Books I would suggest to a friend: Lonesome Dove, Helping Parents Practice, and Me Talk Pretty One Day.
• Favorite Sports Team: Indiana Hoosiers basketball!
• Favorite Movies: Rabbit-Proof Fence, Hotel Rwanda, and Caddyshack.
• Favorite Band or Songs: Anything from the Dave Brubeck Quartet.
• What I like to do when NOT at CareerBliss: Riding my bike, windsurfing, SCUBA diving, reading, and hanging out with my family.
• Coolest job on the planet: My friend is in charge of studying and implementing sustainable business practices for a major international firm. I look at my daughters and think to myself "wow, he is really doing something important!"
• Idea to make the world a better place: Smile at one stranger a day and be sure to listen more than you talk!

Richard Sheridan

President & CEO, Menlo Innovations
BS in Computer Science and MS in Computer Engineering from the University of Michigan

How do you know when you have found career bliss?

When my last thought just before falling asleep was regularly becoming ... "I can't wait for morning to get on the Menlo stuff the next day." At that point I started seeing sleep as the enemy. I now get up at 5am and am working most days by 6am. And it never actually feels like work.

How did you become involved with CareerBliss?

Matt Miller, one of the co-founders of CareerBliss, reached out to me. Given our cultural focus of "the business value of joy" it seemed natural to connect with an organization called Career Bliss!

What makes you happy at work?

The sound of laughter while hard work is getting done with enthusiasm and energy.

See Richard's Happy Facts »

• When I was 10, I wanted to be: An airline pilot.
• Books I would suggest to a friend: The Highest Goal - Michael Ray; Rich Dad, Poor Dad - Guy Kayasawki; The Five Dysfunctions of a Team - Patrick Lencioni.
• Favorite Sports Team: Michigan Wolverines and Detroit Tigers.
• Favorite Movies: The Matrix.
• Favorite Band or Songs: Elton John.
• What I like to do when NOT at Menlo: Golf, skiing, and anything that produces an adrenaline response (e.g. roller coasters, snorkeling in Hawaii while following a sea turtle).
• Coolest job on the planet: Mine!
• Idea to make the world a better place: Focusing your company's culture on joy!

Chris Widner

Director of Culture at Dyn
B.A. In Mass Communication/Advertising from Texas State University

How do you know when you have found career bliss?

When time flies and you stop counting the hours you're working. You also talk about your company with almost as much pride as you talk about your children.

How did you become involved with Dyn?

Dyn is a company focused on creating and maintaining a great company culture that brings the best out of our employees. Working with CareerBliss seemed natural for us.

What makes you happy at work?

Seeing our employees grow personally and professionally and knowing the company plays a part in helping them grow.

See Chris' Happy Facts »

• When I was 10, I wanted to be: A radio DJ (I still have the voice for it).
• Books I would suggest to a friend: Peak by Chip Conley; Uncommon by Tony Dungy; Quiet Strength by Tony Dungy; Pyramid of Success by John Wooden; Amazement Revolution by Skip Hyken; The Myth of Multitasking by Dave Crenshaw; Rework by Jason Fried.
• Favorite Sports Team: Dallas Cowboys (I'm a very forgiving person, clearly).
• Favorite Movies: Swingers, The Big Lebowski, Superbad, Memento, GoodFellas, Tombstone, Grosse Pointe Blank, Run Lola Run, Monica & David, Knocked Up, In the Mouth of Madness.
• Favorite Band or Songs: Brad Paisley, David Crowder Band, A Tribe Called Quest, Allman Brothers, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Toadies, Led Zeppelin, Jack Johnson, Switchfoot, Kenny Chesney, Beck, Black Crowes, Jason Aldean, Stevie Wonder, Radiohead, Daft Punk, Aretha Franklin, Talking Heads, Trip Lee, Blind Melon, Switchfoot, Zac Brown Band, Ray Charles, Otis Redding, Miranda Lambert, Metallica, BB King, Taylor Swift.
• What I like to do when NOT at CareerBliss: Play with my kids, play guitar, read comics, watch sports, golf, naps
• Coolest job on the planet: Aren't I working it already?
• Idea to make the world a better place:
  1) Design curriculum that allows students to proceed at their own pace and utilize technology that provides them instant feedback. If you are in 5th grade but have a 7th grade level understanding of math, great! No reason to keep you doing 5th grade material. But you may have a 5th grade understanding of science.
  2) Hold politicians to the same standards we hold our toddlers when it comes to ethics and manners.