Purpose: A Journey from Breakdown to Breakthrough

By Chuck Hendee

Have you found your Purpose? This book takes the reader on a journey through adventure, success, crisis, survival, redemption, and abundant restoration. After suffering a midlife crisis that went bad, the author discovers that Purpose is the boundary on Freedom. The book provides a roadmap to achieving greater peace, fulfillment, and significance.

"I don't know if we each have a destiny or if we're all just floating around accidental like on a breeze. But I think maybe it's both. Maybe both is happening at the same time." Forrest Gump

Do you feel like your life has a destiny or is it just floating in the breeze like a feather? Learn how discovering and defining your purpose can lead you to greater success personally and professionally.

My hope is that by reading this book you will gain a perspective on your life that will help you get through the greatest challenges. My prayer is that you will consider taking a breath and looking around you for those who may be inspired to bless you. – Chuck Hendee

MAPPING THE JOURNEY AHEAD

This book starts, finding the author in the midst of restoration, and then fills in the background in the life that led to a midlife crisis in the year 2000.

The story takes the reader through the crisis, depression, and then on to the redemption and restoration of business and personal life. The author reveals, through the chapter on reflection, the personal and managerial traits leading to the crisis as well as the chapter on blessings that led to recovery.

The journey includes the revelation in a new management and incentive system that dramatically improved the authors company profits and value at the ultimate sale. The author explains how he discovered his core Purpose, in the chapter by that name, and provides a guide for the reader for their own personal journey.

Fasten your seatbelt, it's a heck of a ride.

Reviews:

Purpose is the poignant story of a man's journey from modest beginnings to business success through mental breakdown, financial peril and return to mental health and even greater business achievement.
To write a book such as Purpose requires an exceptionally high level of self-disclosure. Readers will be struck by the humility of the author's depiction of his childhood, and life as a young man. The author's faith in God is clarified and affirmed after the realization that his solitary managerial efforts "to keep all the plates spinning" would be insufficient to save his business. At the hour of maximum distress, he finds comfort in God, a faithful, competent wife, and his brother.
The depiction of the trajectory of Hendee Enterprises from garage scale operation to a much larger business supplying the largest retailers in the United States is exceptional principally for the granular insight into how a small business grows to hundreds of employees in less than 10 years. The author's belief that employees must share in the profits of a business and the mechanics for accomplishing this is an equally important takeaway of the book.

k. Churchill

It was a wonderful opportunity to read Chuck Hendee's book, Purpose. I only wish that it would have been available four years back when I was experiencing similar difficulties in my own life. I certainly would not have gotten to the phase that I did on the "Chart"! Although the experience was not pleasant at the time, it was life changing for the better and Purpose evoked reflective thoughts, a renewal in faith and focus on how God, not me is in control and He is all you need to make it through hardships that this earthly life will throw your way. I recommend that all Entrepreneurs read this book whether currently in despair or feel that everything is in order. It will help you find and or keep balance in life and it offers great business, emotional, and spiritual guidance that we all need in today's uncertain times.

Jason R Smith, Business Development Director, Archway Properties

• Language: English
• Publisher: BookBaby
• Release date: Jan 5, 2021
• ISBN: 9781098322588

Book preview

cover.jpg

Copyrighted Material

Purpose: A Journey from Breakdown to Breakthrough

Copyright©2020 by Chuck Hendee. Registration TXu 2-219-551. All Rights Reserved.

No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means; electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without prior written permission from the publisher, except for the inclusion of brief quotations in a review.

For information about this title or to order other books and/or electronic media, contact the publisher:

BookBaby Publishing [e-mail]

Printed in the United States of America

Cover and Interior Design: BookBaby

Cover Photo Licensed: Alamy

Print ISBN: 978-1-09832-257-1

eBook ISBN: 978-1-09832-258-8

Purpose

Dedication:

I dedicate this book to my brother, who was there when I needed him and suggested that I share my testimony.

Acknowledgment:

I acknowledge that my very survival and resulting opportunities have been realized in the Grace of God.

My inspiration for writing this book came from listening to an interview with Kamal Ravikant on a Glenn Beck Podcast. Mr. Ravikant authored the book Love Yourself Like Your Life Depends on It. (1)

Commitment:

My commitment is that all proceeds from the sale of this book will help those with special needs in our communities. I am dedicated to supporting parents and helping young adults to have the opportunity for meaningful employment and a life with dignity. For more information on our church‘s Special Needs Ministry, go to www.siennaranchspecialneeds.org

Reviews

Purpose is the poignant story of a man’s journey from modest beginnings to business success through mental breakdown, financial peril and return to mental health and even greater business achievement.

To write a book such as Purpose requires an exceptionally high level of self-disclosure. Readers will be struck by the humility of the author’s depiction of his childhood, and life as a young man. The author’s faith in God is clarified and affirmed after the realization that his solitary managerial efforts to keep all the plates spinning would be insufficient to save his business. At the hour of maximum distress, he finds comfort in God, a faithful, competent wife, and his brother.

The depiction of the trajectory of Hendee Enterprises from garage scale operation to a much larger business supplying the largest retailers in the United States is exceptional principally for the granular insight into how a small business grows to hundreds of employees in less than 10 years. The author’s belief that employees must share in the profits of a business and the mechanics for accomplishing this is an equally important takeaway of the book.

k. Churchill

It was a wonderful opportunity to read Chuck Hendee’s book, Purpose. I only wish that it would have been available four years back when I was experiencing similar difficulties in my own life. I certainly would not have gotten to the phase that I did on the Chart! Although the experience was not pleasant at the time, it was life-changing for the better, and Purpose evoked reflective thoughts, a renewal in faith, and focus on how God, not me is in control and He is all you need to make it through hardships that this earthly life will throw your way. I recommend that all Entrepreneurs read this book whether currently in despair or feel that everything is in order. It will help you find and or keep balance in life and it offers great business, emotional, and spiritual guidance that we all need in today’s uncertain times.

Jason Smith

After personal experience, King David penned the God inspired, profoundly timeless lyric Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff they comfort me. In his new book Purpose - A Journey From Breakdown To Breakthrough, author Chuck Hendee not only sheds light on the unexpected reality of life’s dark valleys; but he also encourages us, as one who has walked with experience before, that when our time in the valley arrives, we are not alone and we will make it through. Like King David, the author then shares with his readers the priceless wisdom and insights he gained from his journey. Chuck Hendee’s inspiring true story reminds us just how God refines us in life’s darkest valleys as He works to make all things good and new.

Mark Dean

Sienna Ranch Baptist Church

Contents

Purpose

Introduction

Preface

Mapping the Journey Ahead

Chapter 1: Montana

Chapter 2: Background Developing years

Chapter 3: Y2K(The year 2000)

Chapter 4: The Spiral Down

Chapter 5: Turn-a-round

Chapter 6: Ten-Fold

Chapter 7: Self-Assessment

Chapter 8: The Blessings

Chapter 9: The Second Half(a time of service)

Chapter 10: ReflectionsMy Hope

Chapter 11: Purpose

Chapter 12: Takeaways

Chapter 13: The Guide

Thankful to Many

Things to Come

References and Definitions

About the Author

Laying at anchor off Belize, 2007

Introduction

Have you discovered your Purpose? I believe mine was always there but not clearly defined. I began to write about how I struggled with a midlife crisis and was blessed with redemption and an abundant restoration. That was the simple testimony. Reliving it, to write this book, I discovered the Why and not just the What in the story.

I hope that by reading this book, you will gain a perspective on your life that will help you get through the most significant challenges and achieve your full potential. My prayer is that you will consider taking a breath, connecting with your purpose, and looking around you for those who may be inspired to bless you.

You may not be a Christian or believe in a higher power, but you have probably experienced or know someone who has found restoration and blessings that they did not earn on their own. This book takes the reader through my experiences with a mid-life crisis. What may be unique is that in my situation, the mistress was a sailboat.

I recently learned that the word Crisis in Chinese is depicted by two characters; Danger and Opportunity. In every crisis, there is the opportunity to grow and succeed. The brush with danger seems to shake us up and force us to reassess our course.

In these pages, I take the reader through the building and growth of a manufacturing company. I describe the skills that I learned and developed along the way. The traits and attributes in my personality that served me in my career led me into a crisis when allowed to be excessive. I learned that I had strayed from my Purpose.

Learning how to manage my passion for adventure, risk-taking, and problem-solving helped accelerate my recovery beyond restoration. I believe a force of good led me on that path, with key people who helped me.

Self-assessment can help determine the course corrections we all need from time to time to make it to the finish line. Just like sailboat racing, adjusting to the conditions quickly to stay on course wins the race.

Although this book is not primarily focused on business management, it does reveal how changing my focus from growth to stability brought a rapid positive change.

You can benefit from learning the philosophy of gain sharing (4-5), which dramatically drove our success. Learning how to focus the workforce on cost savings and rewarding them with a piece of the gains led us to a change of fortunes. All businesses could benefit from incentivizing and sharing success with their workforce to achieve their clear financial goals.

Another aspect of this book is how to look at life after your career. If life is like a football game, then the second half can be just as fulfilling as the first. The second half is full of chances to succeed in other ways than trying to make a living. See how teaching, mentoring (11), and serving others can become even more rewarding than your career.

Preface

A Letter to the Reader

This book is about a breakdown and a recovery that went well beyond restoration. The lessons learned were life-changing. Looking back, I would have avoided the pain if I could, but the experience has been well worth it.

Everyone has ups and downs along the way, although most may not reach the depths of depression that I did. In the past, I was always able to soldier through adversities. Here, I was fighting for survival.

My redemption was reconnecting with my purpose aided by angels in the form of family, friends, and even strangers.

My dad suffered somewhat from a condition called manic-depressive, which is now called bipolar. His was relatively mild, although he was hospitalized when he was around 50yrs old. His normal state was delightful though he would experience highs and lows that would last a few days.

My mom’s personality and disposition were steady and relatively unemotional. As a product of their genetics, I was usually able to use my mom’s genes to keep fears at bay while benefitting from my dad’s enthusiasm and drive.

The breakdown I experienced has been explained as situational (2), meaning it was driven by the culmination of numerous factors that would not necessarily occur again. Here, you will read about the perfect storm of occurrences that led to my downfall. You may see some of your paths leading in the same direction. Hopefully, my story will help you identify triggers so that you can avoid the consequences.

Some people think that forces conspire against them to enslave them in mediocrity or worse. My experiences have convinced me that positive forces can release us from burdens and free us to be even more happy and productive.

Amid the battle, my brother told me that the very things that were assets in my personality could also lead to my downfall if I allowed them to be excessive. I had concerns that I would have to give up some things that I cherished. One of those was my need for adventure. I have continued to enjoy things that have tested my limits and have been tremendously rewarding by approaching them with a more rational perspective.

My friend Kevin likes to say,