87: Dr. Bruce L. Hartman

Daniel Giordano

SUMMARY:

This episode of The All-In Podcast features a successful businessman whose second career transcends commerce. It has been 12 years since Dr. Bruce Hartman stepped away from hard-charging executive roles at Fortune 500 companies in order to pursue advanced degrees in divinity and help others “walk towards a brighter future.” The author of four Christian books, a regular host of morning prayers and guest on popular podcasts, Bruce’s life is full of purpose today; not something he could have said with much conviction at the height of his corporate career. With his belief that “Jesus is Good for Business,” he offers a Biblical worldview that resonates on many levels with people of faith (or in search of faith) within the business community.

Daniel invites his guest to share the journey he has taken – including a moving moment of epiphany late one night when Bruce felt called quite literally into the light. This conversation highlights red flags that Type A entrepreneurs preoccupied with driving career development might want to consider. And Bruce offers some foundational advice for bringing mindfulness through openness, prayer and patience. Coming at such a busy time of year, this episode of All-In serves as a thoughtful reminder that no professional accomplishment or business achievement can take the place of life purpose and connection. With his life now centered on pro bono mentoring and sharing his message of faith, Bruce’s example challenges us to consider what truly defines success. For him, he concluded: “Instead of helping myself all the time, I completely changed my world and decided my mission in life is to help other people.”

More information about Bruce’s four current as well as forthcoming books can be found here.

You can enjoy additional episodes of All-In here.

KEY TOPICS:

Growing up in Maine, an interest in money and commerce developed early and presaged Bruce’s successful corporate career. He played sports and had other diversions, but business was always his passion.
Working his way up to CFO of a Fortune 500 company seemed natural and inevitable, little did Bruce know he was actually part of a rarefied club. It was gratifying, but life was lived in 10-minute increments and spirituality – to which he’s always gravitated – was marginalized.
An inflection point: Bruce came to the realization that he was ignoring the voice of Jesus and as a result was suffering from discontentment and selfishness. In May 2009, he was out late at night walking, when a streetlight’s glow illuminated his path. He’d stopped praying and was suffering for it. He felt at rock bottom, so immersed in his career that he was bereft of faith.
Once reconnected with prayer and spirituality, Bruce started building an entirely different life – one devoted to helping others, pro bono.
The first step in his transformation included studying for his Master of Divinity at Drew University (and eventual doctorate). He didn’t know what his calling would become, but he started to discern that it wasn’t to be part of a fixed system. Rather, he is impassioned with counseling people at all phases of life in search of moving towards a brighter path.
Bruce also leads morning prayer, writes books (which illustrate his big-picture vision) and works advising nonprofits.
Counter-Cultural: Bruce enjoys planting images among people based on Jesus’s parables and their applicability in a business context tracing back to His métier as a carpenter. It can be challenging to some status-quo thinking, which Bruce welcomes.
Bruce’s Best Recommendations, especially for young people starting out:
- Prayer is a deep channel for observation and understanding about the relationship we have with Jesus.
- Patience is important. Don’t just lunge at what you observe. Sit with it.
- The Lord is benevolent and choices are not binary; they are abundant, even to the point of confusion.
Bruce’s journey since the age of 55 has been rich with opening to possibility and connection. None of it would have been possible if he had remained boxed in and resisted prayer and reflection.
Words of Wisdom: Ignore human senses and invest instead in faith. However contrary or murky, there is a path that requires above all trust in the Lord’s way.

KEY QUOTES:

“I was getting more and more despondent, despairing. Where are you? What are you? Who are you? What are you supposed to be doing? … And then I realized that I didn’t know how to pray anymore.”
“Instead of helping myself all the time, I completely changed my world and decided my mission in life is to help other people.”
“I’m not a great writer but I’m getting a lot better and am now on my fifth book, which is going out to the publisher very soon.”
“My belief is that Jesus is good for business … ‘Do unto others as you would have them do unto you’ is the greatest customer service statement any business could have.”
“Jesus is in business and he’s there every day. (But) we don’t listen every day.”
“Part of the problem I see in America today is that we have a tribal view. We tend to put everything in Column A or Column B and in fact it’s probably a mixture of both.”
“Trust (your) faith in all that you do. Don’t rely on human logic. Rely on the logic of the Lord.”

About Ken:

Bruce is the author of four Christian books and helps people “walk towards a brighter future.” With a Masters in Divinity and PhD in addition to his long background as a corporate executive, he brings a unique hybrid perspective. Bruce is a regular guest on podcasts and advises nonprofit boards providing improved access to first-generation students. In combination with his pro bono coaching and philanthropic endeavors, Bruce’s social media platform has more than 50,000 followers and reaches a weekly audience of 10,000.

Contacts for Bruce:

Website: www.brucelhartman.com

Email: bhartman12345@gmail.com

@Facebook

@LinkedIn

Podcast & YouTube Channel

About the All In Podcast Show:

The All-In Podcast Show presents top Entrepreneurs, Innovators and World Changers willing to share their breakthrough moments and how they are changing the world. Focused on being “All-In” on the four areas of life: faith, family, finances, and health, host Daniel Giordano invites mentors who exemplify balance and a commitment to building a bold life of excellence.

Previous episodes of the The All-In Podcast can be found here.