About JourneyBetween Creator and Journey Guide, Ronnie K
A Quick Note about Ronnie K's Career Journeys
Below are highlights from Ronnie K’s diverse careers ... each one marked by its own mix of successes, challenges, failures and lessons that shaped both his professional and personal life. (see the story behind it all)
The Diverse Careers of Ronnie K
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1968–1969:
TV Film Editor at WGN TV Studios in Chicago for two years — a formative beginning in media and storytelling.
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1979–1983:
Transitioned into technology and became the Chief Technical Architect of one of the world’s first online global distribution systems. I later lectured across the U.S. and abroad, sharing this pioneering design and its potential to reshape how we connect and do business.
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1983–1999:
Founded a North American computer consulting firm. Starting as a solo venture, the firm grew to 35 software engineers, with offices in Minneapolis and Phoenix, AZ. Our clients included Fortune 1000 companies and government agencies. I sold the firm in 1999.
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2002–2012:
Created a B2C internet company offering consumers personalized car reports based on the make, model, and year of their car. Over 11 years, the company grew to over 600,000 registered members before it was sold.
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2006–2014:
Board Chair of Divorce Recovery, Inc. During my nine-year involvement, I facilitated more than 30 weekly support groups (each lasting 8–10 weeks), directly served 100's of individuals navigating the emotional challenges of divorce.
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2012–2014:
President of the Southern Arizona chapter of the International Coach Federation, representing a community of over 40 executive and life coaches.
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1999–2014:
Served on the boards of several prestigious nonprofits in Southern Arizona, including a large congregation and a regional community foundation.
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All sounds great, right? But that was all on the outside. And now for the rest of the real story ... the story about the devastating emotional and spiritual void that was swirling on the inside.
My Dilemma: Aloneness
Today, when I look back at each of the lives and life styles I've lived ... eclectic and challenging lives as I remember them. And at the end of each ... I found myself living in the exact same emotional "aloneness" space as before ... an emotional void and vacuum that was for sure difficult for me to understand and apply to life.
A Life-Altering Event
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In the summer of 2015, I experienced a total emotional breakdown and too often found myself curled up in a ball, lost in deep sobbing and unbearable emotional pain coming from a void deep in my heart and soul.
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In search of relief, I checked myself into the hospital, where I was diagnosed with PTSD. I stayed for eight healing days of caring and compassionate support ... and by medication to quiet the emotional storm swirling inside.
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But after leaving the hospital, I made a vow ... not only to survive this most challenging life-threatening event, but to learn how to thrive in ways I had never known. And I would choose to do it without relying on medication.
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In 2017, at the tender age of 70, I sold or gave away everything I owned, packed my car, left Tucson after 22 years, and began driving up the California coast ... a homeless soul with no final destination, just a longing to begin again.
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About a week into this “crazy” adventure, I found myself camping at Shasta Lake National Campgrounds in Northern California. I stayed there several days, resting, reflecting, and listening to the silence of my surroundings.
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Then, on the morning of the fourth day, during my morning meditation, a quiet epiphany rose within me ... an inner voice gently whispered, "Listen to the Wisdom of your Soul." And then again..."Listen to the Wisdom of your Soul."
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At first, I didn’t understand. But somehow, I knew it was real. And slowly, almost mystically, I began to practice this "listening" ... every day.
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Since that morning, I’ve come to embrace not just the listening, but more importantly, trusting. "Listening to the Wisdom of my Soul" is no longer a practice... it’s who I am.
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The next day, I broke camp, packed up my car and started driving north and the next thing I knew I found myself in Ashland, OR.
Epilogue: Final Thoughts
This most challenging life event I had ever experienced ... became the beginning of my understanding of "The Journey Between My Heart and Soul."
Looking back now on my arrival in Ashland ... it felt like stepping into the Twilight Zone ... only in the best way possible. I used to believe places like this only existed in the movies ... and I am so grateful to have discovered they exist in real life too.
Baruch Hashem
P.S. People often ask me, “So what caused your PTSD?” For a long time, I didn’t know how to answer. But recently, I found the words ...
“My barrel full of life’s emotional disappointments overflowed and broke.
And what was in that barrel ... was my precious heart.”
And now you know too.
Podcast Hosts Discuss Ronnie K's Journey Through Time
A must listen to this inspiring story about Ronnie K. This captivating discussion explores the depths of his life experiences and passions.
. Journey Podcast-Hosts .