Home: Indianapolis, IN. Age: 69. Profession: Certified Public Accountant. Organization: C. L. Coonrod & Company. Languages spoken: English, (some) German.
Recent professional development: Expanded the ownership of my firm. Latest accomplishment: Negotiated two partnerships. Latest contribution to others: Offered employment to more people. What’s been your big (or biggest leap)? Elected to the City-County Council of the City of Indianapolis and Marion County. Last book read: The Wealth of Nations, by Adam Smith. Recently viewed and recommended: Pericles (Broadway musical). Recent unique acquisition: A pair of antique lamps.
Personality profile: Conscientious, even-handed. Moral compass: Gentlemanly behaviour. How do you define an ideal business relationship? Trust and loyalty. What is your greatest joy? Poetry. What is your guilty pleasure? Bourbon. What natural talent have you neglected? Writing. What occupation, other than your own, do you most admire? Politics. What is your favorite place (or way) to spend money? Fine dining and live theater.
What was your favorite college course? Economics. What book have you repeatedly read? War and Peace, by Leo Tolstoy. Besides your parents, who has had the greatest influence on your life? Professional mentors. What’s the best advice you received in your career? Quality and integrity over quantity and short-term gain. What is your favorite app? Microsoft Excel. What is your go-to source of news and information? The Wall Street Journal. What is your go-to source of creative inspiration? Poetry and philosophy.
What change are you working on to effect in your profession or field?
Automation of fiscal planning for government.
What change would you like to see in the world? Greater civility in politics. What message do you want to send out into the world? Behave like ladies and gentlemen. What mega-trend most excites you? Artificial intelligence. What mega-trend most concerns you? Artificial intelligence.
Who would you like to spend an evening with, in heaven? Benjamin Franklin. As a kid, what did you first want to be when you grew up? A fireman. How would you choose to spend tomorrow, if you knew it was your last day on earth? Revisiting places I have lived and worked. What advice would you give your younger self? Keep doing what you are doing. What day in your life would you choose to re-live? Any Christmas day when I was a child.
Personal motto: Pride goeth before a fall. Favorite quote: “This above all: to thine own self be true, and it must follow as the night the day, thou canst not then be false to any man” (Polonius, in Hamlet, by William Shakespeare).
