Win the 16 Virtual Book Tour

Foreword

My earliest memory is my pregnant mom standing on a Black Hills, South Dakota helicopter tarmac. She was told she couldn’t go on the helicopter tour of Mount Rushmore with my dad, my brother Brian, and me. I got scared. If the ride isn’t safe for my mom, was it safe for me? I spent the ride praying we would be OK. This is where the story begins. 

Three months later November 23rd, 1969, Dave was born. Funny. I don’t really remember that. 

The South Dakota vacation was the first and last we took as a nuclear family. My parents divorced in the fall of 1971 after my dad resigned from his job amid a series of bad decisions he made. The bank foreclosed on our house and my mom, Brian, Dave, and I moved back to Chicago to live with our maternal grandparents in the same south side two-flat that my mom grew up in. 

Those first few months were rough. I do remember getting into a lot of fights at school as bullies tested the new kid on the block while I tried to make sense of our new place in life. We were the only kids of divorced parents in a Catholic parish. It was a different, less tolerant time. 

My mom was a rock but now worked long hours just to make ends meet. Not easy for a non-college educated woman in the 1970’s. My grandparents were our saviors providing room, board, stability, and a lot of unconditional love. It wasn’t long before I felt fortunate to be living with my grandparents in Chicago. Our new home was full of love, my grandfather’s great stories, and my grandmother’s wonderful cooking. In addition, I liked Chicago. Our neighborhood had sports crazed kids like me that were always out playing games. Since Brian, nearly two years younger but always as big as me, was a constant companion, we were almost always welcome in the neighborhood pick-up games. He’d play for one team. I would get picked by the other. Brian was a blessing. Those daily pick-up games were too.

 Dave is nearly six years younger than me, but as soon as he could run and ride his bike, he started tagging along with Brian and me. We played sports in the neighborhood every day, rode our bikes to the park, often to play sports, and when it was time to come in, we played board games at neighbor’s houses. Dave always pushed himself to keep up even when it was next to impossible. I remember his great spirit and being a willing fill-in whenever he was needed. He was fearless and resilient. He got knocked down a lot but always got up excited for more. 

Fast forward a few years, Dave grows into a precocious athlete, can hold his own by around fourth grade, and frankly is better than most of the neighborhood by sixth grade. Given my life consisted of going to school and playing sports, we spent a ton of time together. 

The seeds of Win the 16 were planted here. Dave used the physical challenges of playing with older kids to fuel not frustrate him. He patiently waited, sometimes for hours, for a kid to leave the game so he could play. He was disciplined, practiced, and thoughtful. He knew his limitations and played to his strengths. He identified other’s weaknesses and calculated how to be his best-self against them. I never remember him getting down, only upbeat with an “I can do it” attitude that was infectious even then. He displayed remarkable maturity and an ability to get along with a diverse group that foreshadowed his sharp emotional intelligence and wonderful relationship skills. My old neighborhood friends still remember and love Dave. 

More than three decades later Dave has parlayed his natural talents, hard earned business experiences, an unyielding optimism, and well-honed leadership skills to create Pygon ONE, a consulting company, host Win the 16 podcasts on leadership, and write this book. Win the 16 lays out a road map of how anyone can learn, grow, and explore their potential. He’s been living Win the 16 his entire life and this book provides cogent insights on how you can, too. 

Dave’s been coaching me for years, long before he had his own consulting firm or the catchy name for his lifestyle. Since 2012, the year I remember committing to being different inspired by the adoption of my fourth child, Dave has helped me explore my motivations, set achievable goals, establish habits, improve my time management, and be a supportive accountability partner. In that time, I became the  Chief Medical Officer University of Illinois Health, created enough work-life balance to coach my daughter’s sports teams, lose thirty pounds, and complete a Spartan Race with my twenty something nephews. Dave, Thank you. Win the 16 works. 

– Bud Pygon, M.D.

Senior Associate Head,

Professor of Clinical Anesthesiology,

Past Chief Medical Officer University of Illinois Health