Russell Redenbaugh

Despite being blind, Russell Redenbaugh is a successful investor and economist, served as a Commissioner on the U.S. Civil Rights Commission under three presidents, and became a three-time gold medal jiujitsu world champion fighting sighted opponents. He learned early in his life to discover unconventional ways to achieve. He believes we all live in narratives that both produce and limit our opportunities. We live as though these narratives are fixed, rigid, unchangeable things. Instead, Redenbaugh shows audiences that these are only stories. They define our lives but can be changed. Most of us think that our circumstances produce our narratives, but he shows it is our narratives that produce our circumstances. Believing that perspiration produces a higher rate of return than inspiration, Redenbaugh demonstrates through moving stories how you can “shift your narrative” to produce more of what you care about through a specific set of actions and behaviors.

The Accident and the Inspiration. Redenbaugh’s life as a typical 16 year old boy changed in an instant. The homemade rocket he was building exploded in his hands, nearly killing him. After eight months and 25 surgeries, doctors told him he would be blind for the rest of his life and have limited use of both of his hands. However, he decided that he would not live life as a typical handicapped person – poor, dependent, and homebound. He would live in the sighted world succeeding and having the same experiences that sighted people do. He learned to “read the world” without being able to see any of it, developing a very useful and finely tuned set of distinctions through which he not only interprets the world but acts effectively in it. With a skill for learning and a passion and determination to succeed, he developed the ability to move in a changing and uncertain world.

Excelling at Overcoming Challenges. Russell graduated first in his class from the University of Utah. After having been declined admission to both Harvard and Stanford due to his disability, he went on to graduate fifth in his class from the Wharton Business School at the University of Pennsylvania. Upon graduation Russell found it hard to land his first job, having 48 interviews with 48 nos. It was then that small Philadelphia money management firm Cooke & Bieler decided to invest in Redenbaugh. He went on to become chief investment officer and helped grow the firm to $6 billion in assets. After successfully selling the firm, Russell taught at Wharton and consulted with global corporations such as IBM, Applied Materials, and KLA Tencor. With an interest in national policy and local prosperity, he went on to serve on the U.S. Civil Rights Commission for 15 years and develop a deeper understanding between economic policy and financial markets.