As a young man in Moppin' Floors to CEO: From Hopelessness and Failure to Happiness and Success, Dennis C. Miller faces overwhelming obstacles: an emotionally abusive father, physically abusive Catholic school teachers, bottom-of-the-class grades all the way through high school, and mental health issues that land him in Fair Oaks Psychiatric Hospital. Yet through his own perseverance and the help of caring individuals, Dennis begins a slow but sure ascent up the ladder of success. He starts with mopping floors at a Ramada Inn, gains admittance to an Ivy League university, and eventually becomes the CEO of a New Jersey hospital-which he transforms from a failing enterprise to a flourishing institution noted for its exemplary patient care.
Tragedy befalls the hospital, and soon Dennis is being interviewed by Katie Couric, Wolf Blitzer, and Morley Safer. From there, he moves on to a new chapter in life, forming, in 2005, his own leadership consulting firm for nonprofit organizations, which he runs to this day. "My passion had always been to help people," he writes. "I had an opportunity to help many organizations with developing their strategic plans, board development, fundraising, program development, and marketing strategies. I had a new purpose in life. I was finding my new challenge very fulfilling and deeply rewarding. I had found a new 'calling in life.
In Moppin' Floors to CEO: From Hopelessness and Failure to Happiness and Success, Dennis mixes together the right ingredients for an engaging autobiography: a gut-honest recount of his highly eventful life, lots of engaging stories, and some valuable life lessons. We get to know Dennis while he entertains and enlightens us. Through his words and actions, Dennis shows us how anyone, even a troubled kid from New Jersey, can make it to the top and live a fulfilling life.
