Flight delays and Augie Nieto
Posted by thescrappyemailmarketer on January 17, 2007
So I was supposed to go back home to Chicago today….but my flight was cancelled and due to a roundtable I was to have with our CEO and President at Quest, (which was awesome by the way) I am now forced to stay in Anaheim another day and fly out first thing tomorrow morning. While its a bummer that I wont be home to sleep next to my wife this evening, this time alone will allow me to do some necessary housecleaning on my laptop and get some work done that I would normally not have time to do.
As our sales kickoff came to a close we have a really incredible final session today culminating by a wonderful presentation by a man named Augie Nieto. Augie sits on the board for Quest and to be honest up until today, did not realize how fascinating this man is. In March of 2005 he was diagnosed with ALS and has formed a marketing alliance with the MDA in the form of AugiesQuest. He and his wife spoke to us for over an hour and while I wont give away all of the speech, it has touched me personally. This man is positive and so caring and you can really see the genuineness in his eyes. I have heard and have seen some pretty incredible things in my life and I have to say that this ranks in the top 5 of the most incredible things I have witnessed. His strength, courage and overall approach to life is one that many people should try to model themselves after. I for one will take much of what he said and will try to implement in my daily life both professionally and personally. (beginning with 3 cups of tea)
I plan to blog more about Augie in the near future but for now, I think it would be worth your while to visit his site and learn a little be more about his cause and the man himself. I am proud that he is on the board of Quest and I am honored and humbled to have heard him speak.
January 23, 2007 at 1:59 pm
I too was really touched by Augie’s presentation, and the “3 cups of tea” story was the first one I shared with my boyfriend at the end of the day… The strength and courage he has to bring into every day is amazing. I especially appreciated his comment on having the choice to hole up in his home when he got the disease, or continue to be an active life participant. Upon making the decision to live, he renewed his wedding vows at a huge celebration party, started his organization, and has been making a greater difference in the world than most people. Augie is inspiring!
June 19, 2007 at 12:55 pm
this is truly a sad story about Augie– I would wish ALS on no person, for this is a tragic disease. I am happy to read these articles that because of ALS, Augie realizes the true meaning of family and humility. This Augie however, was not as the same man as today. I do not wish to speak of him in negative tone, but we all have two sides. Hearing his passion for Augie’s Quest has be an epiphany of sorts for me in that this a released a strong resentment to him. I know Augie from working and reporitng directly to him at Life Fitness In corporate life the best way to describe him was as a tyrant. In working for Augie, regardless of level, he would cannabalize your soul and your self respect. Yes he was the pioneer of the modern fitness world, but his ego grew as the industy did. I guess you could state he was the Dennis Kozlowski of the fitness industry. I feel that we should not immortalize a person until all sins of the person have been exposed.
November 13, 2007 at 12:44 pm
Lou Freda, or whoever you are, could you be any more of a tool?
What kind of person chooses this opportunity to vent some petty vindictive hostility they can’t let go of? Do you have any compassion or humanity at all?
I, too, worked for Augie at Life Fitness and regard him as a successful leader and entrepreneur who, like any other human being (and especially any other CEO) was complex and full of both admirable traits as well as flaws. We all are.
I think it is tragic that, regardless of how unfairly you may have been treated or how unsatisfying your personal experiences with Augie were, you decided this place and this time represented the appropriate forum to cast your own personal stones at him. Given the object of the publicity you seem to disdain, it would appear that you would rather individuals like Augie sit and do nothing rather than get off their ass and try to help others. Which is apparently what you must be good at.
Get a life. Ever hear the phrase “don’t kick a man when he’s down”? Aren’t there any kittens you can go kick?
March 14, 2008 at 12:52 am
I would like to reach augie foundation .my husband died of als and his name was also augie
April 10, 2008 at 4:00 pm
I worked for Augie at LifeFitness and it was the BEST job I have ever had in my life. Augie is a leader who is courageous, inspirational, fun, energetic, and a very kind man…I loved working with him and for him. I have told numerous people about Augie and have nothing but admiration for him.
When I think of Augie the one word that comes to my mind is “inspiration”. He inspired all of us with his leadership, vision, and his belief that we could WIN. And, win we did. But more than winning, Augie had the love and respect of his employees. Everyone I know that I worked with at LifeFitness loves Augie. It’s been 7 yrs since I’ve worked for Augie but I can tell you that all I have to do is shut my eyes and I can go back in time and see the warm, caring, and inspirational leader that led our company to great success.
All good things…come by grace… In my own journey I have learned that life holds deep and profound lessons…and that God still holds the key and can and will give Augie the miracle. We all need hope, faith, and love…and the greatest of these is love.
Augie we all love you…we have not forgotten you. You touched our life as a leader and you continue to touch our life with your courage!
Angie