July 24, 2024 - Superior Culture Rusty Komori and Men Have No Friends Owen Marcus

School for Startups Radio

Rusty Komori – TV Series Host of Beyond the Lines and Author of Superior: Creating a Superior Culture of Excellence

Rusty Komori is an inspirational keynote speaker, executive coach, and tennis professional based in Honolulu, Hawaii. From 1994 through 2015, he was the head tennis coach at Punahou School, where his boys’ varsity teams won an unprecedented 22 consecutive state championships, a national record in all sports that stands to this day. In 2014, he was named NHSCA’s Coach of the Year and inducted into Creighton University’s Hall of Fame. Today, Komori is a sought-after keynoter and executive coach with a diverse client roster, including Kaiser Permanente, the YWCA, and the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Association. He’s the host of the televised series Beyond the Lines and the author of three books, including his newest release Superior: Creating a Superior Culture of Excellence.
Owen Marcus – Co-founder and Director of Innovation at MELD

Owen Marcus is the Co-founder and Director of Innovation at MELD. He initially resisted getting into this work. It was only his pain, greater than his fear, that led him to start his first men’s group in 1995 in his clinic in Scottsdale, AZ. The conventional approach to men’s groups soon began to feel inadequate for the deep, transformative work he aspired to do. After completing his straw bale home in the forests of Idaho, he decided to use all he had learned and developed in his practice to create a new model. It was a leap of faith, and to his surprise, when he reached out to eleven men to join by the middle of 2005, they had a thriving group. What began as the Sandpoint Men’s Group (SMG) grew beyond his wildest expectations. Nineteen years later, it boasts over 400 alumni and more than 50 active members. This journey led to the birth of EVRYMAN and now MELD, each step an evolution of his initial vision. Throughout the years with SMG, EVRYMAN, and now MELD, he has encountered challenges that have shaped him in unforeseen ways, fostering immense personal growth. Like many of the men involved, looking back, he now sees the deep satisfaction of what being himself and caring for others can do in aiding other men to transform. He was given a precious gift he loves sharing with others. Some part of him continues to be surprised by how other men want to grow and how much fun it can be when they do it together.