Forged in the Dark: Why Real Leaders Run Toward Problems

About the Guest: John Venhuizen leads Ace Hardware, a company with a proud 101-year history, built on the trust and hard work of thousands of local owners. With over 6,000 stores worldwide — nearly all independently owned — John believes that this combination of local entrepreneurship and global support is the secret sauce that keeps Ace strong and relevant. He’s a leader who values character, humility, and grit — the kind of qualities that get tested daily when you’re trying to solve problems and move a big organization forward. John’s perspective is both inspiring and grounded, reminding us that leadership is about service and connection as much as strategy and results. What You Will Learn: Why real leadership is about rolling up your sleeves and tackling problems How local ownership creates a powerful bond with communities and customers The importance of putting faith, family, and character before work — and why that matters for long-term success How AI is a tool to empower people, not replace them Why a servant heart and human connection will always be a business’s greatest advantage Join us for this heartfelt conversation with John Venhuizen and discover what it really takes to lead with purpose in a complex, fast-moving world. If you want to lead better and build something that lasts, this episode will give you plenty to think about — and put into action. Please rate and review this Episode! We'd love to hear from you! Leaving a review helps us ensure we deliver content that resonates with you. Your feedback can inspire others to join our Take Command: A Dale Carnegie Podcast community & benefit from the leadership insights we share.

You can listen to Forged in the Dark: Why Real Leaders Run Toward Problems online on Radio and Podcast. Open the player on this page to stream the available audio.

Forged in the Dark: Why Real Leaders Run Toward Problems is an episode from Take Command: A Dale Carnegie Podcast by Dale Carnegie Flagship Podcast.

This episode is 00:38:52 long.

This episode was published on Jul 22, 2025.

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