A hard hat and a bible have had a heavy impact on Ken Gosnell’s leadership philosophy and career.
The founder of Lakeland-based CEO Experience, Gosnell says the significance of both those objects was something he learned from his father, Brian. The elder Gosnell, whose own father was killed by a drunk driver when he was 15, always worked hard labor jobs. So he always left the house with a hard hat. The oldest of five siblings, Brian Gosnell quit school when his father died to go to work and help his mom provide for the family.
While the hard hat was on his head, Brian Gosnell also left the house with a Bible. When Ken Gosnell was 10 years old, growing up in the Midwest, he asked his dad why he brought a bible to work. “He said that the Bible helped him, and he wanted to read it during his breaks,” Ken Gosnell writes in a LinkedIn post.