Few people grow up and actually live out their childhood dreams. Even fewer numbers get there at the same time they reach the legal driving age.
Rodney Pennywell is one of the few, the proud – Mr. Qualified, himself.
Seriously though, the man decided before grade school that he wanted to be a pilot and was in flight school by the age of 16.
Most of us come no where near the level of authentic excellence that makes Rodney Pennywell an expert problem-solver and business genus.
I had the opportunity to learn more about Rodney’s work as Ad4!’s Business Strategist and how he got to be where he is today through a short Q&A interview.
Ad4: Rodney out of all that you do for Ad4! Group – marketing, business strategy, media buying, – what is your favorite part of the job?
Rodney: My favorite part is connecting to new clients… what industries they are in; growth goals that they have; strategic plans that they have. Helping them develop their strategic plan and then giving them tactic actions that go along with those.
Being able to translate goals into action plans that are simple and understandable is where I get a lot of joy.
Ad4: What prepared you for consulting businesses now?
Rodney: A Great education from Texas A&M. Spent several years in the army flying helicopters which is highly-technical. Worked in a rapid deployment unit with the 82nd airborne division.
When I left the military after nine years, I went into high-end business. Chrysler, MCI and consulting.
Ad4: Who is one of your personal inspirations?
Rodney: I guess, my dad was a huge inspiration to me. He was a career military professional.
He was a first generation college graduate. He was also a person who was committed to helping other people achieve their goals. From that perspective, I really enjoyed having a person who always thought more about other people than he did himself.
Ad4: Is there anything you try to do to emulate your father in your personal life?
Rodney: Yeah, My dad was a person who really made people happy. He also encouraged people; gave them inspiration, motivation and encouragement to do the right thing.
He was a disciplined person. He always laid out the true facts and never lied to anybody. He just told them the truth.
Ad4: What would you say is your top strength in creating business strategies?
Rodney: I enjoy the spectrum of learning what a client’s situation is from a business prospective. What their pressures are. What their resources are. What their needs are. What their goals and objectives are.
Clients tend to focus on one problem or another problem, but really it might be bigger than just one singular issue. I enjoy learning that to a sufficient detail so that I can give them strategies that truly solve the whole problem and not just the acute problem that’s right in front of them.
I like giving them the plan and the strategy and the option and the insight that says, “Hey, here’s how you can get to a better place, and here are a number of options to do it.”
Ad4: What is one of the books on your nightstand right now?
Rodney: Steven Covey is one of my favorite authors, and he recently released a 25th anniversary edition of “7 Habits of Highly Effective People.” So that is something that I recently read.
Ad4: Would you recommend it?
Rodney: I would! And I read about 40 books a year or so. So there are a bunch of books that are on my nightstand.
Ad4: So what is in your car CD player right now? Give me specifics.
Rodney: Regrettably, I have to admit that what is in my six-CD-changer has not changed in some time. Bonnie Jane, Quincy Jones, Miranda Lambert, Blake Shelton, and some compilation CDs.
Ad4: Can you tell me about your children?
Rodney: Yeah, so my oldest son is Avery. He lives in Dallas, and he is finishing up the 9th grade. He is a star tennis player and an all around great kid. He’s got higher than a 4.0 grade point average, and he is just doing great.
My daughter, Sydney, and she’s 12. She’s in 7th grade and she is essentially a want-to-be-actress; an instant comedic person.
Then I have my second son Jordan. He is 11 years old. He is in the fifth grade. He is just Mr. Versatile; can do just about anything and everything. And he’s very smart.
And my youngest son is Bryce. He is nine, and he too is some kind of comedic ham. But he is extremely smart and hard working and things like that. So I am very blessed to have some well-rounded kids.
Ad4: And when you were a kid what did you aspire to be?
Rodney: A pilot. I wanted to be a black Chuck Yager; an experimental test pilot. That was something I really wanted to do. I was really affected by the astronauts. Neil Armstrong walking on the moon. Those kinds of things involving aviation, I wanted to do.
And I was happy to learn how to fly at age 16 at the Air Force Academy when I lived Colorado Springs, CO. Later on I went on to the army’s aviation school and ended up flying multiple aircrafts. And I also went to the test pilot program as well.
Ad4: It’s neat that you got to live out your childhood dream, and so early in life as well.
So what would you want people to know about Rodney Pennywell if they knew anything?
Rodney: It would be, “He can be an asset in helping you achieve your dreams and your goals.”
Ad4: What’s the best compliment you’ve ever gotten?
Rodney: Probably, when someone told me I have well-behaved kids.
Big thanks to Rodney Pennywell for letting me ask him 50 million questions every day and for his willingness to put up with my shenanigans!
If you would like Rodney to aid in your business strategy, give you really great compliments or talk with you about his work with Ad4! Group, feel free to reach out to him at [email protected].