Gene Landrum

If one were to trace through

history the charismatic,

brilliant, powerful, successful

and affluent of this world, they

would at once be enthralled and

perhaps dismayed.

Although each is

individual, to delve deeper is to

discover that for all their money,

fame and power, they are not at

all normal. Not their thought

processes, their working or eating

habits, nor even their sexual

drives in some cases.

Yet those very characteristics

that make them so charismatic or

rich can prove to be their very

undoing. "Normal people have

normal successes. Abnormal people

have abnormal successes," says

Gene Landrum, a Naples resident

who has authored five books on the

subject.

Take the example of Bill Gates--god

of Microsoft. A driven personality

to the core and driven ironically

by a fear of failure, he is

obsessed with meeting the larger

goals: staying ahead in the

computer industry. Hence, the

birth of Microsoft. He could care

less about sleeping in clean

sheets, observing the

three-times-a-day meal routine, or

leaving the office by six o'clock

to enjoy a movie or dinner with

friends.

In fact, according to Landrum's

book, Profile of Genius - Thirteen

Men Who Changed the World, Gates

fits what is considered typical

and normal for geniuses. Type A

personalities, workaholics,

charismatics and those consumed

with achieving the highest rank of

their respective

profession--without consideration

for profit--only need apply for the

profile of a genius.

For those in power or the

successful, the criteria are

slightly different.

The people in his book, Profiles

of Power and Success: Fourteen

Geniuses Who Broke the Rules

tended to move a lot, father's

were self-employed, many were

first-born children, and most had

suffered from a serious life

crisis at some point. Thus their

propensity for taking incredible

risks. It molded and shaped them

into who they became. In some

cases iconoclasts, moguls and

tragic figures who left behind

their legacy and the rest of us to

wonder what made them tick and

why.

Now thanks to Landrum, the

explanation is simpler and the

understanding can begin. The

author, lecturer and former

entrepreneur has deciphered the

mystery of what it is that makes

the geniuses, the powerful and the

successful what they are.

"I saw the personalities of the

very driven--the incredible

charismatic and sexual energies,

and the need to gamble everything

on an innate belief in one's

product--in many of my fellow

professionals. That got me to

thinking about what makes them

tick," says Landrum.

He has a

working understanding of what

makes the rich and famous.

He did a lot of in-depth research,

developed criteria for the genius

personality and eventually a

dissertation that led to his Ph.D.

from Walden University in Naples.

Not a stranger to power or success

himself, Landrum is distinct for

he is the creator of the

$150-million Chuck E. Cheese's

family entertainment concept,

where life-size mechanical bears

sing and dance on colorful stages

enthrall children while parents

enjoy conversation with a pizza

and cold drink. The Chuck E.

Cheese chain precedes the

Discovery Zones and expands on the

McDonald playland concepts.

What sets Landrum apart from the

opposite end of the spectrum--those

who work for days without sleep or

gamble their last dollars to save

their company (like Fred Smith of

Federal Express) is his ability to

envision the future and act on it

rationally.

"None of the personalities in my

books do that. They are driven by

something, but nothing keeps them

grounded," he says.

Reflecting on these traits is what

caught his eye back in the

corporate world working with such

folks as Nolan Bushnell (Atari)

and Bob Hewlett (of PC fame).

Characteristics like persistence,

charisma, confidence, drive,

focus, impatience, intuitiveness,

competitiveness, persuasiveness,

rebelliousness, passion and the

ability to take risks--no matter

what.

They separate, define and create a

pseudo-species of person, male or

female--for Landrum has also

written a book about 13 female

geniuses--into those who have

changed our world, beliefs or way

of thinking today.

Personable in both prose, style

and manner, Landrum advocates his

intense study and belief of what

makes the professionally

successful operate.

Following on

the heels of his five "profile"

books comes his first fiction

novel: Prometheus: 2000, Truth -

Vision- Power. It is the

culmination of many years

dedicated to the study of the

geniuses and the powerful.

"It captures the quintessential

man and woman and pits them

against the very antithesis of

those qualities. I wanted to show

how these people were the way they

were and how they got to be that

way," he says.

It is an action-filled novel about

America's imminent loss of the

computer industry to an Asian

cartel. Packed with power-hungry

females, self-serving bureaucrats

and the one good guy and girl,

Prometheus delivers on Landrum's

theories espoused in his

non-fiction books.

In fact, at one point,

post-barroom brawl, two of his

characters are talking about the

object of the brawl, Bill Bliss

(the quintessential man).

"I like his style since he

apparently refuses to contract

with anyone who values numbers

above creativity, current profit

ahead of long-term opportunity or

personal goals over innovation."

Therein lies the premise of

theories: creativity, innovation

and the need to succeed must

overtake all else. It is seen in

such people as Walt Disney, Bill

Gates, Soichiro Honda, Margaret

Thatcher and Oprah Winfrey.

And these kinds of magnetic

personalities continue to

fascinate and draw us. They have

shaped the way we work, play and

operate within the context of the

world. They have used change and

defined it for their own purposes.

These people and principles are

the very essence of Landrum's

teachings at International College

and on the local discussion

circuit here in Southwest Florida.

Indeed, Landrum espouses his

Promethean principle with success

and draws quite a following based

on his

dissertation-turned-psychological-profiling

of those in power.

"The Promethean

has a need to acquire knowledge

and seek new opportunities. He or

she has a vision and sees the big

picture. He (or she) also tends to

be a perfectionist living on the

edge," Landrum says.

"Gene's genuinely a nice, bright

guy who has time for you. That

comes across in his books and

through his lectures and talks

with you," said one of his

students. And it's this style

coupled with being at the top of

his profession that has allowed

him access to the personalities in

his books.

"Because I've worked hard enough

to have successful businesses and

in some cases rubbed shoulders

with some of these people, they

feel that they can talk with me

becau