"The Wall Is a Door"

Pierre Rogers was the CEO of an eight-figure company. Then he lost it — the business, his reputation, and his freedom. He served 18 months in federal prison. He came home to roughly 1,500 job applications and not one interview.

What he does with that story is the opposite of a pity pitch. Pierre makes the case that failure, refused as a verdict, becomes the most useful asset a person owns: he co-founded a technology company, wrote a book called "Built by Failures," and earlier this year met with U.S. Senator Ted Budd and Bureau of Prisons Deputy Director Joshua Smith in Washington, D.C. about employment after incarceration. He has also been featured on Dropping Bombs with Brad Lea.

The talk runs 20-30 minutes with time for Q&A, and adapts easily to a club's interests:

• "The Wall Is a Door" — resilience and the comeback. The wall that closes every door forces you to build your own.
• "1,500 No's" — rejection as information rather than judgment. Strong fit for business and sales audiences.
• "Second-Chance Culture" — the business case for hiring people with records, for club members who employ.

Warm, direct, and occasionally funny about very hard things. No selling from the podium.

Watch a clip: https://youtu.be/8yPIwUYcUoo

Pierre Rogers is an author and speaker based in Irvine, California, and the author of "Built by Failures."

He was the CEO of an eight-figure company before it collapsed. He was indicted, and served 18 months in federal prison. He came home to roughly 1,500 job applications and not a single interview — and spent the years since rebuilding rather than talking about it. He has since co-founded a technology company, FuguTech, and written "Built by Failures," a book for people who have made serious mistakes and are trying to find out what comes next.

Earlier this year Pierre traveled to Washington, D.C., where he met with U.S. Senator Ted Budd and with Bureau of Prisons Deputy Director Joshua Smith in an open-door session on employment after incarceration. He has been featured on Dropping Bombs with Brad Lea.

He speaks on resilience, rejection, and the business case for second chances. His central argument is simple and hard-won: the wall isn't the punishment — the wall is the message.

Pierre presents to Rotary and service clubs free of charge and is available throughout Orange County and Los Angeles.