The Condor and the CEO: How a Business Leader and a Sacred Perspective Reminded Me What Truly Matters

I had the joy of meeting Jim Keyes at a Powerteam International Ultimate Wealth Camp, and what struck me first was his humbleness. Here was a man who had led global companies like 7-Eleven and Blockbuster, yet he radiated the kind of warmth, humility, and quiet strength that reminded me of the elders in the Andes. His presence felt familiar—like the steady heartbeat of someone who’s walked through fire and chosen to give back with an open heart.

Jim now devotes his life to service, especially through education. His foundation, Education is Freedom, offers scholarships to students who need them most. He’s also deeply involved in cultural and community causes, all of which echo a deeper truth: that wisdom isn’t something we hoard, it’s something we pass on.

Honored to Share a Moment with Jim Keyes, Champion of Education

As I listened to him speak, my heart kept whispering, "This is Condor medicine." Jim shared a moment that shifted his life—when astronauts told him that, from space, they see no borders. No walls. Just one Earth. That sacred, expanded view changed how he saw the world and his place in it.

In Andean shamanism, we know this well. We speak of the Condor’s view—the ability to rise above, to feel with the heart and see with the soul. When we’re stuck in fear or trapped in the chaos of daily life, we walk in Mouse medicine—close to the ground, focused on survival, unaware of the vastness around us. What Jim described was a moment of soaring, a glimpse of the great whole. A remembering.

He spoke about fear—not with judgment, but with clarity. He called it humanity’s greatest enemy. In the Andean path, we see fear as a fog that dims our inner sight. The antidote is not to fight it, but to bring in the light—to call on Pachamama, the Apus, our inner knowing, and illuminate the path before us. Or as Jim put it, "turning on the light in the dark."

Whether in a boardroom or in a sacred ceremony, the wisdom is the same: when we shift our perspective, we return to ourselves. We remember that leadership begins inside. That clarity is a form of power. And that true power always serves.

Jim’s story touched me deeply because it showed me—again—that spirit moves through many languages. Sometimes through prayer. Sometimes through business. But always through the heart. And when someone chooses to lead from that place, we all rise.

I’m truly grateful our paths crossed.