KEYNOTE SPEAKER · USA TODAY BESTSELLING AUTHOR · PODCAST HOST
I'm John R. Miles, a curious observer of human behavior, a former Fortune 50 executive, a Navy combat veteran, and the host of the award-winning Passion Struck podcast. My work brings together leadership, behavioral science, and a question I believe we need to ask more often: what helps people feel that their lives and contributions matter?
Book Me to Speak
The people and relationships that make life meaningful.
From the outside, I had the markers of success: a career as a U.S. Navy officer, leadership roles at Fortune 50 companies, and a business and media career built around human performance. Yet achievement didn't answer a deeper question: Why can you accomplish so much and still feel disconnected from yourself?
In November 2017, I came home early from the gym and found myself facing an armed intruder. The experience forced me to confront how little control we sometimes have and how easily we can mistake achievement for a meaningful life.
It changed the questions I was asking. I became increasingly interested in why people can be valued for what they do while feeling unseen for who they are. That question became the foundation of my work on mattering: the human need to feel seen, valued, and significant.
Today, through my books, the Passion Struck podcast, and keynote speaking, I help people and organizations understand what happens when that sense of significance erodes and how to rebuild it.
You don't have to earn your inherent worth. And you shouldn't have to disappear to succeed.
EXPERIENCE & PERSPECTIVE
My career has taken me from U.S. Navy service to Fortune 50 leadership and entrepreneurship. Today, I bring those experiences together in my work exploring why people feel invisible and how leaders can build cultures where people know they matter.
I held senior leadership roles across technology, data, operations, and business transformation, including executive positions at Dell and Lowe's. These experiences gave me a firsthand understanding of how leadership decisions and organizational systems shape people's work and lives.
A graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy and a U.S. Navy combat veteran, I learned the importance of discipline, adaptability, and trust under pressure. Those lessons continue to inform how I think about leadership, resilience, and human potential.
Through my books, including The Mattering Effect and Passion Struck, and the award-winning Passion Struck podcast, I explore the science of mattering, intentional living, behavior, and meaningful connection. The podcast has surpassed 85 million downloads.
These experiences inform the work I do today: helping leaders understand why people disengage when they feel invisible, and how to build environments where people feel valued, contribute meaningfully, and thrive.
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Explore the skills and expertise colleagues recognize in my work.
COMMUNITY · SERVICE · HUMAN POTENTIAL
I believe everyone deserves to feel seen, valued, and given the opportunity to thrive. That belief extends beyond my writing and speaking into the communities and causes I serve.
From helping raise more than $1 million for the Warehouse Arts District in St. Petersburg to founding Feeding Little Geniuses, supporting veterans, and contributing to Habitat for Humanity builds, I have sought ways to turn that belief into meaningful action.
Whether supporting children's development, creating opportunities for artists, or strengthening local communities, my goal is the same: help people recognize their potential and create the conditions for them to flourish.
More About The Matteringverse
Building a world where every person has the opportunity to thrive.
BEYOND THE BIOGRAPHY
Beyond the work, the titles, and the research, here's a little more about what drives me, what I read, and how I try to live.
Stay curious. Keep exploring. Never stop asking what is possible.