Courage: Powerful Lessons in Leadership, Strength, and the Will to Succeed

With his heart, and his world, on the brink of stopping, John Sperzel’s prognosis was grim: he had a rare condition diagnosed fewer than 300 times in medical history —typically during autopsies. Sperzel needed a heart transplant. Yesterday.

Courage, part captivating memoir, part inspirational call to action, begins with Sperzel’s gripping account of his extraordinary battle through multiple surgeries, his agonizing wait for a donor heart, and the “kiss of death” that almost ended it all. 

Throughout his emotional journey, he grappled with knowing that his life depended on someone else’s loss. He vowed that if given a second chance, he would pay it forward any way he could.

Following a period of deep introspection, Sperzel identified the factors that had contributed to his miraculous recovery (and other successes in life): Hard Work, Excellence, Attitude, Resilience, and Teamwork. Courage compellingly explores the positive impacts of cultivating and embodying these traits, and offers a duplicatable method to guide readers along their own paths toward fulfillment.

Ultimately, Sperzel hopes that by sharing his H.E.A.R.T., he can inspire others to follow their passions to their true purposes, and live life as the incredible gift it truly is.