When Swen was in the fourth grade, the family TV died. His father at the time was doing an Oral Surgery residency at Cook County Hospital in Chicago. So, the TV was not replaced until well into Swen Junior year of high school. During this time of no TV, Swen developed a love for reading, learning, and adventuring. Also, during his father’s three-year residency, Swen was going through what he calls his “Chicago Experience.” Although he participated in several sports including baseball, basketball, football, and wrestling, he was unable to make any friends. In fact, he was the person that everyone picked on (what we call “bulling” these days).

When Swen was a Junior in high school, his dad must have noticed that he was not very good in social situations. So, he gave Swen the book by Dale Carnegie How to Win Friends and Influence People. Reading that book sparked an interest in the self-help genre. A few months later, Swen was browsing his father’s library for another book to read when he came across the book Eliminate your SDB’s (Self Defeating Behaviors) by Jonathan M Chamberlin. The book was more of a workbook which did not interest him. But, as he was leafing through the pages, he came across one that had a simple diagram on it. That diagram changed his life. Convinced that these books held knowledge that was useful and helpful, he began a reading self-help books on a daily basis. This has continued throughout his life.

Swen served in many positions of leadership in his church’s organizations for both the youth and adults. He spent 15 years as a scoutmaster where he was able to implement the principles of leadership and integrate them into his life. He was able to see how others reacted to them.

While attending college, He became involved with a Folk Dance Ensemble. At the start of his second semester with the group, a former classmate approached him. She asked if he would be willing to go to the practices of the performing group. He agreed. For a semester, they danced in the corner of the dance studio learning the dances. At the end of the semester, 20 couples were selected to go on tours to represent the university throughout the world. Swen’s partner was selected, but Swen was passed over. About two weeks into the new semester, one of the male dancers left the group. Swen was selected to go in his place since he had already learned the dances they were going to perform on the tour because he had attended the performance group’s practices. After this, he never looked back. He went on six tours with them in a three-year span. When he was coming to the end of his career with the group, one of the dance department heads told him that she was going to miss watching him dance.

Also, during this time at college and because of his time with the Folk Dancers and his job as an AVS technician which included doing the media for large freshman core classes and his unique name, Swen became one of the (I will not say most popular because he was never really “popular”) best know people on campus. This actually created its own challenges.

After college, Swen moved to Denver, CO. While there, he worked at an institution for the developmentally disabled. One night when he came into work, one of his coworkers saw him and said, “I am glad you are working tonight.” Curious, he asked why she made that comment. She explained that the client behaviors were much better when he was there. Swen contemplated this exchange for a long time. Why would the client behave better when he was there? The only reason he could come up with was the he was working on integrating the leadership principles in his book and the client responded positively to him because of those characteristics.

The institution was a government funding facility. During Swen’s time there, the government decided to defund all the mental health facilities. So, Swen did a couple of different jobs. One was with a company that made altimeters and variometer for paragliding, hang gliding, and ballooning. This was the first of three times that Swen was asked to be the first manager of the company. Despite this job not working out, this was a great learning experience.

For most of his life, Swen wanted to become a surgeon. But, despite good grade, very good MCAT scores, and being a lab assistant for the anatomy teacher, none of the medical schools he applied to even gave him an interview. While being a lab assistant, Swen had the opportunity to substitute teach an anatomy class for a massage therapy school. To his surprise, the class gave him a standing ovation for his presentation.

After school, Swen picked up a job as a radiator salesman and was given the state of Oklahoma as his area. The company was just expanding into the area and Swen’s task was to visit every care repair place in the state and sale radiators to them. He was eventually made the manager of the Tulsa branch.

After a time there, Swen decided he needed to go back to Utah. So, he moved to St George. There he met his soulmate and now wife. She had four kids from a previous marriage. Together, they had four more kids. After all the kids were born, Swen decided to get a Masters degree. So, with a wife, 9 kids (all of them boys but 7), and a full-time job; Swen returned to school full-time. A year and a half later, Swen graduated Magna Cum Laude with a Masters in Health Care Administration. Still interested in leadership, Swen’s thesis was about the seven qualities of leadership. This was the foundation of his book, The 7 Qualities of Lasting Leadership.

Swen applied for a job as the administrator of an assisted living facility. He got the job and moved his family do Richfield, UT. During his time there, he made major improvement is the care of the clients. In fact, the son of a client wanted to keep in contact with Swen so that when he was at the point that he needed that service for himself, he could go to the facility that Swen was running because of the quality-of-care Swen brought to the facility.

Unfortunately, this was the third time that Swen was the first administrator/manager that the owner had. Despite the lessons that Swen had learned earlier and his attempts to mitigate the challenges of a new manager, it did not work out very well, and he was soon let go. However, it cemented in his mind the way a leader should behave when creating a new position the organization. This led to an even greater understanding of delegation.

After being let go from the assisted living facility, Swen started his own construction business. Construction was something he has done on and off throughout his life. He has grown his home remodel and repair business into a very profitable and reputable business.

Throughout his life, Swen has had many jobs in many fields. He has been in sales, management of health care clinics and facilities, management in the food industry. He has been a correctional officer and worked with troubled youth. He has worked in the retail sector, sales, the gaming industry, audio visual industry, manufacturing, farming, and warehousing. This has given him a unique outlook on life and helps him to relate with everyone.

Swen loves to be active. Some of the activities he has enjoyed throughout his life are golf, riding bikes (both mountain bikes and road bikes), hunting, fishing, camping, traveling, paragliding, basketball, running, triathlons, swimming, kayaking, white water rafting, hiking, and skiing.

His greatest accomplishment is with his family. His youngest is still in high school. She decided to become a wrestler her freshman year. She has become very successful in that endeavor. His other children have become productive upstanding members of their communities.

Swen most enjoys helping others improve their lives, become better people, and even having a nicer place to live. This is evident in the way he approaches his work and relationship. His life demonstrates the power of the principles that are found in his book and the good that can come about by integrating them into your life.