How do you respond when Fortune challenges you with difficult times?

It's part of being human that we progress through life in fits and starts. We stumble, catch ourselves, and move on. We enjoy. We endure. We struggle. We thrive. Bad things happen. Good things happen. How we respond defines us. Are you taking control? Or are you just along for the ride?

In September of 2001, disaster struck and the Western world was changed forever. What followed as the world economy descended into recession was unprecedented in our lifetime. We had no formulas, no pat answers for how to respond.

A pilot for one of the commercial airlines devastated by the events of 9/11, Captain Mark Hardcastle began journaling his thoughts and observations as he dealt with the tragedy and chaos around him. He saw patterns emerge among his peers, both inside and outside the airline, as everyone worked their way through the first years of the twenty-first century.

In his book, The Symphony of Your Life, as well as his keynotes and workshops, Hardcastle distills these patterns into stories about restoring harmony when life has gone out of tune. Sure, bad things often happen to good people. But events outside our control need not determine who we are.

Using metaphors from his passion for choral conducting and his time in the U.S. Air Force, Hardcastle helps us gain a new perspective on the situations we are facing today and provides us tools to prosper when future challenges try to slow us down. He shows us how examining our own lives can and should give us the confidence to conduct our own powerful Symphony.

Mark Hardcastle wears many hats. An author, speaker, airline captain and musical conductor, Mark graduated from the USAF Academy in 1982. After nine years as a pilot on active duty, he left the military to join a commercial airline. In addition to flying B-737s around country and 777s around the world, Hardcastle invests in real estate and enjoys spending time in the Rocky Mountains and serving on the artistic staff of the Colorado Children's Chorale. He lives in Centennial, Colorado, with his wife and four children. He carries his message of hope and harmony to schools, civic clubs and businesses of all forms and sizes.