In Fire in the Hole!, Bob Parsons, founder of GoDaddy, shares his story of extraordinary success as a self-made serial entrepreneur.
Born in the tough town of East Baltimore to parents who were inveterate gamblers, billionaire philanthropist Bob Parsons' early years were marked by hardship and financial struggle. While he vowed his own children would never lack for anything, never did he imagine the wealth he would one day amass as the founder of Parsons Technology, GoDaddy, PXG Golf, and YAM Worldwide.
In his literary debut,
Fire in the Hole!, this extraordinary entrepreneur recounts the exploits of his youth, his hellish days at the mercy of Catholic school nuns, his harrowing tour of combat duty in Vietnam as a US Marine, his pioneering contributions to the software and internet industries, and his latest ventures in power sports, golf, real estate, and marketing.
Along the way, we witness his remarkable resilience as he copes with his mother's mental illness and his father's struggles, battles PTSD resulting from both his childhood and war traumas, and mounts a quest to find new and effective treatments for himself and others who suffer from this affliction. He strongly supports veterans organizations, and believing in the concept of
paying it forward, has awarded grants to more than ninety-six charities and organizations worldwide through the Bob & Renee Parsons Foundation.
Perhaps the only thing that has come easy to Parsons is his gift for storytelling. His reflections are at turns heartbreaking, heartwarming, hilarious, and inspiring. If ever there were a story about a self-made man whose wealth can be measured as much by the contents of his heart as by the contents of his bank account, this is it.
More than anything,
Fire in the Hole! is a "can't put down," damn good read!
Morton, Laura: - LAURA MORTON is the coauthor of more than sixty books, including twenty-one New York Times bestsellers, and has worked with Justin Bieber, the Jonas Brothers, John Maxwell, Tom Ferry, Joan Lunden, Al Roker, Melissa Etheridge, Susan Lucci, Glenn Stearns, Bob Parsons, and many others. She lives in Southern California.
Parsons, Bob: - Bob Parsons is the CEO and founder of YAM Worldwide, home to his entrepreneurial ventures in the fields of motorcycles, golf, real estate, finance, marketing, innovation, and philanthropy. However, he is perhaps best known as the founder of GoDaddy.
Among his accomplishments, Parsons failed the fifth grade. He would not have graduated high school had he not joined the US Marine Corps with one of his classmates in 1968 at the height of the Vietnam War.
A US Marine Corps Vietnam War veteran, Parsons is a recipient of the Purple Heart, Combat Action Ribbon, and Vietnam Cross of Gallantry.
After serving in the Marine Corps, he attended the University of Baltimore on the G.I. Bill and graduated magna cum laude.
His alma mater presented him with an honorary doctorate in 2008 and named him Distinguished Entrepreneur in 2010.
Three of Parsons entrepreneurial ventures--Parsons Technology (#11, 1992), GoDaddy (#8, 2004) and now PXG (#123, 2019)--have been recognized and ranked by
Inc magazine as being among America's fastest-growing privately-held companies.
Parsons and his wife, Renee, started The Bob & Renee Parsons Foundation in 2012 to reach marginalized populations and causes often underfunded by mainstream philanthropy.
Parsons credits what he learned in the US Marine Corps for everything he's ever accomplished in life and business.
