Overview

This is an autobiographical adventure story depicting how one can overcome adversity by using education and experience to reinvent oneself. In 1989, the United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) went out on strike against the Pittston Coal Company, which operated 52 mines in Virginia, West Virginia, Kentucky and Tennessee. The union boss, Richard Trumka, thought by harassing Pittston Company outside directors and their employers with fabricated innuendos, boycotts, and character assassination, he might cause an ambushed director to pressure company management to soften their bargaining position. Bill Craig was a Pittston Company director and vice chairman of Shawmut Bank, the second largest bank in Boston. He became the Union's number one target. For years, Boston and Massachusetts have been governed by liberal leaning politicians dependent upon union contributions for re-election. None of the other Pittston Co. directors lived or worked in communities with pols so closely linked to union ties. The UMWA, an independent union, lacked members outside the coalfields. Needing strikers to make trouble in Boston, Trumka offered to have his union join the AFL-CIO to advance his political ambitions while adding muscle to his picket lines promoting business interference. Strikers blocked entrances to bank offices and access to the author's home. They printed and distributed hate literature while trashing businesses and private property. In support of the union, the Boston City Council authorized the withdrawal of $20,000,000 of city deposits from Shawmut Bank, to pressure the author to cave to the UMWA demands. At age 58, Craig quit his job in order to lift the unfair burden placed on the bank. He turned the unplanned early retirement from Shawmut into a bonanza by reinventing himself.

Full Product Details

9780974341491

Table of Contents

Reviews

"""Account of a leading banker, bold entrepreneur and religious family man's impressive journey inspiring all ages with his principles, resilience and consummate networking."" Charlie H. Moore Jr. - Olympian, author of Running on Purpose ""Interesting perspective of the S&L crisis combined with a compelling autobiographical account of a unique personal journey."" Tucker Carlson - Host of Fox News - Tucker Carlson Tonight ""Inventing Oneself is a book that artfully weaves through an extraordinary array of issues, events and personalities. The story is not just about business success and challenges but also tackles the joys and heartbreak of family life. At the center of the story is a man who has done much for others and has been justly rewarded."" John P. Hamill - Director - Liberty Mutual Insurance Company KIRKUS REVIEW: A retired businessman reflects on his successful career in banking. Debut author Craig, who descended from Irish immigrants, was born in Philadelphia in 1931. His upbringing taught him the value of frugality and hard work, principles especially important during the war years when food and gas rationing were necessary--he was 10 years old when Pearl Harbor was attacked. He attended Villanova University and then earned an MBA at Drexel, publishing his thesis on the economics of public utilities. Over the ensuing years, writing about financial matters provided a boost to his budding career. His was always upwardly mobile--after years working at the Irving Trust Company in New York, he took a job at Shawmut Bank in 1978, eventually becoming its president and then vice chairman. Craig's remembrance is limpidly composed, well-organized, and meticulously detailed, but for the most part free of the kind of drama or general life counsel that will magnetize a wide readership. There are two exceptions. Toward the end of his career, while president of Shawmut Bank, he was appointed to the board of directors for the Pittston Company, which owned and operated coal mines. He became embroiled in a bitter dispute with the United Mine Workers of America. As a result of that angry contest, he decided to resign his position at Shawmut. And in his retirement, he devised a new strategy to bail out foreclosed banks--form private investor groups to acquire them, a plan that turned out to be wildly successful for him. Craig's recollections are effortlessly charming, and his victories are a testament to his character, which abounds in a rare combination of decency, ambition, and prudence."

Account of a leading banker, bold entrepreneur and religious family man's impressive journey inspiring all ages with his principles, resilience and consummate networking. Charlie H. Moore Jr. - Olympian, author of Running on Purpose Interesting perspective of the S&L crisis combined with a compelling autobiographical account of a unique personal journey. Tucker Carlson - Host of Fox News - Tucker Carlson Tonight Inventing Oneself is a book that artfully weaves through an extraordinary array of issues, events and personalities. The story is not just about business success and challenges but also tackles the joys and heartbreak of family life. At the center of the story is a man who has done much for others and has been justly rewarded. John P. Hamill - Director - Liberty Mutual Insurance Company KIRKUS REVIEW: A retired businessman reflects on his successful career in banking. Debut author Craig, who descended from Irish immigrants, was born in Philadelphia in 1931. His upbringing taught him the value of frugality and hard work, principles especially important during the war years when food and gas rationing were necessary--he was 10 years old when Pearl Harbor was attacked. He attended Villanova University and then earned an MBA at Drexel, publishing his thesis on the economics of public utilities. Over the ensuing years, writing about financial matters provided a boost to his budding career. His was always upwardly mobile--after years working at the Irving Trust Company in New York, he took a job at Shawmut Bank in 1978, eventually becoming its president and then vice chairman. Craig's remembrance is limpidly composed, well-organized, and meticulously detailed, but for the most part free of the kind of drama or general life counsel that will magnetize a wide readership. There are two exceptions. Toward the end of his career, while president of Shawmut Bank, he was appointed to the board of directors for the Pittston Company, which owned and operated coal mines. He became embroiled in a bitter dispute with the United Mine Workers of America. As a result of that angry contest, he decided to resign his position at Shawmut. And in his retirement, he devised a new strategy to bail out foreclosed banks--form private investor groups to acquire them, a plan that turned out to be wildly successful for him. Craig's recollections are effortlessly charming, and his victories are a testament to his character, which abounds in a rare combination of decency, ambition, and prudence.

Author Information

Tab Content 6

Customer Reviews

Recent Reviews

Countries Available