EXCHANGE: Exec returns to Normal to write bestselling book

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. (AP) - For Jean Case, there was no better place to write her first book than her first hometown.

"It was actually my husband's idea that I come back," said Case, wife of former America Online CEO Steve Case and a high-level executive herself in the company's early days. "I felt this town really shaped me. As I was writing stories of others, I wanted to feel grounded in my own past."

That's how Case found herself in October 2017 at a home in Bloomington, crafting "Be Fearless: 5 Principles for a Life of Breakthroughs and Purpose" - and why she came back as part of the book tour after it released to critical acclaim and hot sales in January.

Case spent her first few years in Normal before moving to Florida, where she launched a career that's included not only AOL, but roles in the Reagan and George W. Bush administrations; 15 years with the National Geographic Society board, including currently as board chair; and serving as CEO of The Case Foundation, part of the couple's "Giving Pledge" campaign to give away a majority of the their wealth, now over a billion dollars.

"A big message in the book is it's usually ordinary people who do extraordinary things, and I felt like anyone looking at my early life would never have imagined I would go on to have the opportunities I had," she said. "I really appreciated seeing people from all walks (growing up), with great talent and real passion to make the world better."

In the book, Case lays out how readers can succeed by embracing five principles: "Make a Big Bet"; "Be Bold, Take Risks"; "Make Failure Matter"; "Reach Beyond Your Bubble"; and "Let Urgency Conquer Fear."

In an early section labeled "Leaving Normal Behind," she describes how she sprouted from her childhood in the Twin Cities, including working for her grandparents at the defunct Commercial Hotel on Front Street.

"It's a town with great Midwest values... and part of that value is neighbor helping neighbor, caring for one another, and obviously I've tried to spend my career working to empower others," she continued. "A lot of that was ingrained in me here. I give my mother and my grandparents a lot of credit."

As part of a return trip to the Twin Cities to promote the book, Case visited Oakdale Elementary School in Normal. She thinks she could still name all her teachers there - "but don't test me on that," she added with a laugh.

"I loved every teacher I had at (Oakdale) school. The story I tell in the book is, when I went to Florida, the education here was so great and so advanced that I was way ahead of grade level," she said.

During that visit, Case also met with Normal Mayor Chris Koos, who said he hopes to start an ongoing dialogue with her.

"It was clear to me she has a strong connection to the Town of Normal," he said. "There's no question (it's an amazing story)."?

Case said the Twin City community felt immediately familiar and comfortable when she returned. She rented a house in the 1300 block of East Washington Street through AirBnB. She wrote about the writing process in the epilogue, "On Returning to Normal."

"What I love about it is it's kept pace with the times, but has a lot of what I remember best about it. ... Every day I would take walks or ride my bike around, and people were just as friendly as I remembered. It's a community that really cares about one another," she said. "On the other hand, look at the new (Rivian) factory that's coming in. It couldn't be any more 'right now.'"

Case hopes Bloomington-Normal residents will see themselves in the book, and she encouraged the community to let urgency conquer fear.

"I have no doubt there are people in this community who have brilliant ideas about how to make the world better," she said. "I hope (this book) inspires them to think about taking their idea forward."

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Source: The (Bloomington) Pantagraph, https://bit.ly/2BXv2Ct

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Information from: The Pantagraph, http://www.pantagraph.com