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Reckoning: A Journey Through Tragedy, Triumph & Transcendence
"A remarkable transformation story that goes far beyond typical business memoirs." — Steve Case, Co-Founder, AOL
His brother committed murder. Clinical depression descended twice. The church abandoned his family when they needed it most.
But he built a half-billion-dollar company anyway.
Jim Minarik rang the bell to open the NASDAQ Stock Exchange. He finished seven marathons. He had a wonderful wife and two great kids. He split his time between his home in California and circling the globe on the world's most exclusive residential yacht. From the outside, he had everything.
Inside, he couldn't stop running and achieving.
But achievement couldn't undo his brother's crime. Success couldn't answer what mattered Who am I beneath the titles? Why am I here? What does this all mean?
Therapy wasn't enough. So he turned to the meditation, MDMA therapy, ketamine therapy, psilocybin, and shamanic ceremony. He encountered an ancient Spirit Man, backed an expedition into the Amazon, and finally confronted what he'd spent decades running from.
RECKONING is more than a CEO's story. Part true crime memoir, part business book, and part exploration of mental health and spiritual awakening, it is a raw, unflinching account of loss, identity, love, leadership, and reinvention. Written for anyone who has achieved, endured, struggled with depression, or felt the quiet pull toward something more, this book is an invitation to reconsider what truly matters—and to keep growing beyond success.
His brother committed murder. Clinical depression descended twice. The church abandoned his family when they needed it most.
But he built a half-billion-dollar company anyway.
Jim Minarik rang the bell to open the NASDAQ Stock Exchange. He finished seven marathons. He had a wonderful wife and two great kids. He split his time between his home in California and circling the globe on the world's most exclusive residential yacht. From the outside, he had everything.
Inside, he couldn't stop running and achieving.
But achievement couldn't undo his brother's crime. Success couldn't answer what mattered Who am I beneath the titles? Why am I here? What does this all mean?
Therapy wasn't enough. So he turned to the meditation, MDMA therapy, ketamine therapy, psilocybin, and shamanic ceremony. He encountered an ancient Spirit Man, backed an expedition into the Amazon, and finally confronted what he'd spent decades running from.
RECKONING is more than a CEO's story. Part true crime memoir, part business book, and part exploration of mental health and spiritual awakening, it is a raw, unflinching account of loss, identity, love, leadership, and reinvention. Written for anyone who has achieved, endured, struggled with depression, or felt the quiet pull toward something more, this book is an invitation to reconsider what truly matters—and to keep growing beyond success.
292 pages, Paperback
Published September 9, 2026
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Displaying 1 - 1 of 1 review
October 18, 2026
My brother is a long-time friend of the author and his wife (and in fact is mentioned in the book!), and several years ago, well before the book came out, the four of us had an enjoyable lunch together when they were in town. So when I heard that Jim had written a memoir, I was intrigued to read it.
Jim writes with a candor and vulnerability that makes his story consistently moving and engaging. Over and over he proves himself a great storyteller– as well as a font of insight and wisdom, of thoughtful analysis, and of honest questioning – whether he is discussing the murder committed by his brother that would so deeply affect his life and the lives of all those involved for decades to come, or his business successes and trials, or his bouts with depression, or his relationships, or his journey to self-discovery.
This book not only examines his own life but also offers valuable thoughts about how one might consider re-evaluating one’s own ways of doing, thinking, and being. Towards the end, Jim suggests that “every state of life asks us to awaken a little more. To live more truthfully. To give more freely. To love more deeply” (245), a perfect summing up of the central thesis of this book and of the years’-long journey Jim goes through – and vividly and movingly describes— in his attempts to find peace, self-understanding, forgiveness of self and others, and meaningful relationships.
A powerful self-portrait full of ideas that all readers will benefit from encountering, contemplating upon, and applying.
Jim writes with a candor and vulnerability that makes his story consistently moving and engaging. Over and over he proves himself a great storyteller– as well as a font of insight and wisdom, of thoughtful analysis, and of honest questioning – whether he is discussing the murder committed by his brother that would so deeply affect his life and the lives of all those involved for decades to come, or his business successes and trials, or his bouts with depression, or his relationships, or his journey to self-discovery.
This book not only examines his own life but also offers valuable thoughts about how one might consider re-evaluating one’s own ways of doing, thinking, and being. Towards the end, Jim suggests that “every state of life asks us to awaken a little more. To live more truthfully. To give more freely. To love more deeply” (245), a perfect summing up of the central thesis of this book and of the years’-long journey Jim goes through – and vividly and movingly describes— in his attempts to find peace, self-understanding, forgiveness of self and others, and meaningful relationships.
A powerful self-portrait full of ideas that all readers will benefit from encountering, contemplating upon, and applying.
Displaying 1 - 1 of 1 review