Most careers are presented as straight lines. You study the right subject, get the right job, make the right moves, and eventually arrive where you were always meant to be. Don Kurz’s life is a useful reminder that almost no meaningful career actually works that way.
In the latest episode of The Munn Avenue Muse, Charlie Levin sat down with Don Kurz, entrepreneur, former CEO, and author of Do the Hustle, to talk about a life that moved from Division I championship lacrosse at Johns Hopkins, to teaching disco during the Studio 54 era, to leading public companies and navigating high-stakes boardrooms.
At first glance, those worlds seem unrelated. They are not. What connects them is something far more important than industry: the ability to recognize when one chapter has ended and the willingness to fully commit to the next one.
Listen to this episode and 45 more on the “Munn Avenue Muse” on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Watch on Substack or YouTube.
When the Original Plan Disappears
Kurz’s first identity was built around athletics. As a national champion lacrosse player, the expectation was clear: keep going, keep competing, keep building on that path. Then two knee injuries ended it. The literal “Punch-in-the-face.”
For many people, that kind of forced ending creates paralysis. We spend years trying to reopen doors that have already closed. Kurz did something harder. He accepted it.
Rather than staying emotionally attached to a future that no longer existed, he allowed himself to seize a completely different one. That decision eventually led him to one of the most unlikely chapters of his life: becoming a disco dance instructor during the height of the 1970s nightclub era.
It sounds absurd on paper, but that season taught him something many traditional career paths never do— how to connect with people, how to command energy in a room, and how confidence often matters as much as competence. The lesson was never really about disco. It was about adaptability.
Why Passion Cannot Be Faked
One of the strongest ideas in Don’s philosophy is that passion cannot just be performed. “You can’t fake an erection,” Kurz says. People can tell when you are simply showing up versus when you are fully invested.
You might be able to force enthusiasm temporarily. You can survive a few weeks or even a few months by going through the motions. But long-term success requires something deeper.
Whether you are leading a company, selling a product, or managing a team, people feel authenticity immediately. They know when you care, and they know when you do not.
This matters because leadership is rarely about instructions alone. It is about kinetic energy. People do not follow titles; they follow conviction. When passion is absent, performance eventually collapses with it.
Listen to this episode and 45 more on “Munn Avenue Muse” on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Watch on Substack or YouTube.
The “Toxic Star” Problem
Every leader eventually faces the same uncomfortable test. There is someone on the team who produces enormous results. They bring in the biggest account, close the biggest deals, and make themselves seem indispensable.
But they damage everything around them. They create resentment, weaken morale, and make the best people quietly start planning their exits. Many leaders keep them because the numbers look too good.
Kurz argues that this is one of the most expensive mistakes a company can make. The moment leadership protects toxic behavior because someone is profitable, trust disappears. Culture stops being real and becomes a slogan.
Your strongest people notice that immediately, and eventually, they leave. The short-term revenue never outweighs the long-term cost. A healthy room is always worth protecting.
Learning to Pivot Without Ego
Most people only see success in hindsight. They see the outcome and assume the path was obvious. What they do not see are the bad decisions, the financial losses, the failed bets, and the moments where pride makes people stay too long in the wrong place.
Kurz speaks openly about this. He talks not just about the millions made, but the millions lost. That honesty is what makes his lessons valuable.
The most important skill in business and life is often not intelligence or strategy. It is self-awareness. It is the ability to look honestly at what is no longer working and resist the urge to keep defending it simply because you have already invested too much.
Sometimes maturity looks like persistence. Sometimes it looks like walking away. Knowing the difference is everything.
Listen to this episode and 45 more on the “Munn Avenue Muse” on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Watch on Substack or YouTube.
Are You Still Holding Onto the Wrong Door?
Most people know, quietly, where they are forcing something that no longer fits. A job, a role, a version of success they inherited from someone else.
The hardest part is rarely recognizing it. The hardest part is letting go.
Reinvention does not begin with confidence. It begins with honesty. It begins when you stop trying to return to a chapter that has already ended and start building the next one with full commitment.
You do not need the entire map. You only need the willingness to move.
Read It Now
🎧 Listen to the full episode of The Munn Avenue Muse featuring Don Kurz on your favorite podcast platform.
📘 Do the Hustle is available now at:
🌐 Connect with Don through his official website
✍️ If you are working through your own story, whether it is personal, professional, or somewhere in between, Munn Avenue Press can help you shape it into something lasting. If you are ready to publish your book or audiobook, or are just beginning to explore the idea, visit MunnAvenuePress.com to learn more.
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Happy Writing,
Charlie Levin
Publisher & Founder
