VL - Issue 43- April 22

PHOTOS COURTESY OF MYPILLOW
I had another dream later that showed
me how MyPillow would provide me with
a large platform to help others. Helping
others made me feel good about myself,
so this excited me. It wasn’t often that I felt
good about myself.
For most of my life, I’d felt out of place
and different. My parents divorced when
I was seven years old, and I had to go to a
new school. Back then, divorce was uncommon,
and being from a one-parent home
often made me feel less-than.
Because of how different I’d felt as a
child, I often struggled with social interaction.
I would either clam up under the
anxiety of speaking to someone or show
off by doing crazy things. I didn’t know
what to do with my hurt, so I escaped
the pain however I could.
Eventually, I turned to the temporary
escape of alcohol, gambling, and drugs.
Under the influence of drugs, my social
anxiety decreased. I felt more confident
and relaxed, and I was able to talk to people.
But it was false courage at best.
As I grew older, I tried launching my own
business. I’d always had an entrepreneurial
mind, but I didn’t have a lot of success. I
was faced with the failures of my life in
1984 at my five-year class reunion.
Looking around at my classmates and
listening to their stories, it seemed everyone
had it all together but me. I was a college
dropout and a compulsive gambler, the
single guy who owed the mafia money for
football bets. (Truth—they even broke both
my arms for my debts.)
I lay in bed the night of that reunion,
and sadness filled my heart. I felt so empty
and alone and behind in life. I was angry
with myself for not being where I thought
I should be and for wasting time. I longed
for the families my classmates had spoken
of, and I prayed, “God, please give me a
woman to love and a family.” I thought for
sure if I had a family, I’d be happy, content,
and fulfilled.
In 1987, I met a woman and got married.
We had four beautiful children together.
God had given me everything I had requested.
I started a lunch wagon and then
opened bars. (Not the best place for an addict
to spend his days.) I worked hard. Yet
even with my family and successful businesses,
I remained discontent, and drugs
continued to get me through my days.
There’s a big misconception about addiction.
Many people imagine addicts are
homeless people living on the streets. And
some are. But addicts also have beautiful
homes and families. It doesn’t matter how
many forks a person uses—addiction can
affect anyone.
For 15 years, I functioned as an addict. I
I didn’t know what to do
with my hurt, so I escaped
the pain however I could.
drank and used cocaine daily yet continued
to work hard. It seemed a normal thing
to do—the people I hung out with did the
same. These substances helped me feel
more confident and secure. They enabled
me to talk to my customers.
But when I came down from the drugs,
unhappiness was always waiting for me.
So I continued to combat it the only way
I knew how. In the early 2000s, I turned
to crack cocaine. With each passing day, I
focused less on my business and more on
finding my next hit.
It wasn’t long before I lost my bar. Everything
I had worked so hard to gain was
gone, and I was devastated. “What now?”
I thought.
As crushing as it was, this disappointment
had to happen. It was the beginning
of several events God used to bring me into
the calling He had for my life. During this
time, I had that first dream for MyPillow—a
vision from God of something new.
Over the next year, I worked tirelessly,
designing the MyPillow pillow. I bought a
farm grinder and started chopping foam.
My children were involved in every stage
Mike Lindell in the early days of MyPillow, chopping
foam in his farm grinder and sewing pillows.
of the process, from making logos, developing
prototypes, and hiring their friends
to help with production. When my neighbors
found out what I was doing, they joked,
“What? Mike’s making pillows now? Is he
on crack?!” (Little did they know, I was.)
With the end product in hand, I passionately
set out to revolutionize the
pillow industry. But my excitement was
met with rejection as every retail store
turned me down. A friend suggested I sell
out of a kiosk at the local mall. I didn’t even
know how to spell kiosk, but I gave it a try. I
only worked a couple of days there, but
that was all God needed to bring about
His divine appointment.
One of the people passing by “just
happened” to be the head of the Minnesota
Home and Garden Show. He asked
for my business card as he purchased
his MyPillow. The pillow impacted his
life so much that he then called and suggested
I get a booth at the show. So I did.
I only sold about 12 pillows the first day
of the show. I was so anxious—I just didn’t
know how to talk to people without the help
of drugs. (I was still using at this time but
always made sure I was sober at the shows.)
I stood behind a table to keep customers
from invading my space.
After that first day, many of my customers
came back to the show just to tell me
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