The surgeon lifts a heart valve into clear view, attaching sutures before lowering it into a patient’s heart cavity. In that moment, nothing matters more than the correct choice of valve, the surgeon’s technical skill, and the precision of the operative team. Lives, reputations, even fortunes turned on it.

This is power. Not the kind Merriam-Webster defines as control, mastery, sway, or authority, but a force that slips quietly into heart centers, business boardrooms, and government offices, shaping futures—good and evil—in ways few ever see.

I never planned to enter this world. After my military service and a run of unremarkable jobs, I stumbled into the surgical device industry and, almost overnight, began a career where medicine, business, politics, and ambition collided. What began as a role in cardiac device sales soon became my passport, carrying me across continents—from New York to Sydney, Tokyo to Singapore—into the lives of brilliant and, at times, flawed surgeons. Manufacturers, middlemen, and government leaders all sought a stake in the rapidly expanding field of cardiac surgery and care.

Power is not a textbook on heart surgery or care. I am neither a doctor nor a technician. It is a story of relevance and romance, but also of corruption, fierce rivalries, resilience, and moments of heartbreak. In late 20th-century Asia, I found a testing ground to prove my bona fides in a world where companies rose, careers faltered, and fortunes shifted.

In unfamiliar settings, I discovered the meaning of power and how it altered the trajectory of my life beyond my wildest dreams.