The character arc of Michael A. Singer
A life drawn by Character Arc from the public record
Born on 6 May 1947 in New Rochelle, New York, to a Jewish family, the son of a stockbroker, and raised in Miami. Between then and now sit a business degree in 1969, a marriage that ended in 1971, a master's in economics the same year, a period of seclusion during his doctorate, a refusal to write a dissertation and a book handed in instead, a temple founded in the Florida woods in 1975, a medical software company co-founded in 1981 and sold in 2002 in a deal valued around five billion dollars, a prosecution in 2010 settled for two and a half million, and three bestsellers. The line below draws the story so far, in order.
Drag along the line to move, pinch or use the buttons to look closer. Tap the line to pluck it, or any mark for its card. Drawn from the public record of his life; the sources are at the foot of the page.
Who is Michael A. Singer?
He handed in a book instead of the thesis they asked for.
He was born in New Rochelle to a Jewish family and grew up in Miami, the son of a stockbroker. He took a business degree at the University of Florida in 1969 and a master's in economics there in 1971. An early marriage ended in divorce the same year.
While working on a doctorate he had what the record describes as a spiritual awakening, and went into seclusion to focus on meditation and yoga. Then he did something no doctoral candidate does. He refused to write a dissertation, and wrote and submitted his first book to his professor instead. One professor on the committee, instead of failing him, put him in touch with a publisher, and the book came out in 1974. The whole shape of the man is in that story: he would not do the required thing, and somebody was impressed enough to help anyway.
In 1975 he founded the Temple of the Universe, a yoga and meditation centre in Alachua, Florida, which he has run ever since. And then his working life went sideways in the most improbable way available. In 1981 he co-founded Medical Manager, which made software helping doctors manage and digitise their billing records. In 2002 the company and its subsidiaries were bought by WebMD in an acquisition valued at roughly five billion dollars. He stayed on working on physician software strategy and resigned in 2005. In 2010 he was prosecuted in relation to securities fraud during his time at WebMD and eventually forfeited two and a half million dollars in settlements.
The books came late and they came big. The Untethered Soul in 2007, The Surrender Experiment in 2015, which is his own account of the software years, and Living Untethered in 2022, all three New York Times bestsellers.
The moments
Michael A. Singer's timeline.
The 1960s
Business, then economics
Milestone. A stockbroker's son, doing exactly what a stockbroker's son does.
The 1970s
An early marriage ends
Setback. The first marriage, over, at twenty four.
He goes into seclusion
Milestone, and it changed everything. A doctoral student who stopped answering the door.
A book, not a dissertation
Milestone, and it changed everything. He would not write the thesis, so he wrote a book and handed that in.
Write the dissertation
Crossroads, decided.
The paths laid out: hand in the book, taken, or write the thesis. A professor put him in touch with a publisher, and the book came out.
The Temple of the Universe
Milestone, and it changed everything. Twenty eight years old, and he built a temple in the woods.
The 1980s
Medical Manager
Milestone, and it changed everything. A meditation teacher, starting a medical billing software company.
The 2000s
Sold for five billion
Milestone, and it changed everything. The company he had not planned sold for about five billion dollars.
The Untethered Soul
Milestone, and it changed everything. Sixty years old, and the book that finally found everybody.
The 2010s
A prosecution, and a settlement
Setback, and it changed his direction. A prosecution over the WebMD years, settled with a forfeiture.
The Surrender Experiment
Milestone, and it changed his direction. The story of the company, told by the man who never wanted one.
The 2020s
Living Untethered
Milestone, and it changed his direction. Seventy five years old, and a third bestseller.
The temple in the Florida woods is still open, and he is still there, most mornings. What he set moving is the strangest proof going that a life does not need a plan: a man who refused a dissertation, sat down in the woods, and ended up with a billion dollar company and three bestsellers he never went looking for.
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Michael A. Singer: frequently asked questions
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Sources
- Michael A. Singer, English Wikipedia biography, filed under living people.
- University of Florida records for his 1969 and 1971 degrees.
- WebMD acquisition records for 2002, and the 2010 prosecution and its settlement.
- New York Times bestseller listings for his three books.