About John Quiñones
Host, What Would You Do? • ABC News Correspondent • Seven-time Emmy Award Winner
John Quiñones is one of the most distinguished names in American broadcast journalism. Born and raised in San Antonio, Texas, he grew up in a Spanish-speaking household and did not learn English until he started school at age six. At thirteen, after his father lost his job, his family joined a caravan of migrant farmworkers, traveling to Michigan and Ohio to harvest crops. Those formative experiences planted the seeds of something remarkable — a relentless work ethic, a deep empathy for the human condition, and an unwavering belief in the power of education.
After participating in the Upward Bound program, John earned his way to St. Mary’s University and later to the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. In 1982, he joined ABC News, beginning a journey that would take him around the world and into some of the most pivotal stories of our time. Over more than forty years at ABC, he has reported for World News Tonight, 20/20, Nightline, and Good Morning America, earning seven national Emmy Awards along the way.
In 2008, he became the host of What Would You Do? - a hidden-camera program that explores how ordinary people respond to ethical dilemmas in everyday life. It was on the set of that show that Michael Lyons and John first met in 2014. Over the next 12 years that followed, a genuine friendship was forged — built over lunches and dinners, and on breaks between scenes.
John Quiñones is, at his core, a man who believes character matters — and that is exactly why his voice belongs at the beginning of this book.
The Foreword
by John Quiñones
Over the years, through my work as a journalist and storyteller, I’ve had the privilege of witnessing human behavior in its most revealing moments — how people act when no one is watching, how they respond when faced with a choice between convenience and character.
What I’ve learned is this: who we are is most clearly seen in the small, everyday decisions we make. That truth doesn’t just apply to strangers in public settings. It applies most powerfully in our closest relationships, especially in marriage.
Since 2014, I’ve had the pleasure of knowing Michael J. Lyons not only as a professional but as a friend. And in that time, I’ve come to respect something in him that cannot be manufactured or exaggerated — authenticity.
Michael doesn’t speak about marriage as a theory or an academic exercise. He speaks about it as a man who has lived it, day in and day out, for more than fifty years. And that matters.
Because lasting relationships are not built on ideas alone. They are built on choices. Repeated choices. Quiet decisions made over time that shape the foundation of a life shared with another person.
What Michael has done in this book is both simple and meaningful. He has taken decades of lived experience and distilled it into sixteen guiding principles, each beginning with the letter “C,” that reflect the habits, attitudes, and behaviors that help love endure.
These are not complicated concepts. They are accessible. Practical. Real.
The power of these ideas lies in their consistency — in the understanding that strong marriages are not built in a single moment, but over time, through small acts of patience, kindness, honesty, and commitment.
What I appreciate most about this book is that it does not attempt to present perfection. Instead, it offers something far more valuable — perspective. A reminder that marriage is not about avoiding challenges, but about how we choose to meet them.
Whether you are just beginning your journey together or have been walking it for many years, this book offers something worth revisiting again and again. Because in the end, the strength of any relationship comes down to one simple truth:
“What we do consistently matters more than what we do occasionally. And as Michael reminds us so well, a happy marriage is not something we stumble upon. It is something we build.”
— John Quiñones
A MEANINGFUL GIFT FOR
THE PEOPLE YOU LOVE.
For newlyweds. For longtime couples. For anniversaries. For anyone who wants to strengthen the relationship that matters most.
Available in hardcover, paperback and Ebook.
For bulk orders, media inquiries, or endorsement requests: info@the16cs.com