Inspired by TOMS

I know I said that I would be talking about risk in my next post, but the story below spoke to me, so I had to share it. Enjoy.

Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover." - Mark Twain

The above quote is one that copied and pasted from the TOMS SHOES website. I watched a portion of a documentary on CNBC last night entitled "The Entrepreneurs," and TOMS was one of the featured companies. I came away from the documentary inspired to pursue social entrepreneurship-a growing form of business where profit is not the only bottom line, and contributing to the betterment of society is also a major focus. I originally began watching the documentary because I am always interested in new styles of shoes, but when I realized the story behind the company, I became amazed at what they have been able to accomplish. TOMS was started by Blake Mycoskie- "Master entrepreneur, already has 4 companies under his belt when he gets his best idea yet: create a shoe company that gives a pair away for every pair sold. Using his great business sense to garner a celebrity following, Mycoskie has grown TOMS Shoes into a global brand. The company has given over 115,000 pairs of shoes to children in need."
Blake had a passion for shoes and for helping underprivileged children in Africa and Argentina. He noticed on a trip to Argentina that many children were so poor that they were unable to afford shoes, and the lack of shoes was causing many health problems for the children. He took his passions and developed a vision of how to meld the two. He was able to create a product that could be sold to people in wealthy countries and the profit margin on each pair sold could be used to buy materials to make one pair of shoes for the children in Argentina and South Africa. He not only began giving thousands of shoes to the people of those countries, but he also established the TOMS manufacturing plants in Argentina to stimulate the local economy and provide sustainable jobs.

In many ways, the TOMS model is exactly what I hope to be doing some day. I would love to be able to incorporate the challenges of running a successful business with, what I feel, is my duty to society. I believe that God has blessed me and I want to be able to pass that on to others. I don't plan to wait until I own a business to do so, but I just thought that the TOMS story is one that we can all learn from and be inspired by. I am not sure about the style of the shoes, they are a bit unique. :) However, I may consider buying a pair, knowing that a child in Africa will receive a pair as a result.

Back to the quote at the beginning of the post-I don't think Mark Twain could've said it better. I hope to incorporate his advice into my decisions in life going forward. Until next time....Enjoy the ride.

Dear A.I.G.

I think this is a great op-ed piece from the NY Times written by an A.I.G. employee (former employee). It shows that the A.I.G. mess is a paradox because the only way to fix the issues within the company is to hire or retain good people. With the persecution by the government and by the media, the company is actually handicapped-making it harder to repay the tax payer. I think we all need to step back and look at this logically. If we expect to get our (tax payers) money back, then we need to give A.I.G. some leeway to pay smart people to figure things out. I am planning to write more on risk and risk taking in my next post, but I thought this would be a good primer. Check it out. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/25/opinion/25desantis.html

Boulder Trip

Last week I was able to take a few days off work to head out to Boulder and check out the MBA program at the University of Colorado. It was a wonderful trip, although only two days, I felt like it made a huge impression on me and my thoughts toward business school. The only thing that could have made it better is if Mary Beth and Parker could have come too, but maybe next time. I flew in Wednesday morning and hopped in my Prius rental (left) and drove to Boulder. As I was pulling into town, I couldn't help but notice that there were more people riding bikes than driving cars. Boulder is one of the most bike friendly towns in America and it makes me very jealous because KC is not bike-friendly at all. As for the cars people were driving-all sweet wagons, with bike/ski racks-again I was jealous. :)

I ate a quick breakfast on Pearl Street and then I walked around downtown until lunch. I met with a second year student, David, for lunch on Pearl St. at Illegal Pete's (a great burrito joint). David is one of the student bloggers for the business school and he was kind enough to answer all my emails over the past few months, and he helped me get the inside scoop about the program. I would definitely recommend meeting with current students if anyone is thinking about going back to school because you can read about a school on the Internet, but its much more meaningful to hear it directly from the "horse's mouth." After lunch I checked out the Boulder trails at Chautauqua Park (below). Killer run. I actually had to stop and walk twice because my lungs were burning, but it felt great.

Wednesday evening was the formal information session on campus. I had a chance to walk around campus after lunch to get my bearings and find the brand new business building (below). It was a really nice facility. The information session was from 6-8 and it was, well, very informative. :) I learned a lot about the program and was able to ask some questions. I walked out of the meeting thinking that CU is the place for me.

David was also very kind to show me his "family housing-on campus apartment," a housing option for MB, Parker and I if we choose to go that route. The proximity to campus and Pearl St. would surely be nice.

On Thursday, I woke up and picked up some coffee and chocolate covered espresso beans at Pete's Coffee & Tea-I recommend the chocolate covered espresso beans (originally introduced to me by my brother). They are awesome! I went up to campus one more time to attend a class and have lunch with Laurence-a 1st year student ambassador. The class was really interesting, mostly focused on ethics and sustainability. Sustainable business practices is one of the key characteristics of the program at CU. Just attending a class and hanging out with some students made me think that I need to do more reducing, reusing, and recycling. All in all, the trip was a success and I came away from the experience realizing that the CU students all seemed to have one thing in common; they all realize that money isn't everything. They all want to make a difference and they all want to have a work-life balance. I told MB that Boulder is quickly becoming my top choice because of all the factors I have mentioned. MB agreed and has continued to say that Colorado would be her favorite place to live as well. It is a place that I would love to go-we'll see if I can make it happen. :)

God Opens Doors....

.....And He closes them just the same. Sometimes I wonder why I had to get into the investment business right before the biggest financial crisis of my lifetime. What terrible timing...or was it meant to be? I have never had trouble moving up the pecking order in the endeavors I have chosen to pursue, but my career as an investment professional has been a bit different, to say the least. I chose to try my hand in the investment world for a few reasons:
1-I thought that I could learn to properly evaluate companies in order to profit from investing in their stocks.
2-I knew that investment principles are something that would serve me well in life, regardless of my ultimate career path.
3-I thought I could gain access to "hard to find" information and research which would give me an edge in my personal investments.
4-I thought that I would move from the associate role to CEO in no time at all. (sarcasm-just to clarify) :)

Well, my assumptions have been both right and wrong. I have learned a great deal about the markets and what to look for when trying to make investment decisions, however, when the S&P 500 is down 40% for the year, it is hard to find any stocks that can make me a fortune. I have gained access to a lot of research and high level information that should be extremely helpful, but no one ever mentioned that those Wall St. analysts and equity research guys are just making guesses too. They are wrong just as often as they are right. Granted, their guesses are more educated than some, but they are still just guesses.....no one can predict where this market might go. I have learned a lot about how greed can lead to stupid decisions and excessive risk-taking. Lastly, my associate to CEO path has been derailed by a hiring/promotion freeze which has been extremely frustrating for me. I need an incentive in order to keep me hungry, and I no longer have that. I know no matter how hard I work or how well I do, there will still be no promotion any time soon. I guess I should be happy that I still have a job with a stable financial institution because there are plenty of people out there who have lost theirs.

I am grateful for my job and that I am able to help provide for my family, but I am beginning to realize that God works in mysterious ways. He doesn't always give us what we ask for because He knows what we really want in our heart. I began a career in investments for the money, plain and simple. I am sure that I would be a different person today if I doubled my money last year and if I had begun to work my way up the corporate ladder. I would be too enthralled with the success to realize that it wasn't what I wanted to be doing. The luster of the money and the corner office would wear off and I would be 10 years down the road and stuck in a corporate culture that doesn't suit me one bit. I believe that God is using this opportunity to show me that I need to trust Him. I am realizing that He knows what I want better than I do sometimes.

I am excited because I will likely be heading back to school as a result of the slow economic times and the lack of promotion opportunities. An MBA will give me a chance to explore entrepreneurship and, hopefully, lead to me starting my own business someday. I am heading to Boulder next week to check out CU's MBA program. I think that MB & I would love to live in CO and raise Parker on the trails, slopes, and peaks. :) I can't wait to free myself from the corporate monotony and dive into the rest of my life. Its funny how God realized all along that I didn't want to to be a banker, I was just looking for a way to get rich. Getting rich is no longer my goal and I wouldn't have realized it if things had gone the way I planned. My goal now is to be happy, work in a job that is rewarding that allows me to help people, and to be able to have the flexibility to spend more time with my family. I want to have the freedom to take breaks on those 75 degree days in March to walk around the Park and enjoy the sunshine with MB & Parker (and the children to be named later). :) That is what I want now. We'll see if that is what God wants. Until next time.

Running=Life?

I enjoy distance running because there are so many parallels with life. Life has many ups and downs as does running. Running is something you can never master. You can't run a race in zero seconds, which essentially means that you can always improve, just like life. I have found that some of my most clear thoughts have come while running. I have achieved that "runners high," a euphoric state where I felt as though I was floating across the ground because I was in such a rhythm. I love those moments, and you need those types of moments to keep you coming back for more, but those "highs" are not the reason I run. I run because of the daily grind. Running every day gives me a sense of confidence because I know that I can grind through the tough times instead of shutting down and giving up. That is the ultimate lesson that I have learned, and continue to learn, from running. There are hills in running and in life; it is not how fast you make it up the hill, but your willingness to say, "I am not going to let a hill stop me, it may slow me down, but I will eventually make it to the top, and when I do, the downhill on the other side will be that much more rewarding." The key to success in a sport like running is work ethic. I love to watch these naturally gifted athletes on tv in the NFL, MLB and NBA, but I have never gotten emotional about a professional sports game. However, every time I watch the Ironman World Championships in Kona, I end up getting teary-eyed. First of all there are wonderful stories of perseverance like Dick and Rick Hoyt, but most of all, I think about how most of these people are "average joes" who decided to put all the effort they had into training for that event. That is inspiring to watch. I have always thought of myself as a slightly above average athlete, but I continue to feel like I perform well above my abilities. For me, it all comes down to drive, desire, will to succeed and work ethic. I refuse to believe that I can't do it better the next time, and I have never let someone tell me what I can and can't do. I hope I never lose that mentality in sports or in life. Until next time.

1/2 Ironman Training

I haven't signed up yet, but I plan to do so soon. I have been training for the past two weeks and it feels good to have a major goal to keep me going. I have deviated from the training log out of necessity, but I am able to run every day and I try to swim or bike at least once or twice a week too. It is a little tough to get to the pool with Parker around, but MB has been great to let me sneak away for an hour or so on the weekends. She has been very supportive of my goal and she even bought me a pair of Newton running shoes. They are a crazy new shoe that force you to run on your forefoot. They supposedly promote a more biomechancially efficient running motion and will help prevent injuries. I have put about 25 miles on them so far and I am really enjoying them. Initially, my calves were a bit sore, but I am getting used to them. I am a total shoe geek, so it is super cool to be the only one at the gym who has these shoes. Check em out.

These were worn by the Ironman World Champion-Craig Alexander, this year in Kona, so maybe I will have the same success. :) (You know what they say-"Its gotta be the shoes.")

In other news, Parker has a little reflux, so he has had a rough couple of days, but we have gotten some medicine and it has been helping. It is so tough to know that something is making your son unhappy and he can't communicate what it is or how to fix it. I guess that is where we have to trust the pediatrician. He is as cute as ever though. Check out this pic of him flexing his muscles. (Probably going to be a body-builder)

Ode to MB

Growing up I always thought that there was someone out there who would share my passion for life, Jesus, family, sports, the outdoors, etc. As I entered high school and college I began to think that maybe I had set my sites too high. I thought I might need to compromise and begin looking for someone who didn't quite share all those passions. So, I dated a few people, never really finding much common ground with them, and we ended up going our separate ways. Then, my junior year of college, I began to focus more on my relationship with Jesus, and less on my relationship with the numerous coeds @ WJC.

It was about midway through my junior year at Jewell when someone caught my eye. She was a beautiful blonde setter on the volleyball team and she was also someone who I had seen at Worship Jam (a fellow Christian athlete-2 for 2) :). Needless to say, her name was Mary Beth. She has taught me that you don't have to compromise, you have to trust in God and He will give you what you need. Mary Beth was exactly the girl I had dreamed of growing up and there she was right in front of me. I had to make my move, but I had no idea how. I got really lucky when she asked me to go to the Alpha Gam Date Dash at the Crown Center Ice Rink. However, even though she asked me to go on the date dash, it took around 6 months to get her to sit next to me on the couch. She was a tough one. :)

In that six month period I finally approached her for our first real date-54th Street in Liberty. She ordered a bowl of soup and took about 3 bites. Afterward, we drove around talking for about 2 hours and that was the night I knew, (and later found out that she knew as well), that she was the girl I was going to marry. I am very lucky to have such a wonderful wife and Parker is just as lucky to have such a wonderful Mom. WE LOVE YOU MB. HAPPY 25th BIRTHDAY. Maybe we can hit up 54th Street in Liberty tonight if you're available.