I Just Couldn't Do It Anymore
Welcome to Together UP!
Rule #1 in a newsletter, in executive coaching, and in sales, is don’t make it about yourself.
Well, I’m going to break rule #1 in issue #1 of?Together UP!?I believe your understanding of who you are together with each week and my point of view will serve as an anchor for what we’re trying to accomplish together in the weeks, months, and maybe even years to come.
If you haven’t done so yet.
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?It Was Time To Go.
Two years ago to this very day in 2021, I walked into my job as an Institutional Equity Trader and told the people that needed to know, that I just couldn’t do it anymore.
It was time to go.
At the time I couldn’t quite pinpoint what it was that drove me to that point but my wife was sick of hearing it, and I was sick of feeling it.
If you know me, a career on a trading desk would seem like the perfect fit.
I love people, I love energy (the right energy), and I like competition.
In that seat, I was around people?(that’s an awesome thing).
I was in a dynamic environment where each day there were new challenges and opportunities to interact with something and someone interesting.?(Sounds great)
Each day you knew if you won or lost?(Some days were better than others).
The pay was good.?(Check!)
But. I. Just. Couldn’t. Do. It. Anymore.
Thankfully, it’s now clear why, and even more thankfully, because of that,
we’re here now together, talking about topics that drive me from my core.
To this day, it remains vivid. Driving to the basket as an 8th grader on my junior HS basketball team. A point guard, going up for a contested layup, and instead of taking the shot, kicking the ball out to a teammate for a 3-pointer.
Instinctively, if given the opportunity to score on my own or dish it to someone, It came naturally to dish it.
That has lived on throughout my life. Up until the time I left my long-time career, it had manifested in its purest form for me on the lacrosse field, playing the role of a “quarterback” in the context of very successful offenses on very successful teams at Princeton and beyond.
As a setup man on the field, I thrived. I was a leader. I had a voice.
I created for others. I was using my strengths. I mattered.
When examing the Wall St career and why I ultimately had to go, it now makes a lot of sense.
I was a member of a team, but the instinctual need to connect with and elevate others could not coalesce into outsized PnL (profit)?or production.
In that role, the way I?wanted?no, needed to engage with the people did not = performance.
I could contribute to cultures but that didn’t structurally change them. I could do the little things, but the little things didn’t add up to big things. I sought a bottom-up foundation for the team but instead of a bottom-up team foundation, it was the bottom line that mattered.
There was more to give to this world.
Why??What I naturally did best didn’t matter.
It Has Always Been About The People
By stepping away, I came to realize it was always about the people. It is so abundantly clear that the people = the performance, and elevating others is not only the most impactful way to lead but seeing it put into action is simply energizing!
There is so much opportunity for growth in so many areas of leadership, culture, and team dynamics. The concepts transcend time, they appear in all industries and are relevant to both corporate settings as well as athletic.
Two areas I know well.
Leadership and team dynamics and the successes or failures that follow are based on human needs and understanding the people.
You will never convince me otherwise.
?You’re Story Is Great, Jon, But Now What?
Now, as we will each time we’re Together, we'll look to identify 3 things that we can learn from these experiences and how to grow.
In this case, it’s about your strengths - your natural talents. Your natural feelings of thought and behavior.
*Link to book and the excerpt from the podcast found below.
3. When listening to your gut, trust that what it’s telling you about the best way forward in any situation is true. One thing you won’t hear me say is “follow your passion”. While following our passions can certainly lead to success and I don’t discount that, it can be a tricky exercise.
What you?will?hear me say is by following your strengths, passion flows through. You naturally become more engaged, more motivated, and have more energy in doing it, and when you combine all of those, that feeling you feel, well that’s passion.
You can start small. You can lower the bar. By engaging your strengths in even a small fashion, the results will compound.
In?your job, Identify what it is you think you are BEST AT and go to your boss (if you have one) and ask for their opinion on if you can try and do more of it. Ask for their support. If you don’t receive it, well perhaps that’s the sign you need. Wherever you do get support for what you do best, that is where your results will follow.
In?athletics, if your strength is your strength, go and use it. If your strength is cerebral, engage it. Whatever it is that you do best, go and put as much energy into that thing as you can and it WILL be noticed.
Your contribution will?matter.
As a?leader, understand what got you there but understand that what got you there may be your strengths, but those you lead may not possess the same. Do the work to understand what it is that your people do well. Ask them. Listen to them. Support them.
Their performance, engagement, and motivation will lead YOU to new heights as their leader.
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What To Expect From Together UP!
**With this being an inaugural edition, I will aim to not have it be this long each week. Your time is valuable.?
In?Together UP!, once a week I will share things that inspire us to see what is possible. I hope it invites self-reflection and can play a role in your growth.
Through storytelling, anecdotes, observations, and techniques, I’ll provide context for what I’m sharing, and 3 tips or actionable strategies to help you bring to light the valuable tools you can use to have a better chance at delivering the goals for you and your team.
I’ll share things that appear simple, like calling someone by their name or the simplicity of changing one word in a question. We’ll go into more elusive constructs such as doing what may not come as easy to you in order to bring others together and lead better.
Great stories of incredible teammates will be highlighted here and used to celebrate all that is GOOD about a team.
Challenges that people face every day will be dug into, to help you navigate the higher and higher expectations that you face.
I hope we can laugh together. I hope we can reflect together. I hope we can grow together.
?The Guiding Principles
The centerpiece for what we’ll share in?Together UP!?comes from a construct of my guiding principles that I believe are found in all successful teams and in successful leaders who foster these teams.
They are what I look to develop in those I work with as an executive coach & consultant and I take them seriously.
You’ll hear from me on topics that talk about:
I hope you can help me scale the message for yourself and your team.
It is where my own energy, motivation, engagement, and performance come from, and that feeling I have - yup, you guessed it, is passion.
So for you and members of whatever “team” you care about - Work, Sports, Family, Friends, let’s spend a few mins each week reflecting on things that can help you grow.
With each other, we?matter?more than we do alone and I think together is the best course to UP!
Financial Advisor
1 年Congrats Jon! Organizations will be so much smarter for you sharing your thoughts and expertise as they build what's next.
Investments at Newbrook Capital
1 年Awesome read! Look forward to catching up soon.
Executive Leadership Coach, Strategist, Speaker | Specializing in Communication & Influence || | Ex-Markets | Princeton Lacrosse 3X National Champion
1 年Thank you for all of the direct inbounds people! Love it.