Meet Jason Hartman! 
This is one interview you're going to want to listen to because there are many takeaways for us all, whether you're on Wall Street or making good money or trying to be successful in whatever enterprise you choose. Jason upholds the definition of consistency, of slow and steady, and of working smarter (not necessarily harder) as an approach to business. We're so excited to share this interview with you and hope you will take a little extra time to check out Jason's websites.
In This Episode
- Welcome, Jason!
- The 2-track approach
- Great mentorship yielded a successful slow and steady mindset
- Investment: Thou shalt maintain control
- Some excellent advice
Wall Street
You know what they say... When you mess with the bull, you get the horns. I took this picture of the famous Wall Street Bull on my first trip to New York last year. When my small, Northeast Minneapolis company was acquired by an international company, my eyes were opened to a whole new world of business. 
Wall Street is no joke. New York City itself is no joke, at that. Our office in New York is a handful of blocks north of Wall Street, but well within smelling-distance, and close enough to see just how serious people are about trying to make it in the big world.
While it's not necessarily my scene, I do see the attraction to a life spent at that pace. I could never keep up with what would be required to live and work in New York, but it is stimulating to me in small doses. It's kind of a wake up call to the normal and steady pace that I like to enjoy. But my goals have never been around making money, they've been in trying to go places where I'm most effective, where I'm needed, and where I can make a difference.
Honestly, if Wall Street is your game, or if you want it to be your game, there is no judgment from us. But there are, inevitably, certain requirements, certain sacrifices, that will need to be made when playing that game. In a world obsessed with money and making it to the big time, Wall Street is just another cog in that machine. Whether it's the sacrifice of time, or something a bit more costly, there are prices to pay for playing on that scale.
But what if there was another way? A better way? A way that we could work with people and create a mutually-beneficial situation which enhanced the culture and the lives of everyone you touch! A dream, you say? I don't know. My belief has always been that the most effective gestures [can be] made at the 1:1 level, when goods and services are exchanged on a personal level. (Of course, with any sort of customer-facing services, we also run the risk of making very ineffective or detrimental gestures.) Like Jason, I am all for capitalism, but I have a huge heart for small business.
Because when you're known by someone, it makes a difference. Doesn't it?
Jason's advice to us about investment (Commandment #3) is "thou shalt maintain control". As much as he means this about investing our hard-earned money, I don't see any reason it should stop there. Monday's episode was about being responsible and finding solutions that create mutually beneficial outcomes for everyone whom policies affect, and that applies as much to the investment of our time and energy (involvement in business) as it does to the government "investing" in our lives.
When we start putting everything on auto-pilot, when we give more fuel to the bulls, we have fewer opportunities to wield the most important tool of business we have: the personal touch. I don't believe humans are inherently good, but I believe humans are capable of great good. Even more importantly, I believe that when we practice goodness we see inexplicable, wonderful outcomes that motivate us, and others, to do more good.
The truth is, New York is a crowded place... and the Earth we live on is quite large. Don't stop looking for what your niche is; pursue it and bring your unique skill set to an area of this world that needs it most.