What I Learned On My Trip To Montana

1. Opportunities come from relationships.

It's who you know. And who you know doesn't have to be the top dog. And the people you know today might climb the ladder tomorrow, or be gone just as quickly. Which is why your relationships must be varied and...you must continue to invest, meeting new people. Doesn't matter how smart you are, if you don't know people, you're never gonna get ahead, you're gonna have trouble paying the bills, or you're going to be a drone at the corporation bitching about your boss.

2. Winners take risks.

J. couldn't get a loan to start his skate shop. He asked everybody he knew and raised a bit of capital, dropped out of college and started. J. believed in himself. He felt he could sell, and you sell by nurturing relationships and spending money, investing in good will.

3. You make your own opportunities.

Japan ordered pants J. wasn't making. They saw a patch from his shop on the leg of a famous snowboarder and assumed they were available. J. said yes, then figured it out.

4. Connections will get you in the door, but they won't get you much further.

S.'s father knew a famous Wall Street titan. This delivered him a job in the basement, wiring funds around the world.

5. Your c.v. means something on Wall Street.

S. asked for a promotion to trader. The boss said he didn't go to Yale, Harvard, Dartmouth or Princeton so he should forget about it.

6. Spin is everything.

S. hated his job in his basement, but rather than bitch he spun the story as one of hunger, a huge desire to move on up. The boss said no.

7. Be persistent.

S. asked again, soon thereafter. The boss gave him some numbers. S. acted on them.

8. Sales skills count.

P. talks to some of his financial customers five times a day. If you've got social anxiety, the Street is no place for you to reside.

9. Nothing is forever.

The other J. had to make a career switch when the internet destroyed his business.

10. Margins are everything.

You can't make it in physical retail if the internet sellers collapse your margins. Passion will only get you so far, at the end of the day you've got to make money.

11. The hinterlands may deliver a great lifestyle, but little cash.

The third J. was told he'd be a millionaire if only he moved his business to the city.

12. Winners get opportunities out of the blue.

A&M called the first J. with an offer, that he actually turned down. But J. nurtured the relationship and it paid dividends down the road.

13. All fathers are the same.

M. wants his daughter to have a good career after college, he helps open doors for her.

14. The music business looks easy to outsiders, but the truth is you're working 24/7 and can be fired any time.

15. He who goes the extra mile gets the benefit of the doubt.

S. went above and beyond the call of duty, therefore he not only got kudos, but little crap. S. did it not for the dividend, but because that's his personality. People know when you're working it, when you expect a payoff.

16. Misinformation reigns.

Despite living in the information society, more people know less and those who control the talking points win. I don't mind if you're a Republican, but I do mind when everything you're basing your opinion on is wrong.

17. Not every millennial lives for technology.

A. got an iPhone reluctantly, only because he can iMessage from his no cell service household. His goal is to be the last person to upgrade it.

18. The lowliest workers are the nicest.

The house-cleaning lady hopped in her car and picked up D. after the lifts were closed, not begrudgingly, but eagerly. Why is it those at the bottom are the least cynical and the most compassionate?

19. Gourmet food is everywhere.

20. Most college campuses look the same.

21. The locals look different.

22. I want to go back.

Eating breakfast I perused the brochures for Montana. Turns out there's this road from Jellystone to Red Lodge that scales the mountains and hugs their edges that scares me to drive but I want to experience.

Flathead Lake is the largest fresh body of water...well, somewhere out west.

Sitting in the waiting room at the Bozeman Yellowstone airport the big screens played this documentary on the building of the Fort Peck Dam during the Depression. I was so fascinated I was bummed when my flight took off.

We know so little but want to know so much.

At least I do.

P.S. Turns out you can watch the Fort Peck Dam documentary on YouTube: http://bit.ly/1Ddh37q But the funny thing is I probably won't finish it at home, because in the big city it's all hustle and bustle, you're time-challenged, whereas in the Big Sky Country you can lay back and experience life, and isn't life for the living?

P.P.S. The Beartooth Highway, from Yellowstone to Red Lodge: http://bit.ly/1b6RxVv


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