"Yes, but will it work in theory?"

Retired Lockheed Martin Chairman and CEO (and former Under Secretary of the Army) Norman Augustine was honored in 1996 by The George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering and spoke to the Georgia Tech Community. His speech was titled, "Yes, but will it work in theory?" By that, he meant that engineers face tough, real-world challenges that are not terribly elegant nor lend themselves to theoretical solutions. In other words, it might work in practice, but if it does not work in theory how do you prove it out? Mr. Augustine elaborated, "These are the lessons that you don't get from parchment degrees. They are not lessons of great philosophical value. They are the lessons of scar tissue, the lessons of experience."

When you start working for a company, you find out how much you do not know. As Michael Franti sings in Say Hey, "It seems like everywhere I go, The more I see the less I know." That summarizes why many times in an interview you will hear that the company is looking for experience. But, how do you get experience if no one will hire you? How do you develop "the lessons of scar tissue?" That, indeed, is the classic dilemma!

Building your skill set is, normally, not a short-term task. You have to take the long view. Consequently, just getting your foot in the door can be one of the best ways to start your career. The job itself may not necessarily the most overriding aspect of being there. Whatever the job, it gives the employer an opportunity to evaluate how you approach your work life and your decision making capabilities. More importantly, with your foot in the door, you have an opportunity to make contacts that were probably beyond your purview before. Those contacts can potentially help you move your career forward either at that organization or another organization.

To gain experience, many times you have to think outside the box to get to your goal. For example, if you want to get into the investment field, but have no experience, you might try becoming a credit analyst at a bank to develop analytical skill sets. Some of the best Wall Street analysts I have known over the years did not graduate with a Finance degree. Instead, they came out of industry such as a pharmacist becoming the Institutional Investor (II) All-Star Drug Company Analyst and an oil company employee becoming the II All-Star Oil Analyst. Many of the Wall Street economists I knew had previously worked in number-crunching jobs for the Federal Reserve Bank. These analysts and economists utilized their background experiences to develop skill sets that allowed them to move their career to a different level.

The French author and philosopher Albert Camus wrote, "You cannot create experience, you undergo it." So, think outside the box then get out there and experience!

The Opportunity Ball

Last December, I was honored to be the Eastern Illinois University commencement speaker for fall graduation. Lumpkin School of Business & Applied Sciences Dean Diane Hoadley had asked me to relay some of my life/work experiences, which led to my success. As a tip of the hat to my career in the investment business, my talk was about how I learned to "Invest in Myself." With all the pressures that students face today as they prepare to join the work force full-time, I think one of the speech's points might be particularly useful to share.

"A few years ago, my friend Kirk Gibson and I were talking about how baseball and the investment business were similar. Kirk was the 1988 National League MVP and hit possibly the most dramatic home run in World Series history. Gibby said when you hit a home run, celebrate it, but don’t get carried away as, inevitably, you are going to strike out and when you strike out, you can’t get too depressed because another at-bat is coming. Such is the case with investing in stocks and, I daresay, the same is true with life. Celebrate the home run, feel bad about the strike out, but then let it go and move on. But remember, you have to take some swings if you want to get on base. So, if the right opportunity ball comes at you, be ready to take a rip at it even if you risk a strike out. But if you do strike out, learn from the experience."

You don't have to swing at every pitch that comes your way, however, in a tough economic time opportunity balls tend to come at a very, very slow pace. But, ask yourself, "How ready am I to swing at the opportunity ball when it gets thrown?"

If you don't have an answer or think you are inadequately prepared, seek out help from the EIU faculty or find a mentor to help you further develop your skill set. Put another way; improve your swing, and your ability to hit the opportunity ball. You might have to adapt to the changing realities of the world. In other words, the dream job might not be there. Yet, that does not preclude you being successful or finding work you find rewarding and meaningful.

Like beauty, though, success is in the eyes of the beholder. Quite frankly, while I had what most would say was a "successful" investment career, my definition of success is measured by my family and personal life. My work was fulfilling and I loved my vocation but, ultimately, it was a means to an end. As I wrote in the last economic/investment strategy piece I authored before retirement from the wealth advisory firm I co-founded, "I have worked for my wallet all my life, now it is time to work for my soul."

So start thinking about what success really means to you and from where the opportunity balls might come for fulfillment. Then, prepare to swing away!

New Blogger Intro

My name is Don Gher and Dr. Cheryl Noll, Chair of the EIU School of Business, asked if I would contribute to the EIU Business Blog. Being a proud alum (B.S. in Business, Marketing, Class of 1973), I immediately agreed to help. We will categorize the next few weeks as a "work in progress," in regards subject matter, to get started. Initially, some background on me is in order.

Until my June 2007 retirement, the majority of my career was in the investment business. I started at the Springfield (Illinois) Marine Bank and ended there as head of the investment department before moving to various other spots in the world. In my career, I have help manage two of the largest public fund portfolios in the country, was the Bank of America Health Care Analyst, portfolio manager for one of the top performing equity funds in the country and set up, as well as managed, a Wall Street firm's Tokyo office. In April 1996, I was co-founder of what was to become a billion dollar plus Wealth Advisory firm, Coldstream Capital Management in Bellevue, Washington. While at Coldstream, I was Chief Investment Officer and Managing Director, which led to frequent appearances on CNBC, Bloomberg TV, Bloomberg Radio, as well as being quoted in hundreds of newspapers and magazines around the world. My EIU Business degree in Marketing stretched a long way!

Despite being in the Seattle area, I have remained connected to EIU and "bleed blue" having served on the School of Business Advisory Board, the Alumni Association Board and, currently, on the Foundation Board as Treasurer and Investment Chair. In 2003, the EIU School of Business honored me as Distinguished Alumnus as did the Alumni Association in 2007. Last December, I was commencement speaker for EIU's fall graduation. When I return for board meetings, I have always tried to spend time speaking to various business classes, something I hope to do again in October. My wife of 35 years, Mary (Hartke), is a 1973 education grad who taught special education for several years. Since we met on campus, we feel a strong affection for EIU and, among other things, have a scholarship there for students from our hometowns.

While I will try to post useful blogs about the world of business, please feel free to submit questions on other subjects that I can, at least, attempt to answer.