When I transitioned from the trading floor to the “real world”, I had some problems adjusting. One big problem that hopefully will be echoed by other traders in the comments section is that the real world isn’t trustworthy.
On the floor, your word was your bond and if you didn’t perform on what you said, there was no excuse. This was a critical part of trading in a pit face-to-face with someone every day for years and years. People that didn’t stand up behind their trades were run out off the floor on a rail.
On the floor, things happen fast. You know at the end of the day where you stand. In the real world, it can take days, weeks, and years.
Another big problem I had was that I was blunt. I didn’t sugarcoat or use corporate or legal speak to address issues. If I had a problem with someone I said so. On the trading floor, time is money. Seconds matter. There is no time for nuance or worrying about someone’s feelings. Shit has to get done now.
I think the world wants plain spoken honest politicians right now. It’s one reason Joe Lombardo won the governor’s race in Nevada this year and why Ron DeSantis and Glenn Youngkin have done so well in their states.
Like everyone else, I have been reading plenty of commentary about Sam Bankman Fried (SBF) and FTX over the past few days. It’s shocking because it is human to want to trust another person. You hate to walk around and be cynical all the time. At least for me, that’s not the way I want to go through life.
Besides, I had seen enough in the venture capital world where businesses really took off like rocket ships. It’s not like it cannot happen. As a matter of fact, when you think about it if you believe in the American Dream, it has to happen sometimes.
It is not the case that a new exchange can’t be created, compete, and topple existing entrenched exchanges. It can happen. I would agree that the regulatory thicket that has to be navigated can be mind-numbing and some of it is in fact useless. Like any regulatory thicket, some regulations were written to protect existing businesses not because they make anything “saf
