Letter from the Editor

Life and Times of JWN

A Norman Style Vacation So, I went on "vacation" last week down to Greenwich, Connecticut and New York City. I would like to explain to you what happens when I go on vacation - a page out of the Joseph Norman book, if you will. Last week I may have alluded to not having a plan when I went down to the city, but that was not entirely true. Ideas flow like H2O in my head and they formulate into plans pretty quick. I went down with a list of friends that I wanted to see, for business and pleasure. In fact, thanks to being enlightened by Keith Ferrazzi's book, Never Eat Alone, I think of the two things as one now. Why not bring friends to business engagements? NOTABLE: When you bring a friend to a business engagement, you add another level of comfort and flavor to the outing. Both your clients or business partners and your friend (or friends) will have fun. In my case, I happened to bring along my friend Joe, a Fordham Law student, and my friend Jade, a corporate paralegal, to food and drinks with some friends of mine who work in various capacities at Credit Suisse. They all connected and we had a great time. Why separate your working life and your personal life? When you let yourself get a little vulnerable by opening up all facets of your life to people, you often relate easier and create stronger bonds. Back to the vacation, I operate on over-drive. I pop the vehicle of life into fifth gear and "zoom, zoom, zoom." Saturday I visited a few friends (Trevor and Gina) in Massapequa, for a send off to San Francisco where they are moving to "make it happen" for themselves. Sunday brought me back to Greenwich to visit Chris for a half an hour before we caught a train into the city to bounce around and catch up after an eight month hiatus of not seeing each other. We covered ground from Central Park to the Financial District and topics ranging from family, work, and philosophies on life - all in about eight hours. Monday morning brought on a flurry of writing while coordinating an evening of events and an air mattress to sleep on (at Joe and Jade's apartment). Upon arrival, I preceded to dinner with a good friend, Chad, a green architect and contractor. In the evening I made a series of phone calls to set up the following days engagements. My first run in Central Park came on Tuesday morning in the pouring rain, an endeavor I absolutely love (running in the rain). I then ventured into the city to see Chad's current project, a beautiful penthouse at One Fifth Avenue. After lunch and some good wandering, I made it back to Joe's to clean up for dinner and drinks. Wednesday was spent in the Financial District wandering, reading in random places, and visiting friends. Caught a train late in the afternoon to Chris' in Greenwich and then preceded to drive home to my mother's home in Kirkwood, New York (an 11 PM arrival). Thursday sent me back Geneseo after breakfast with my mother and then some diner time with my father. I then had meetings the rest of the day in Rochester, capping the evening off with a Rochester Red Wing's game with Chris McVicker (click here for his VIP Profile) and friends. NOTABLE: Some vacation to relax. I vacation to engage with friends in places I don't get to visit that often. Never forget this fact: Life is about the people in it! "I've gotta ride on overdrive." You may operate a little different, but it's always fun to get a new perspective. PHOTO NOTABLE: Me standing in front of Goldman Sachs world headquarters at 85 Broad Street in New York City. Goldman is a potential future employer of yours truly. Let me know if you want to help me get a job there! Warmly, ~ JWN