quorum, Memoirs of a Minyan﹕The relationship business

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minyan
IN BRIEF: n. - The quorum required by Jewish law to be present for public worship (at least ten males over thirteen years of age).
Tutor's tip: Note: A "minion" is (a servant or subordinate) and a "minyan" is (a group of ten males, 13 years or older, required for conducting Jewish public worship).

1. A quorum is the minimum number of members of a deliberative assembly (a body that uses parliamentary procedure, such as a legislature) necessary to conduct the business of that group.

2009/07/16 09:00:43 Memoirs of a Minyan﹕The relationship business
The relationship business

My senior year was supposed to be the best time of my life, the final episode of innocence before embarking on a career. I had the college experience perfected and looked forward to my Syracuse finale.

The stage was set -- I tended bar at my favorite spot, belonged to an awesome fraternity and my GPA was on cruise control. I had one eye on the future but my other body parts were firmly committed to squeezing every ounce of life from my remaining time in upstate New York.

The weekend after I arrived home from London, I was lounging at my girlfriend's home in New Jersey, wasting away a summer day. Bored, I randomly decided to call my aunt who lived nearby.

Karen was my mother's college roommate and my father's cousin. She introduced the two of them, which would explain why she always took an active interest in my well-being. As we caught up, she told me of a friend of hers who worked at Morgan Stanley.

'You should give him a ring,' she said. 'He's a great guy and a close friend.'

I called Chuck Feldman, who I later realized was a legend on Wall Street. He pioneered the equity derivative business and ran the show at Morgan Stanley. He was the quintessential old-school trader who worked his way to the top and ruled the roost.

His high-pitched voice was extremely soft-spoken on the phone. That's the first thing I remembered about Chuck, how soft-spoken his voice was. It would be the last time I ever had that thought.

He lived in a neighboring town and invited me over. We met for a half hour and had a pleasant enough conversation. He wasn't a large man but his presence cast a long shadow.

There was no way to know that those 30 minutes would forever change my professional path. That half-hour handed me the keys to the cash register.