The best place to store your energy and time is in Art.
Better said, if you would like to increase your opportunity to build wealth, the best way to use your energy and time is by creating Art.
Art is the act of creating something new that connects or brings value to another human. Let me explain why art is the ultimate ingredient required to build wealth. Wealth is accumulated by those who "create" value for the world. The word "create" automatically triggers the concept of Art.
This does not neccesarily mean go paint, or record music. It means use your life experiences, intellect, intention, focus, and creativty to create something of value that the world will appreicate. This can happen with a typical 9-5 or as an entrepreneur.
For example, when I worked at Citizens Bank in 2019, I had the opportunity to work on a special project tasked with selling the Commercial Real Estate organization to a class of new hires. Citizens Bank, like many other banks, offer a "Commercial Banking Development Program," designed to train and develop a group of college graduates into junior bankers. I entered the program in 2016 and graduated in 2017. Each of the unique banking organizations had the responsibility of selling their practice to the banking class, so that the new hires could decide which specific group they would like to begin their career with. The groups included Commercial Real Estate, Oil and Gas, Technology, Middle Market, or Leveraged Finance, to name a few. I ultimately chose Commercial Real Estate, for my own reasons, but, I remember how the group was sold to me.
We received a printed out PowerPoint and went through the deck slide by slide. It was boring and uninspiring. Three years after that, one of my mentors who was in charge of the Commercial Real Estate organization, tasked me with reinventing the recruitment effort.
So, I created a workshop that broke down commercial real estate step by step. I broke the class of about 20 new hires up into five groups, and we dissected an actual real estate deal. We used white boards, computers, PowerPoint and unique handouts in an effort to make the workshop more interactive. I devoted time and intention to being creative and it led to a spike in applications for the Commercial Real Estate organization. We received overwhelming feedback that the workshop was the highlight of the program for many people.
This is Art.
Even though I was employed, I was creative and sought ways to create value.
I tell this story to communicate that creating Art stretches well beyond the mediums we immediately think of.
I was rewarded for this work through a nice bonus and the opportunity to be promoted quickly. It also gave me something to talk about during my subsequent interviewing journey for different positions.
Today, I spend a good amount of my time creating Art. Art scales like no other. I spent more than five years writing, and crafting my book "The Art of Finance," and the amount of opportunity it presents is endless. The book has inspired people, led to me creating more art, laid the foundation for creating a business, and provided the opportunity to connect with people.
People like interesting things that they have not seen before.
We have to use our intuition, experience, resources, knowledge, and insight to create value for the world.
- MALC PE$O