Folks ask me what I mean by my “personal ROI” – where do I get my energy that fuels pursuit of my dreams and goals.
I start my day centered on my passions, as that’s my best shot for achieving meaningful ROI. At 6:30am I begin with gentle stretching, then launch into my stomach-crunch and pushups circuit. Thank you to the Infiniti Elite team for that!
I walk into the living room and greet Alexa, initiating my “Cynthia Morning” routine on my Amazon Echo. Alexa tells me my calendar for the day, followed by the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) morning briefing. My energy soars as Guns N’ Roses “November Rain” plays.
Gymnastics, finance, and Rock&Roll. I’m ready to start my day!
Tuesday morning I was struck by two stories in the WSJ brief, “Dow Falls but Holds on for Best Month in Over Three Decades” and “Coronavirus Stimulus Talks Restart as Centrists Unveil Plan.”
I’m proud and hopeful on the stimulus discussion, as I’ve been involved for ten years with the bipartisan group of lawmakers from No Labels, who are rolling out a $908 billion aid proposal, a compromise seeking middle ground between Democratic and Republican leaders. I firmly believe all goals are possible, simply a question of how or when.
As to record stock market levels, I appreciate that not all may share my glee. The global pandemic has upended many industries and lives. But I also know that with determination and creativity, opportunities present when the ground is shifting and the stakes are high. Focus on product and service you know well, and find the best people to grow that business, while also managing the P&L. That’s how you achieve the best possible ROI!
I’ve been managing P&Ls my whole career, across capital markets, technology, and music. I firmly believe in metrics-driven decision making. You need passionate and determined finance people with the ability to discern keen analytics to drive enduring revenue growth and sustainable cost management.
Managing the P&L can take many forms. Executives are under extraordinary pressure to manage the quarterly earnings report. While investment in product and service is essential to long term value and customer satisfaction, the executive team is faced with the dilemma of explaining the path to meaningful shareholder wealth, amid quarterly net P&L swings.
How do you plan to achieve your best ROI?
