321: Jim Cramer – The Greatest Wealth Creator of All Time

I wrote about Jim Cramer in 2011. Here’s what I said:

The first time I met Cramer was on the set of his show “Mad Money”. The show hadn’t officially launched yet but he wanted to try out the idea of having guests on the dress rehearsals. I was the first guest. I did so poorly he immediately dashed the idea (at least initially) of having guests on the set. I wrote for thestreet.com for years. I sold a company, Stockpickr, to them. I probably did dozens of videos with Jim after that and got to know him quite a bit.

I was standing by a TV with Jim once and the ticker was running by at the bottom of the CNBC screen. He started doing a lightning round on every stock going by, telling why each stock was up or down a nickel, a penny, a whatever. He knew every earnings report, every news item that was relevant that day. He doesn’t know every stock, but he does know everything he needs to know for THAT DAY.  This doesn’t mean you should know everything about stocks. But whatever field I’ve been in I’ve always tried to know everything about the competition, the technology, the subtleties and the nuances of the field. Jim has dominated financial media for 20 years by doing this. Whenever I’ve invested in a private company, the most important criteria I have is that the CEO has the same kind of database of knowledge in their industry that Jim has in financial media (note: I say “media” and not just “stocks”).

If I’m up at 11pm, Jim’s on IM. If I’m up at 3am, Jim’s on IM. He’s in the office at 6. He works until his show, then he networks at dinners, etc. he doesn’t waste a moment. You can’t ask him to lunch or coffee. He’ll ignore you. He only does what he needs to do to make his show better. He’s fully aware that he is competing with everyone else in media. So if he can fit in an extra 10 hours of work a day (which is my guess on how much more he works per day than the average human) then that’s an extra 3600 hours a year he’s working more than you or me. Because he works every weekend. I know this because of all the weekends I’d be getting emails from him asking questions about different stocks he was preparing for his shows that upcoming week.  Tim Ferriss is famous for working “The Four Hour Work Week” as exemplified by his blog and book. That’s one lifestyle and many people prefer that. Jim is the opposite. He wants to be better than everyone else in his business and to not relax for 100 hours a week while everyone passes him by. I think he would go crazy if he only worked a four hour week. Jim should write a book “The 120 Hour Work Week”.

Jim figured out early on what he wanted to show up for. I think this is both a blessing and a curse. He agreed. He’s been doing this for decades. 2 decades. 20+ years.  

“Can you believe it,” he said.

He gave up the money management business, so he could write everyday.

Just like me. And he loves it. He mentions so many things he likes about his job.

“I love stocks and this is the best way to love them, what I do now,” Jim said.

The public’s interest is his interest.

“My ethos has always been the same, which is that stocks are the greatest wealth creator of all time,” he said.

I wanted to know if he was happy after all these years.

Did he still love his job as much as when he started?

I wanted to know if he was addicted to staying relevant.

He told me his wife asks him this same question day after day.

Are you always going to want to work this hard?

Jim told me about his father who died this past November.

He was 92 years old and he literally worked till the day he died.

He sold boxes and bags to retailers and doggie bags to restaurants.  

He died in November and had a huge month in October.

“And that’s me,” Jim said as he laughed to himself.

His Dad was really happy when he died. And he was happy because he worked.

Jim has this same mentality.

He told me this, “As long as I enjoy it, I’m gonna keep doing it.”

His wife asked him, “What happens when you stop enjoying it?”.

“Then I’ll pivot,” he said.

I’m going to remember this when I start to feel like I’m not happy or enjoying the work I do.

You should too.

 

Links and Resources

• “Confessions of a Street Addict” by Jim Cramer
• Watch Mad Money on CNBC
• Visit TheStreet

 

Also Mentioned

• My podcast interview with Dr. Oz: The #1 Health Guru in America
• “Only the Paranoid Survive: How to Exploit the Crisis Points That Challenge Every Company” by Andrew S. Grove

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