The Other Side of Wall Street: In Business It Pays to Be an Animal, In Life It Pays to Be Yourself

16. The Abyss

I felt…free. The stress of a multimillion dollar hedge fund manager—the outsized risk, the sleepless nights, the battling over positions, the gains and losses, my self-worth defined by a bottom line each and every night—wasn’t something I was going to miss.

I was only 34 years old, but I had aged well beyond my years. I remember thinking that I had made a “lifestyle decision,” that the new routine of managing a smaller fund, building Minyanville, and running the foundation would facilitate an easier and more relaxing existence.

As the capital management paperwork went through the proper channels, I traded my personal account to keep my skills sharp, and with the help of a single assistant, squirreled away sizable gains. It was unfamiliar ...