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Mike Costache, investment banker

Generation-Xer's have long received flack for laziness and lack of identity. But people like Mike Costache, who at 22 became an investment banker with The Interlink Company, Los Angeles, have changed that perception. How did you begin your career? In my opinion, a job is normally considered a 9-to-5 position in someone elses firm. As I went through college, I realized that this type of a career situation didnt seem to offer enough incentives to put forth all my efforts and eventually become financially free. I guess I would call what I do a lifestyle rather that a job or a position. When did you know this was your dream job? As a kid, I was always interested in inventions that made peoples lives easier and more pleasant. Questions such as, How did the light bulb get invented? or How does a plane fly? simply fascinated me. So, as an adult, I looked for a profession where I could help innovators bring their ideas to reality.

While attending a week-long advanced training and motivational seminar put together by Eric Lochtefeld, founder of Business Camp, Inc., I was introduced to what I consider to be the greatest quote regarding work: "Find a job you love doing and youll never have to work a day in your life." I found that comfort at The Interlink Company. I realized the setup I had with the firm allowed me to pick the kinds As a college student, I was very motivated to find out which of countries I worked in and the kinds of ventures we professions wouldnt allow me to have would invest in. I wasnt required to INVESTMENT BANKER the balanced lifestyle I envisioned for think in a box and all my suggestions myself. I was able to accomplish this by were taken seriously by the firm. interning and volunteering my time Salary: Unlimited, depending on your with over 50 large and small firms as contract with the firm. With large What do you enjoy most about well as local entrepreneurs who firms, you can expect to make $70K+ this job? exposed me to the good and the bad of first year out of college. With a master, $100k+. It all depends on deals First, its the people. The people in the their individual professions. closed and experience. firm have taught me a great deal about I was introduced to the field of venture working as a team, and the types of capitalism when I started raising Education: At least an undergraduate clients we advise share with me their money for my own venture with a degree. A master's degree is also very most interesting ideas. I enjoy listening partner. Soon enough, I realized it was helpful or required at some firms. to their ideas and helping to bring them much easier and much more pleasant to reality. Secondly, the mentorship I to be on the other side of the table, the Getting started: Contact your col- was offered by Shezad is priceless. He "money side." So I started identifying lege alumni and attend investment has put me years ahead of my peers local investment firms where I would conferences. working for large investment banking be able to intern and learn more about firms. He is such a kind person. He sugplacing capital with entrepreneurs. gested that we read the Wall Street Journal together in the library every day so he can teach me what to look for, and In my third year at Pepperdine University, Andrea Neirs, a then how to develop relationships with the firms and peofriend of mine, had a position at The Interlink Company ple we read about. a Los Angeles-based private investment and merchant banking firm. She offered to arrange a 30-minute informa- What is an average day like? tional interview with Mr. Shezad Rokerya, the chairman of the firm. An hour and 45 minutes into the interview, I very When I am asked about what I do, I normally tell friends boldly suggested that I become his personal assistant, and family that I receive information from many sources attend every meeting with him and be a part of every deci- (people, TV, newspapers, emails, faxes, etc.), put that inforsion at the firm. Due to the high level of confidentiality in mation into a different form and send it to certain people this field, and, among other things, my lack of experience, I who will use this information for productive purposes. In wasnt offered the position. I would hear nothing from the investment banking, every day is different. On one day, I firm for almost half a year. I kept in touch with Andrea and may be at a conference or reading documents all day, or in when she needed to make some contacts at Eastern meetings with the management team of a firm in need of European banks, I volunteered to help. By the beginning of financial advice. For example, when I needed to call my fourth year at Pepperdine, I had an offer to intern at the Germany and India to take care of immediate details for firm. Within three months, I became a research analyst. two of our clients, I stayed all night at the office. I simply love not having boundaries. The next morning, I went out Three months later, I became an associate of the firm. for 10 minutes to get breakfast and came back to the office

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to take conference calls, send faxes and read more documents. I consider what I do as having fun, so it never really feels like Im working. What is your educational/professional background? I have a bachelor of science in economics from Pepperdine University, where I received an extraordinary education and developed great friendships. Before I interned with The Interlink Company, I was very fortunate to have an internship with JPM Financial, a Mission Viejo, Calif.-based investment firm. For six straight weeks, Jim P. Meehan, founder of the firm, made it possible for me to sit in high-level meetings and learn from deals amounting to $300 million. I started enjoying sitting on the money side of the table and this opportunity furthered my interest to have my own fund to invest. Now, one year later, I have a small fund of $20 million to invest in new technologies and Internet-related ventures. Prior to interning with JPM Financial, a few friends and I started a marketing firm, called Pioneer Marketing Associates. We never made any real money with this firm, but representing large clients, such as Sprint, L.A. Cellular, American Collegiate Marketing and Get Travel, provided me the necessary communication skills for any position in the business world. What has been the biggest sacrifice you have made for this job? To simplify things, you can break a 24-hour period into three major categories: vocation, avocation and vacation. Your vocation is your work (making money), your avocation is your hobby (what you like doing for fun and relaxation) and your vacation is when you sleep (get re-energized for another great day). I was fortunate to find a way to combine my vocation with my avocation; my avocation is reading biographies of successful people and applying that knowledge to my profession. Economically speaking, every decision we make has an opportunity cost associated with it. So, of course, every time I am with a client or I am reading a business plan, I could be home in Malibu sitting on the beach and enjoying the waves. For me, the greatest pleasure in life is gaining wisdom. Being at the office or at an investment conference or spending time with a client introduces me to new things, and new wisdoms. So, I really never feel that Im making any sacrifices to be in the position Im in right now. Who or what has been your biggest influence in entering this field? While attending Pepperdine University, I was very fortunate to make great friends from all over the world and meet many successful people who became my mentors and advisors. Among them, Im grateful to, in no particular order, Shezad Rokerya, Wayne Allyn Root, J.R. Getches, Ira

P. Thor, Jim P. Meehan, Eric Lochtefeld, Danni Sun, Nick Washburn, and others too numerous to name. These are great business leaders who showed faith in me, and provided me the necessary tools and advice to enter and succeed in the field of investment banking. What advice would you give someone who wanted to enter this field? The best method of finding out if investment banking and/or venture capitalism is for you is to speak with industry leaders. Attending investment conferences is a great way to meet industry leaders and find out first-hand how they got in, how they like it, what deals they work on, etc. Of course it takes some effort and money to simply show up at some of these events and pick peoples brains. There are numerous organizations that hold monthly lunches, dinners and seminars; doing an Internet search will lead you to some of these events. After a few months of attending some of these meetings, you will find out who the hot shots are, and although they may seem tough, just remember that we are all people and we all had to hurdle walls to be where we are. Of course, some people are more approachable then others, and you need to be a "thriver" (this is a term coined by Wayne Allyn Root, in his book, The Joy of Failure) to succeed in todays business atmosphere. Going the traditional way of getting the best grades and interviewing right and left is also another way of getting in. I personally think that its much easier to identify industry leaders, invite yourself for a quick informational interview and leave a great impression as to why you should be given a chance. What advice would you give someone who was trying to attain his or her dream job? Make a list of all the professions you would enjoy pursuing. Identify industry leaders in each profession and develop relationships with them. Explore the good and the bad and eliminate the undesired professions until you are left with one or two. Once you are set on an industry or profession, make a plan. Figure out two things: What is it that you wish to get out of this profession (money, power, stability, etc.) and how bad you wish to have this dream job. Napoleon Hill wrote an extraordinary book regarding this subject, called Think and Grow Rich. He wrote about developing the ability to think very hard for 10 minutes a day about how bad you wish to accomplish a dream. If you can block everything out of your mind for 10 minutes a day and simply think about your goal, you will grow closer and closer to it. Every successful person I know has read this book and I am highly confident that this book will help you reach your goals as well.

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Mike Costache, investment banker

DISCUSSION: What is venture capitalism? How would you describe Costaches approach to finding a profession that suited him? To what degree is Costaches success due to his attitude? How important is it to you that an employer encourages the free exchange of ideas? What does Costache mean when he says, Economically speaking, every decision we make has an opportunity cost associated with it? ACTIVITY: Mike Costache mentions the quote, Find a job you love doing and youll never have to work a day in your life. While almost everyone harbors a secret career dream, most people work for a living. Is it luck or determination that separates those who love what they do from those who dont? Interview several adults about their careers or jobs. Find out how they entered their respective fields. Ask your interviewees what they like and dislike about their work and what, if anything, they would do differently. (Use the space below to develop 10 possible interview questions.) After completing your interviews, write an essay that offers insights into why some people find their dream jobs and others dont.

_________________________________________________________________________________________ 1. _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ 2. _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ 3. _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ 4. _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ 5. _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ 6. Find five ____________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________ and/or ads in 7. ____________________________________________________________________ CONNECTION t o d a y s ____________________________________________________________________ esting and relatively new 8. ____________________________________________________________________ businesses. Then, in small ____________________________________________________________________ 9. ____________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________ 10. ____________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________
paper that describe interar t icle s

groups, role-play members of a venture capital company and come to a consensus about which business seems like the best investment for you and your clients. Write a statement explaining your choice.