The immigrant mentality

Sophia and I went to watch the Lehman Brothers play on Saturday. I’m not a Broadway junkie, but I do love a good show every now and then. I was worried that Sophia who has next to no interest in finance or business history would be asleep by the halfway point of the 3 hour show. Thankfully she ended up enjoying it.

I love stories about how our immigrant ancestors came to America with literally next to nothing. Henry, Emanuel, and Mayer Lehamn came to America in their 20s in the 1840s from Germany speaking little to no English and not much money. After weeks at sea, they would land in a foreign land with nowhere to turn but themselves.

It’s incredibly inspiring to think how a small goods store in Montgomery, Alabama would eventually turn into one of the largest banks in the world over 150 years later. In the first 20 years of operations, the original Lehman brothers would deal with a devastating fire in Montgomery and then the Civil War.

One of these setbacks may have been enough to devastate any business, yet they kept going and rebuilding. That’s the beauty behind the immigrant mentality - you’re forced to keep moving forward as there is no one else to bail you out. It was inspiring to hear their story.

My Father came to this country when he was 19 to go to college. Like the Lehmans he would eventually started his own business. He worked 6 days a week like clockwork and still runs it today from home.

Immigrants are the backbone of America. They come here with little to no money in hopes of chasing the American dream. While I am fortunate to have grown up in this country, I hope to make sure to never lose that immigrant mentality and I hope to build Secfi with that menality.