Michael Wolfe, Greenville, SC, financial advisor with Edward Jones Investments is a community leader who has been built on extensive experience in growing and expanding various nonprofits.
Before he devoted himself to helping clients plan for an economically secure future, he served for nine years as an adjunct faculty member at Erskine College in nearby Due West. During this time, Michael Wolfe concurrently oversaw a program that matched at-risk children with volunteer families as an area supervisor for Clemson University’s Strong Communities initiative.
Previously, he also taught courses, led student-service projects, and spearheaded fundraising efforts at Spartanburg Methodist College. Wolfe received a doctor of philosophy in the history of religion from the University of Virginia and completed a one-year postgraduate program in business leadership and management through the Duke University’s Center for Creative Leadership.
Outside of the professional arena, he is a fourth-degree black belt in Aikido and a martial arts instructor for nonprofit groups. He is also an amateur painter who works in oil and watercolor.
What is your typical day, and how do you make it productive?
My day begins around 6 am almost every day. I begin the day with a 20-minute breathing meditation, followed by a brief time to read. This relaxing start to the day is very important to me and has been part of my life for many years. From there, I read the news to get in touch with the daily market. I get dressed and have a breakfast. I arrive at my office at 8 am. Getting right to my key tasks for the day is an important part of my daily productivity. I believe the most important and most productive part of my day is before lunch. The afternoon is wrapping up loose ends, returning calls, and preparing for the next day. Always plan tomorrow today.
How do you bring ideas to life?
Taking action is the key to success. All the plans, dreams, charts, and graphs only come to fruition when we take action. I seek to break down big ideas into bite-size, daily do-able actions. Daily activity is key. Also working closely with my fellow team members. Collaboration is important to success. No one can make it alone.
What’s one trend that excites you?
The growth of artificial intelligence is both exciting and frightening. There is great potential for AI to bring many positive outcomes for people, but I have no doubt that it can be abused and used for harm also. AI will enable us to develop medicines more quickly, solve problems more effectively, and deliver goods more efficiently.
What is one habit that helps you be productive?
My exercise schedule helps to keep my mind sharp and gives me the energy to keep going. Almost every day there is time for the gym, yoga, martial arts, and cycling.
What advice would you give your younger self?
Get started sooner with living life. Do not spend so much time preparing to live. Get to work in a focused way and work hard to reach your goals. Also work to develop more relationships. In my younger years, I often tried to go it alone. Working more closely with others would have been a benefit.
Tell us something you believe almost nobody agrees with you on?
While being very scientific minded, I also have a strong mystical streak. I very much believe and trust in modern science, and yet I also believe the universe is far more mysterious than we think. We will never fully grasp how the universe works any more than my cat can grasp higher math. But this gives me an optimism about the future. Humanity can continue to grow and develop because we are nowhere near figuring it all out. We have a long way to go, and we will reach those heights.
What is the one thing you repeatedly do and recommend everyone else do?
Start today with investing. Start in small ways but be consistent over time. This will pay off.
When you feel overwhelmed or unfocused, what do you do?
I go to the gym or, even better, attend a yoga class.
What is one strategy that has helped you grow your business or advance in your career?
Daily activity. I believe in a clear plan and then to execute that plan in small daily activities. I cannot control the outcome of what clients will decide to do, but I can control what I do each day. I can choose to do the correct daily activities, to be consistent, and follow through. This is the path to success. People often imagine that successful businesses have some magic moment when it all happens. In reality, success comes in daily small bites.
What is one failure in your career, how did you overcome it, and what lessons did you take away from it?
In my early years, I was so eager to bring on new clients that I brought on some less-than-ideal clients. These days, I am more selective in who I work with.
What is one piece of software that helps you be productive? How do you use it?
Salesforce provides me with a comprehensive toolchest for caring for my clients. I use this every day to schedule appointments, work within the market, and stay in contact.
Do you have a favorite book or podcast you’ve gotten a ton of value from and why?
I am a wide-ranging reader and have been for a lifetime. A friend recently asked me if I thought I read 10 books a year. My wife laughed and said, “He reads 10 books in a month.” She is not far off. The Bible has been a lifetime influence on my life and thought. I read some scripture passages almost daily. A variety of philosophical writers have influenced me deeply—Epictetus, Seneca, Marcus Aurelius, Aquinas, Camus. I read widely in modern thinkers of positive thinking. I like to keep up with a few science books each year to understand the latest ideas in biology, astronomy, and physics. And I enjoy a good fictional mystery novel while sitting on the beach. Reading expands my horizons, enabling me to grasp ideas far beyond my own lifetime.
What’s a movie or series you recently enjoyed and why?
I love movies. I relax almost every weekend with a Saturday night movie, usually streaming at home. But I love to go to the theater for the big screen experience. I very recently watched Enclave. I found it thought-provoking and certainly did not see the ending coming. I enjoy historical and period pieces. The short series All the Light We Cannot See was fantastic as a World War II movie. I had read the book, and this was a faithful adaptation.
Key learnings
- Success comes one step at a time.
- Live each day doing the activities that will lead to the success you want.
- Open yourself to all that you can learn.
- Meet new people every day and be open to what can happen.