Henry M. Paulson, Jr., is the chairman and chief executive officer of the Goldman Sachs Group, an international investment banking firm based in New York.  He joined the company twenty-five years ago, after serving as the Nixon White House liaison with the US Treasury and Commerce Department, with responsibility for tax policy.
In our informal conversation with him, Mr. Paulson began by sharing some “powerful moral lessons” he had learned during his time in Washington, D.C.
 

IT WAS PRETTY HEADY stuff for a twenty-six-year-old just starting out in his career,” he told us.  “I was impressed with the importance of the place and of my job.  I was also perhaps a bit too impressed by the trappings of power, which were highly valued there because they defined your rank, relative influence, and importance.

“A few months after I’d started work there, my professional world was turned upside down.  A number of my White House heroes were gone in disgrace.  No one ever asked me to do anything wrong, and I never saw others do anything that was less than honorable.  But in 1974, when I left to join Goldman Sachs, it was with little respect for authority or position in and of itself.  My respect was reserved only for those whose personal character and capabilities I admired.

“Sometimes organizations tend to fall into a dangerous ‘group think’ environment, where ethical lapses eventually become acceptable, even systemic.  If we ever find ourselves in that situation, we must be sure to locate our moral compass and head toward true north.  In my case, that means toward the core moral values that express the all-knowing, all-acting, all-wise, all-loving God, in whom I trust.

“Sound ethics and morals have got to be the underpinning—the basis—of everything we do. They are changeless core principles, central activity.  The means and the end.”

But in this era of cyberspace technology, are those core principles still sought after? we wondered.

“Ask the venture capitalists whose job it is to make a judgment on the value of start-ups, technology, and entrepreneurship,” suggested Mr. Paulson.  “They will tell you that more than ideas, technology, or capital, the name of the game is people—good teachers, good managers, and good leaders.  You need good people connected to good people.

“In business seminars or when talking with college students, I never hesitate to tell my audience that if they are not happy in their jobs—not learning, not growing, or not working with the right people—they needn’t be afraid to change.  But when they find people who bring out the best in them as professionals and as people—who challenge them, inspire them, and make them proud to be part of the team—stick with them.”

Call for balance

WE TALKED ABOUT the need for balance between our professional and private lives.

“I recall one night early in my career, coming home late after my wife had put our two young children to bed.  She informed me in very clear and strong terms that she expected more support from me at home.  I got the message, and thereafter, I almost always took the early train home, gave the kids their bath, read them a book, put them to bed, and then got on the phone to conduct my business.

“I have to admit that, on days when I had a lot to do, I could really zip through that ‘great green room’ with the red balloon in that delightful story Goodnight Moon.  Every now and then, my wife would come in and chide me for reading in my rapid monotone, and would urge me to read with expression.  Whenever I dutifully complied, the kids would protest, ‘No!  Read like a daddy, not like a mommy.’  Aren’t kids great!

“Our families, our religion, or our other personal pursuits must not be hobbies that we take up when and if time permits,” said Mr. Paulson firmly.  “They are an intrinsic and critical part of our lives and our happiness.

“I think that many of us tend to be so focused on our work that we lose our perspectives.  We’re simply running down a human track toward some human goal, putting one foot in front of the other.  And at the end of the day, we’re going to feel disappointed or cheated, because that’s all there is to it.

“The Bible puts it in a way that has always been very meaningful to me: ‘Then I looked on all the works that my hands had wrought, and on the labour that I had laboured to do: and, behold, all was vanity and vexation of spirit, and there was no profit under the sun’ [Eccl. 2:11].

“We all need that perspective.  It’s no different for anyone who plays in a symphony orchestra or a high-school band, or is an artist or an author, or whatever.  We need to continually ask ourselves what’s going on here.  What’s happening?  For me, that perspective comes when I know that I’m working to glorify God and to express His goodness, strength, love.

“I try to begin every day by affirming Jesus’ statement ‘I can of mine own self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my judgment is just; because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me’ [John 5:30].  And I couple that with the Apostle Paul’s grateful acknowledgment ‘I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me’ [Phil. 4:13].

“These are very powerful statements.  We could describe them as prayers of humility and gratitude.  And how comforting it is to recognize that obstacles, which to normal human striving are insurmountable, can be met and conquered through an understanding of the spiritual power that comes with the Christ, Truth.

“So often in business, people tend to personalize things—seek personal credit when they do something good; apportion blame when something doesn’t work.  There’s a persistent struggle with the ego and with the tendency to say ‘I got that right,’ or, ‘I did that well.’  I try to look to God and give Him credit in the way that the Psalmist did: ‘My soul shall make her boast in the Lord: the humble shall hear thereof, and be glad [Ps. 34:2].

“I love the idea of one divine Mind being in control, and being the source of all ideas.  I try to see my business colleagues as always open to new ideas, constantly receptive to good ideas.”

Firmly anchored

IN LOOKING AT THE PACE of change in business these days, Mr. Paulson points to the irony that “the only experience that seems to matter is less experience.  The people driving the change are the ones who are unburdened by the way things have always been done.  Tomorrow is today,” he remarks with a wry smile.  “It is a whirlwind.  And with our lives changing so rapidly—whether because of technological innovation, economic globalization, or political factors—it can get disorienting.

“As the whirlwind kicks up, as the institutional supports of big business account for less and less, we need to anchor on some of the simple truths I have mentioned.  They are important because they keep you honest, they keep you humble and open to change.  Believe me, if you lose any of these qualities, you will lose your self-respect and your reason for being.

“I am more convinced than ever that we need to bring love to our work, love to our home, and love to our community.  We must not let the press of activity or the pursuit of career overshadow or shrink our natural capacity to cherish those closest to us at home or at the office.  Those who give to others are the stronger for it.

“In this rapidly deinstitutionalizing world, we are well advised to surround ourselves with people we can count on, with people who love what they do, and with people we love and respect.  Nurture them.  Support them.  Learn from them.  Give them the best that we have.  And we will have met our greatest challenge—in and out of our career trajectory—to live an unselfish, full, and rewarding life.” 

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