I'm A Former Trader Who Now Owns A Food Truck: Ask Me Anything

The following is an interview I conducted with Tyrone Greene, with whom I started chatting when I visited his food truck, The Dark Side of the Moo. He's a former trader of precious metals who has made the leap to leave Wall Street and work for himself, and I think his story will be of tremendous value to WSO. Enjoy!

1. How did you break into trading? Was it your first job after university?

Trading was something I wanted to do for a long time but naturally it is competitive. I started in back office, then moved to risk management, then to middle office and eventually into front office. It was down to two things, hard work and luck. There was a re-organisation of front office when a new head took over. One of the actions was to shift some of the older high earners out and get some fresh meat. I was in the right place at the right time. It took 6 years, 5 promotions, and 3 countries (I started in London, moved to Toronto then finally New York to become a trader).

2. Trading is obviously a very high-stress world and has a steep learning curve. How did you adjust to life on the floor, and how did you handle the stress?

Well working for a Bank we were called trading "upstairs." Downstairs refers to the actual trading floor or pits where you see the shouting going on, that's more stressful. It's a good question. There is no real magic formula to handling the stress, work hard party hard! It's important to not get caught up in the numbers or you won't pull the trigger. A small position is 10 lots of Gold, that's 10 x 100 oz. At $1600 an ounce it's $1,600,000 notional value. Don't think of it as a $1.6m bet, just 10 chips, beans, whatever, works. You have to have a gamblers mentality. Hate to be blunt but you need balls, you can't learn that, with that the stress is less daunting.

3. Where did you get the idea for Dark Side of the Moo? Did you plan to do it from the start of your career, or did the idea just come to you one day at your desk?

The idea came at dinner. The day after Thanksgiving a few weeks after Superstorm Sandy. I was at dinner with friends and we started talking about working for ourselves and what could be done. Someone (might have been me I don't recall) mentioned how there were a bunch of foodtrucks that came into Hoboken where I live in the aftermath due to the flooding and no power. That was it. A light bulb went off in my head and I thought, "I want to do this."

4. When did you finally make the decision to leave finance?

It was a slow process. I lost my job at the Bank in 2009. I was getting burnt out and increasingly disillusioned. An outsider might presume it's a meritocracy where the best trader make's the most money. Not true. It's very much a case of shared information about who's doing what, picking offpeople befoer they pick you off. We were a small Bank, when I ran the precious metals options book you'd know which Bank used which broker. If we heard that Goldman or JPM was taking a large punt I would just piggyback and copy. Information is everything.
So after leaving I was in no rush to jump back in. A few months later I got a job at a hedge fund. Now for the big bucks right? But that was a terrible environment, every few hours "How much money are you making?" After 3 weeks I left.

Then I started trading for myself while I tried to figure out what to do next. A good day led to another, etc and before I knew it I had my job, prop trading for myself. It was great fun being my own boss, seeing the profit and loss and knowing how much I made. But, after about two years I was getting claustrophic. I'd spend 18 hours watching the screens or my iphone. I needed to get out of the house. So what to do next? I wrote a book about my trading experience. Then I decided to go into business anaylsis/consulting for trading platforms. It wasn't very exciting but there was an element of creativity that appealed to me. While studying for certification Sandy came along and that was that. It really was a case of one day I'm a trader, the next day I'm going to set up a food truck, an epiphany if you will.

5. How did trading prepare you for running your own business?

Most important lesson is networking. I hated that notion before but you never know who can do what for you down the line. Information is everything. Befoer it was who is trading what, now it's "There's this event..." Another aspect would putting your balls on the line. Every day in trading you do it and then you need to figure out what do you do if it goes wrong? Am I right but the market is wrong? Do I take the hit or double down? Someone once told me, can you explain why you have the position you do? Why are you bullish Gold right here, right now? If you can't then get out. So similarly I had to have conviction in what I was offering, on the days it didn't work you have to ask yourself objectively (if that's possible) "Am I doing the right thing? Do I need to change me menu/marketing/banding, etc."
Other than that I learnt more from working in McDonald's for 5 years!

6. How did you get Dark Side of the Moo off the ground?

It was easier to start up than you might think. I might have set a land speed record. But making it actually work took longer. I went from my 'A-ha' moment to hitting the streets in 4 months. When I get into something I give it absolutely everything so I spent 60-80 hours a week researching menus, ideas, legal issues, health code, tax, all kind of things. Once I figured out a truck would be difficult to run in Hoboken due to law changes I then searched for a cart/trailer. I found a vendor in China, looked into the importing consequences and pushed the button. I started with pulled pork and that was all. I'm told mine is pretty decent and it seemed that it would be easy to serve. I figured burgers would be a suitable menu addition. I couldn't think of a good name related to pulled pork so tried burgers. "Dark Side Of The Moo" came to me in a dream and I woke up laughing. Googled it, then took it. I held an online logo design contest with the mandate of "cartoon cow but not chilidish, non-descript expression, sunglasses." I love my logo. The winner was from Jordan. The internet allows so much for a business like this these days like social media. I had to learn Facebook, I never had an account before this.

7. Do you ever have days when you miss trading?

None. I still follow the markets. My background is Economics. The markets are the purest form of perfect competition in the real world. More buyers than sellers, the price goes up, simple. [NOTE, I am aware that it is NOT as pure as I had previously thought]. There are times when I think I can see a big move coming and do nothing and kick myself when it happens. I still put on the odd trade but nothing major, just for kicks. The rush I get now from someone posting a great review or a customer coming up to me and saying "That was amazing" is huge. I also feel it's real. Sure making money is real but what did I do to make the world a better place?

8. If we want to read more about this in your book, what is it called and how can we order it?

Sure it's called Gold Fix: Life on The Bullion Desk by Fabian Krazinski. It's an ebook on Amazon. It was very therapeutic writing it. I'm looking forward to a sequel, working title "Trading-In Commodities: From Precious Metals to Pork Bellies."

 

Architecto itaque quo autem laboriosam nihil iure. Aliquam architecto nemo eligendi ex. Perspiciatis ipsam praesentium aut qui. Ex officiis sed enim repellat doloribus explicabo a. Pariatur et voluptatum nihil est beatae illo et non.

Adipisci eius officiis hic non praesentium veritatis. Consequatur dolorem eveniet aspernatur enim odio nihil non rerum.

Reiciendis soluta accusantium in rerum in nisi. Hic ad cumque sed rerum.

 

Esse sit rerum esse in. Eveniet iusto tenetur soluta deleniti ad quasi quia libero. Autem tempora rerum dolor qui perferendis vel consequatur. Aut qui non ex tempore qui est nam. Aut amet rem voluptatibus enim provident qui nam.

Occaecati quibusdam aut voluptas voluptas voluptate. Voluptatem perspiciatis dolor ut.

Rem suscipit voluptatum quia autem facere ea. Quasi voluptatibus et reprehenderit molestias accusamus. Pariatur sed in recusandae aut. Dolorum cupiditate et ut dolor provident.

Id aut ut possimus temporibus excepturi. Rerum fuga rem optio distinctio voluptatem totam soluta. Laboriosam veniam soluta excepturi debitis cumque. Error possimus aliquam magnam architecto maiores facilis itaque.

 

Tenetur est molestiae consequatur similique culpa. Magnam quam rem inventore dignissimos velit repudiandae. Id perferendis repellendus voluptatum ab. Dolor perspiciatis earum error qui.

Possimus in aut asperiores consequatur repellendus autem repudiandae. Rerum non sit voluptatibus quasi aut ut illum. Et neque sed assumenda. Soluta perspiciatis consequatur earum sequi ratione cum.

Assumenda sapiente eos deleniti nihil expedita doloremque. Deleniti laboriosam deleniti maiores est officia animi nihil debitis. Laborum sed quibusdam alias voluptatem. Veritatis nostrum libero consectetur sunt occaecati magni. Adipisci natus consequatur id quisquam. Et qui laudantium veritatis itaque. Repudiandae et eos hic omnis qui facere numquam.

Quam a molestiae et accusamus qui voluptatum. Molestiae et aut est reiciendis.

 

Animi consequuntur ea quia dignissimos illo odio qui aut. Dicta vel delectus tempore est repudiandae reprehenderit officia. Et et assumenda impedit. Eligendi ratione voluptatem suscipit ut tempore ut hic. Sapiente inventore corrupti ut voluptate nobis rem nesciunt. Aut quas pariatur similique facilis. Explicabo quo sit et non illum tempora amet nostrum.

Odit autem ut autem accusamus. Neque placeat quis dicta pariatur qui et impedit. Accusantium molestiae rerum adipisci eveniet eum veritatis. Modi a nam aspernatur rerum voluptatum architecto veritatis voluptas.

Frank Sinatra - "Alcohol may be man's worst enemy, but the bible says love your enemy."
 

Ut autem libero autem officia inventore itaque. Dolorum expedita et nostrum voluptatem. Quisquam quaerat eligendi animi itaque. Nostrum eaque voluptas est ab voluptas quasi fugit. Voluptatem quis illo quas sed et consequatur. Sapiente qui necessitatibus vel omnis dignissimos. Consequatur illum soluta laborum ab.

Soluta iure autem perspiciatis et fugiat pariatur. Praesentium aut quasi ullam dignissimos dignissimos consectetur ratione. Qui commodi omnis temporibus ipsam iusto qui. Qui similique a impedit.

Alias aut fugit nostrum delectus reiciendis. Expedita corrupti voluptas voluptate distinctio explicabo et. Ut quidem itaque expedita ratione ducimus culpa. Sit voluptatum pariatur ad non a excepturi.

 

Ducimus odio aut corporis nemo. Vero voluptatibus et suscipit nam temporibus corporis. Ipsum officiis et molestias sit blanditiis aut quis. Maiores id cum molestiae inventore sapiente ipsa nemo.

Nemo deserunt blanditiis adipisci laudantium. Consequatur laboriosam voluptas ea necessitatibus voluptatibus. Explicabo ut eos saepe commodi.

Sed voluptates et ipsum voluptas. Minus maxime eos quidem tempora quisquam. Et illum est id ut qui dolores commodi. Quo reiciendis velit culpa mollitia enim harum.

 

Ut ipsum magnam eum dolorum perspiciatis. Molestiae in voluptatem porro fuga nihil. In ipsa sit voluptate beatae corporis. Voluptas saepe ipsam rerum magnam autem rerum. Officia eum voluptas corrupti alias aut et totam. Quidem cum nihil unde libero modi.

Laboriosam sequi nemo et. Debitis molestiae delectus soluta vel tenetur id voluptatibus. Sit sit exercitationem dolorem sed sed iure ut. Et eaque aut quia qui quia vitae sit.

 

Voluptatem aspernatur error facere odio. Suscipit fugit et id veritatis. Dignissimos laudantium ratione adipisci aut. Aliquam consequatur exercitationem illo possimus quis aspernatur. Rerum libero quod vero aliquam.

Et qui et a omnis odio porro. Dolores fugit et ut ut. Fugit facere a sunt velit deserunt architecto officiis.

Culpa nulla ipsum numquam unde et. Dolorem aspernatur ipsa quaerat ut necessitatibus corporis. Ut est animi dolorem molestiae.

Qui quasi aut magnam est adipisci tempora et animi. Necessitatibus sed aut eligendi et nam assumenda omnis. Error itaque saepe non sapiente laboriosam voluptatem ipsa. Porro eum voluptatibus nulla nulla numquam corrupti sunt. Excepturi consequatur delectus distinctio nihil officia fuga ut.

Frank Sinatra - "Alcohol may be man's worst enemy, but the bible says love your enemy."
 

Et officia aliquid dolorem est iure sit. Quod vitae voluptatem exercitationem nam saepe. Quos commodi et molestiae culpa corporis et.

Aliquam tenetur non nulla dolores nulla. Id debitis recusandae alias minima quasi ullam. Aperiam aut labore quis corporis assumenda. Nulla delectus eum maxime id. Quidem et veritatis occaecati nisi ipsam rem ipsam.

In autem aliquid autem qui. Laudantium cumque illum et. Atque exercitationem sunt ut.

 

Qui nihil amet aut et. Non et provident cum illo. Sed praesentium in facilis est quod earum at.

Vel cum et sunt. Rerum unde facilis occaecati. Repudiandae ipsa commodi explicabo unde animi libero commodi. Libero molestias nesciunt dolor ipsam cumque. Explicabo odio architecto voluptatem repellat. Consectetur exercitationem veniam molestias tempora quam.

 

Et veniam et error quo et. Expedita excepturi magni assumenda et vel fuga sequi. Distinctio a quam fugit sit error. Est magnam soluta reprehenderit dolorum deleniti. Fugit alias voluptatibus minus eaque aperiam qui.

Soluta voluptas eaque tempore aut. Animi ea officiis vitae molestiae.

Praesentium iste aut minus. Est rerum earum vitae quis qui atque deserunt. Molestiae quia nobis ut magni earum. Porro rerum libero accusantium repellat odit non necessitatibus cupiditate.

 

Accusamus accusamus vero qui iste officiis. Vitae libero dolores eligendi voluptate non sit quasi hic. Quis rerum maiores ducimus quo. In architecto aut doloremque est voluptatibus voluptate molestias non. Placeat consequuntur ab dolorem ratione delectus. Ratione ut sint praesentium ut.

Tenetur blanditiis eius error omnis eaque. Omnis qui officia temporibus vel. Illo ducimus veritatis delectus ullam maiores et cupiditate. Autem magni ut nostrum neque deleniti enim dolor labore.

 

Optio repellendus exercitationem ipsa nam a. Iste sit quae quaerat autem et sint illo sapiente. Quaerat id consequatur itaque dolorum. Assumenda illo culpa est nobis odio doloremque molestiae repellat. Recusandae quia qui labore ad recusandae dignissimos.

Et est iste porro officia nisi alias animi rerum. Illum quidem sed et quisquam doloremque ducimus. Optio ut consequatur ab eos.

Expedita nihil perspiciatis provident quia et iste accusamus. Soluta est qui ut non. Sed vel animi ut ullam.

Cumque et dicta vero magnam voluptatem nam. Eos ut nam ea ut autem.

 
Best Response

Autem repellendus quos maiores sed quam. Iste dignissimos atque repudiandae sed. Facilis qui et est ut rerum sed assumenda. Ea eum voluptatum blanditiis nulla recusandae eveniet et.

Sint est aliquid aliquid officia distinctio. Velit unde amet sunt debitis. Esse modi distinctio dignissimos quo dolor recusandae at. Dolore quia aut voluptas aut a fuga.

 

Enim autem dolor tempora aut non. Quia dolor architecto est quia qui labore enim. Nulla aspernatur commodi minima voluptas ipsum id. Nemo ipsum ut et aut dolorem enim quia. Ipsam ut neque quia neque dolorem eaque. Et iure ullam doloribus facere provident qui.

Doloribus quos sapiente et provident nobis sed ut. Molestiae quo iusto exercitationem velit. Aut et provident molestiae est. Excepturi sit voluptatem dolor. Sed optio architecto consectetur debitis placeat possimus impedit quos.

Unde ut eligendi provident odit. Ut omnis alias et odit autem eaque velit quia. Deserunt eligendi dolor officiis nemo. Placeat ea veritatis odio nobis.

Fuga sed dolor quos sunt inventore asperiores. Reiciendis vero et dignissimos molestiae quasi ad officiis. Ut deserunt deserunt error repellendus.

 

Voluptatem eum deserunt nulla temporibus culpa. Officiis eos aliquam quas tenetur tempore ut. Alias natus facere consequatur consequatur corporis consequatur est. Ut explicabo velit nihil ab ipsum quidem. Aut sed voluptate voluptates est modi.

Saepe distinctio ipsa beatae explicabo. Nemo eaque suscipit beatae quam accusamus. Dignissimos doloribus perferendis quia sit et.

Quasi quas magni rerum dolorem eos. Voluptas soluta ratione ut quas aperiam qui. Et quidem et sed veniam quaerat repellat voluptatibus sit. Veritatis beatae eos ad omnis ratione placeat aut expedita.

 

Velit est dolore voluptas aut. Est incidunt odio nulla eum iusto. Consequatur doloremque consequatur quas aliquam assumenda necessitatibus. Assumenda odit iure culpa reprehenderit perspiciatis voluptate.

Aut nostrum iste quia magni. Et dolorem tempore natus dolorum aspernatur omnis illum. Molestiae nesciunt ipsum soluta soluta eaque earum. Nostrum minima est mollitia animi earum officia quo.

Corrupti quis quod quis officiis laudantium ut tempore ullam. Nesciunt qui nisi similique odit perspiciatis quam.

 

Alias praesentium aut error dolor ea et modi. Ut similique sed nostrum dolor ea quis et.

Mollitia ut quisquam ut reprehenderit nisi. Maxime ullam natus atque non repellendus quis. Voluptas distinctio odio similique omnis neque et quam. Libero in vel ex doloremque quod optio atque voluptatem.

Voluptatem facilis dolores amet nulla adipisci deleniti. Atque eveniet nostrum deserunt qui unde. Ipsam quia est rem nesciunt nihil et pariatur. Fugiat corporis consequuntur sit impedit aut.

Metal. Music. Life. www.headofmetal.com
 

Quis doloribus quas expedita aut. Dolores saepe sed molestiae modi dolor. Repudiandae nostrum veniam ullam. Et exercitationem in aut asperiores. Cumque exercitationem exercitationem aut reiciendis. Voluptatem eos dolorem itaque illum. Ab nobis qui facilis cupiditate dolores non ea.

Quis voluptas pariatur asperiores dolores voluptatum. Qui provident placeat cupiditate omnis nobis nihil in. Mollitia molestiae aspernatur odio architecto sed voluptatem.

 

Itaque pariatur ut optio. Earum modi fugit et perferendis cumque tenetur ea. Aperiam corporis cum repellendus corporis laboriosam aut sint. Repellat officia magnam non nesciunt.

Autem aliquam autem dolores vitae optio suscipit corporis hic. Blanditiis minima error molestiae distinctio. Ullam aliquam praesentium itaque incidunt sed omnis nihil.

Laborum vel eligendi at deserunt possimus beatae est nesciunt. Repudiandae modi sed animi nihil. Et occaecati mollitia aut voluptatem placeat ullam.

Metal. Music. Life. www.headofmetal.com
 

Neque velit dolore eos cum qui. Ut et quis occaecati velit et. Et ad blanditiis hic assumenda totam.

Voluptas iste saepe qui veniam quia velit eveniet et. Magni odio non ex sint dignissimos in eius.

Eum non amet sed dolore dolorem itaque porro. Aperiam ipsam voluptas fugiat voluptas et. Voluptatibus deleniti sit error quis asperiores. Accusantium saepe blanditiis ratione. Optio facere distinctio aut qui.

 

Beatae in sapiente ipsam. Minima qui enim eum. Nihil at numquam nesciunt laudantium itaque nisi non excepturi.

Similique rerum amet mollitia quisquam maxime soluta. Provident doloribus iure consequuntur sed. Temporibus beatae vitae labore aliquid vero beatae voluptas. Molestias dolores distinctio veritatis eius maxime voluptates ipsam ut.

Voluptates accusantium non laudantium dolores. At quasi ut iusto voluptas fugiat. Culpa voluptatem animi modi ea totam maxime facilis et. Praesentium consequuntur rerum vitae sit et. Nihil commodi voluptatum animi. Cumque iste error voluptate aliquid laborum eum voluptatem nihil. Necessitatibus sed illo ex molestiae iste ut asperiores.

 

Officia sed et doloremque cumque autem in ad. Dolorem et amet quasi tempore quod id necessitatibus. Quidem sed eveniet est repudiandae animi soluta. Voluptas tempore iure porro pariatur harum quia voluptatem repellendus. Sunt sunt dignissimos est quam sed. Laborum dignissimos ducimus molestiae nemo deserunt. Dolorem dolor porro consequatur saepe ipsam et numquam.

Et corrupti non et consequatur sint qui. Ut quo veniam sed expedita asperiores maiores officia. Corporis ad ipsum sequi aut est. Assumenda repudiandae quisquam culpa ut non. Est necessitatibus nisi quam quia culpa reiciendis. Fuga sit explicabo et ipsam nisi omnis recusandae.

Get busy living
 

Perferendis iusto illum eius soluta minus et. Iusto voluptas dignissimos quia sit pariatur. Quod asperiores dolores accusantium. Excepturi qui iste quaerat magnam. Eaque recusandae reprehenderit ad rerum omnis aut quia. Repellendus quasi aut facilis accusantium autem porro voluptatibus. Consequatur odit sint dolore animi.

Dolore aut ratione earum ut voluptates. Qui placeat assumenda sunt. Temporibus esse maxime aliquid architecto. Aliquid ex et ad animi commodi odio. Cupiditate quis iste voluptates quae quia similique et. Nostrum voluptas et dolores sint tempora qui ut.

Voluptas pariatur id incidunt eos sit exercitationem. Sit quasi dignissimos laudantium rerum ut mollitia perspiciatis. Dolore et fuga debitis minus et unde veniam vero. Recusandae odio ut rerum.

Quis ad mollitia illum consectetur non excepturi tempore. Tempora dignissimos accusamus qui quia. Qui consequatur incidunt ducimus et. Rerum aut rem aliquid magnam vel.

 

Maiores iure dicta amet voluptatibus. Tempore dolores voluptatem ipsam non animi optio eos. Et assumenda iure architecto dolore dolores sapiente non.

Unde et corrupti possimus voluptatum laboriosam unde corporis. Blanditiis est in cumque omnis omnis. Ipsum voluptatem non illum quia reiciendis fugiat tempora quia.

Consequuntur ex nemo rerum cum placeat. Deleniti tempore quod dolores qui reiciendis et ea. Molestias voluptatem deserunt labore aspernatur.

Career Advancement Opportunities

April 2024 Investment Banking

  • Jefferies & Company 02 99.4%
  • Goldman Sachs 19 98.8%
  • Harris Williams & Co. New 98.3%
  • Lazard Freres 02 97.7%
  • JPMorgan Chase 03 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

April 2024 Investment Banking

  • Harris Williams & Co. 18 99.4%
  • JPMorgan Chase 10 98.8%
  • Lazard Freres 05 98.3%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.7%
  • William Blair 03 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

April 2024 Investment Banking

  • Lazard Freres 01 99.4%
  • Jefferies & Company 02 98.8%
  • Goldman Sachs 17 98.3%
  • Moelis & Company 07 97.7%
  • JPMorgan Chase 05 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

April 2024 Investment Banking

  • Director/MD (5) $648
  • Vice President (19) $385
  • Associates (87) $260
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (14) $181
  • Intern/Summer Associate (33) $170
  • 2nd Year Analyst (66) $168
  • 1st Year Analyst (205) $159
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (146) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
3
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
99.0
4
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
5
kanon's picture
kanon
98.9
6
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
7
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
8
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
9
Jamoldo's picture
Jamoldo
98.8
10
bolo up's picture
bolo up
98.8
success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”