Our guest for this episode is Michael Jabbara, Vice President of Strategy and Operations at Visa.
“It feels like the world around you is ending, and that tends to make one a little bit more withdrawn, a little bit more insular a little bit more detached, because that's our coping mechanism. But then every time you come back to the world that you've left behind to protect yourself, you learn something new about yourself. You learn the parts of you that don't burn away when it feels like everything around you is on fire.”
As we reminisce on our shared time at Northwestern - Kellogg School of Management, Michael offers encouragement to revenue practitioners headed into the new year.
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Michael analyzes market trends and changes in the risk landscape, assessing overall strategic risk needs for Visa and its partners. He has led initiatives within Visa's Global Product Commercialization group, providing insights on emerging payments trends and delivering innovative solutions.
Trinity Nguyen: Hi, everyone. I'm Trinity with User Gems, and today I'm keeping it 100 with Michael Jabara, Vice President of Strategy and Operations at Visa. And here's his story and encouragement to other revenue partitioners as we close out this year.
Michael Jabarra: Funnily enough, Trinity, I don't know if you remember, but you and I went to Kellogg around the same time to get our MBA.
And do you remember what our tagline was at the time and when we were there?
Trinity Nguyen: I don’t. It’s been so long.
Michael Jabarra: So you're going to be invited from the reunions moving forward. Yeah, it's okay. You can phone a friend. And so our tagline was, to think bravely. To me at the time, I thought it was kind of interesting because it was maybe about like finding really creative and interesting ways to finance and leverage buyout or something along those lines.
But over the last, really just kind of over the past year, I've been thinking a lot more about that time, because it just seemed so much more innocent and pure and fun. But I think also, like the meaning of that motto, which by the way, this school doesn't even use anymore, they moved on to something else.
To me, I think it's been more about how over the past year, there's been so many things that have occurred so many events that in a literal and sometimes, well, I should say in a figurative and sometimes even literal way, it just feels like the world around you is ending. And that kind of tends to make one a little bit more withdrawn, a little bit more in sealed air a little bit more of the attached, because that's kind of our coping mechanism.
That's just how we adapt and get ourselves through the rough times. But then every time that you come back to the world, that you've left behind to protect yourself, you learn something new about yourself and you learn the parts of you that don't burn away when it feels like everything around you is on fire.
And so to be brave enough, to not high, to not look away, it's not going to continue to be engaged and to strive and whatever you may have lost there in the air. I think that's what it really means to think bravely and to be brave. And I think that's kind of ultimately what, and it keeps it moving, and that's ultimately what sets us free.
So that's, I guess my words of encouragement to you and your listeners for 2020, it's that I hope you have your bravest year yet.
Trinity Nguyen: Do you have a note of encouragement or insights to share? Email me, and we'll get you onto the show, at podcast@userjems.com. Thanks for listening and happy new year.
