Would you trust an ex-convict for financial advice? If you answered “No,” Jordan Belfort may change your mind.
Of course, to set the record straight, the man infamously known as “The Wolf of Wall Street” hates to be classed as a criminal. “Convicted stock swindler—it’s like it hurts my heart,” he says. Not that he tries to hide or deny his past, but he prefers a more positive spin on the past: “I know it was true, but it’s not who I am. I say to my son, I say it to everybody who I try to mentor: We are not the mistakes of our past. We’re the resources and capabilities that we glean from our past.” And he doesn’t just say this; he has put it into practice in the positive reinventions of himself ever since his incarceration in 2003.
Belfort led a wild life in the 1990s spending millions of dollars on cars, boats, women, and drugs. His brokerage firm, Stratton Oakmont, reportedly employed over 1,000 salespeople, all trained by Belfort himself, and was essentially a boiler-room scam that swindled people on penny-stocks bringing in millions of dollars a day for the company. In 1998, however, the Securities and Exchange Commission shut down the company and Belfort was arrested by the FBI. In 2003, he was convicted to four years in prison for money laundering and securities fraud - a crime that can result in decades-long sentences - but only served 22 months at the low-security (high-luxury) Taft Correctional Institution.
Prison, however, was not the worse thing that happened to him or his reputation. On the contrary, it was a turning point. While recounting the crazy stories of his trading years, or what he could remember of them, to his cube-mate Tommy Chong (of Cheech and Chong fame) he was encouraged by his “cubie” to write them down into a book. His first memoir, The Wolf of Wall Street, was an immediate success with audiences and was soon followed by the sequel Catching the Wolf of Wall Street. What is more, Belfort’s story is currently being turned into a major Hollywood movie starring Leonardo Di Caprio under the direction of Martin Scorsese.
The millions Belfort has received in rights from his books and the film, however, will not all run into his pockets, as half of his income goes to a fund for repaying the $110-million restitution to his fraud victims. Beyond the books and movie, Belfort has taken action into reinventing himself as a motivational speaker inspiring people to find their true selves from their mistakes and teaching them the art of sales. “There are certain elements of influence that you have to line up before someone says yes,” he explains. “At the highest level, sales is the transference of emotion. And the primary emotion you’re transferring is certainty.” Putting his talents into good use, Belfrort tours the world lecturing at large audiences, with each hour on stage reportedly earning him $30,000. Although a low pay in comparison to the daily multi-million yields of his trading company, not an amount to be scorned by any means!
The movie The Wolf of Wall Street that will recount Belfort trading days and dealings will be released on 25th December, just in time to enter this year’s Oscar nominations.
