Use Your Money for Sanctifying G-d's Name - Stephen J. Savitsky

[Music] I'm here in a dual capacity as a business person as a community leader so now I think is it your day at State Fair and learn a little Torah and so I have a message and maybe it's a different message but it's an important message and it starts as a joke but this punch line of the joke the punch line of the joke is very very very very serious and here's the joke you see there's a TV program and what they do is they walk around New York and they ask a question and then if you get the answer right you get $5,000 you've got to get the answer right and so one day they walk in Manhattan lower Manhattan and the TV recorder stops someone and sistas someone who'll obviously use the Muslim excuse me who is the most important person that ever lived in the world person says my suits very good answer it's a wonderful answer but it's wrong and then they go when they see someone from Indiana who's the most important person if I live the person says simple gun be great answer but it's not right and they go around then they go around and finally they find Hasidic Jew dressed up in white coats with just pants is my cat and they say excuse me who's the most important person in the whole world is Evelyn oh Jesus and they say you're right that's the answer you've won $5,000 and then they said but we have to ask you a question if they're only seeker Jewish so shouldn't you have said Moses is the most important person that ever lived the fetcher says Moses Moses business is business I think it's a great story but the punchline is extremely important because in our life it's not Moses Moses and business and business Moses is Moses and Moses Moses and Tory is Tom Rath and Tyranitar oh you know I love that's a business person I love advertisements in marketing one of my favorite hands of all time was the end that you saw when they go to the wonderful city of the United States for Las Vegas if you have a bit to Las Vegas you know what happens in Las Vegas and they show you the scene Las Vegas they show you people gambling there's new people going out at night they show you doing everything and then a big sign comes up and it says what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas well I want to tell you something my friends what happens in the based on that dress what happens in your shul does not stay in your school what happened to the base of interest what happens in your shul then becomes the foundation for everything that you are about because your job is business people is to create a kiddush Hashem in the world honor and glorification of the name of God that's your job and if you fail in that you have failed completely regardless of how much money you make and how successful you are and how big your houses and how nice your car is and how many vacations you can take if you do not create a Keynesian Jim as a Jew sanctification of God's name you have lost the essence of what life is all about I've been very fortunate in my life I've been in business from the time of 15 years old I started I know there some people here in the health care field Margaret these beautiful building I've been there I've been in the home healthcare business for many many many years and they owned the company was quote staff builders it's a great story the bus I don't have company called staff builders we were the third largest provider of home health care in America we had 150 offices I started with one on Main Street right down the block here under Roosevelt in Maine and built it took it public did a lot of things with it but making a kiddush Hashem was always the most important thing and you see my mother taught me a great lesson she said Steve elagibe only if you have 150 offices do me a favor don't go to Minneapolis in the winter go there in the summer go visit your office is what in the middle whoo that's a smart thing to do so I take my mother's advice and I go to Minneapolis and I'm there in the summertime and I come back to the end of the meeting of any Airport and all of a sudden is a terrible thunderstorm terrible thunderstorm all the flights are being canceled they put it up on the board people go crazy you'd have people are in the airport everyone's rushing they don't know what to do my flights canceled and they put up a sign there will be one flight going to Newark New Jersey we were going to the kawaii' and they said there'll be a van that will take you from Newark to the Quarian and so people of course started to rush people started to get agitated people became animals I've seen them around like crazy knock everybody down do what you want and there I see a wonderful I see this again now in those days I even had blonde hair I certainly could have taken off my key fob and fit in with the group but he would have a hard time and I went over to myself reveal what's your name most yeah Moshe a beautiful name said Moshe I see you're getting ready you ever see the bullfights in Spain when the Bulls are trying to get ready and again he was ready for the action you know he was gonna go no matter who he knocked down didn't make a difference and I said motion remember something you're a Ben Bella you're the son of the king and you and I have to act a certain way we'll cook me slowly we'll go to the gate I promise you will get two seats don't worry yeah but I can't happen listen to me this is a kid a chef Jim people though looking ass and so we start to go and we walk slowly people are rushing and charging we come to the game they said listening to the ladies thank you so much because it's not her fault that the weather was in Clement everyone's yelling at her the poor lady what did she do there was a thunderstorm when we said this said I'm so sorry I know I know what's going on but don't worry we appreciate what you've done I said much you have two seats left yes we have two minutes Murchison little seeds I think middle since I've been there we go we go in the plane we come to to the airport in Newark and there in Newark there's a van and I start to stay home when I better make this van because I have to get home and I start to rush like crazy and all of a sudden Moshe puts his arm around me it says Steve you're a fella aren't you I said you're right that's what it means when you're in business and you make a condition and don't don't think there's any argument by the way I want to read you a question conscious GTA SA and there's no argument between Robin well the Tanoa that we're running good I love you it's a very very simple poster English because I think it'll take too much time three didn't even ever have a full program the plastic says like this you should you should have not had in your pouch a weight and await a large one in this woman you know if you're selling it you put in one if you buy it you put in another one a large one in this woman if you shall mine your house a measure to measure a large one and a small one a perfect and honest wait you have a perfect and honest magician that you have so your days will be lengthened for it's an abomination it's a tone a vibe of my show if you don't do this when you have correctly so see there's no one human them all about how we are supposed to act the Torah is very clear very specific we have to act with honesty integrity ethics morality that's our job and that's our job as business people this message is so powerful it's incredible message you see people think sometimes if I - I can't be successful and I'm telling you today that if you're honest you will be more successful more successful than you can if you're dishonest yes you can be tough and you can be smart and you can be clever you give the opportunity and you can do all those things but at the same time you have to act with respect and dignity that's what if MLS does that's what his word is all about you know when I started to buy my first company from staff builders I had a small company called tender loving care we did about thirty million dollars worth of business a year I had offices and I had an opportunity to buy this other company called staff pose it was three times my size it changed everything in my business and it was a publicly traded company we had over a year where we had to go through proxy wars and so many other things refinancing financing again there were two other companies that wanted to buy and eventually it was sold to me and I asked the person who owned the company the day we closed I said tell me why did you decide to sell me the company when I was so much smaller than so many of the other companies that were there and he said you know I've read so much about one that ups Jews and I've read the Torah I've read the Bible and I know you're all honest and ethical people and that's why I started the company thank God you've never mended one last year you see there's a perception out there and the perception is not that great and our job is to change that perception that's what we have to do if the Torah tells you very clearly the ERC Suharto behind us that they manage em you have to do what's good and what's on it and the eyes of God and we all know what that is we can fool ourselves we can rationalize all day and all night but inside we know what's right and what's wrong so don't fool yourself I have my own company that's fun that I said you know what it's called it's called the kiddush pension fund I put it aside because I've ever given to an argument with somebody who works for me we had a misunderstanding I'd rather give them the money and I said you know what I'd rather have them look out and say this was it on this person this was a Jewish person at or a Jew and he's honest and ethical doesn't people love you and it doesn't mean you can't beat up it doesn't mean you can't fire people but you have to do it the right way you have to do everything the right way and if it costs you a little bit more money so be it it will come back and you'll gain so much more from it and that's what it's all about because you see we have this principle of kearneysville irate from sadness that we are responsible for one another and whatever you do has an effect upon someone else if you act a certain way the person sitting next to her with this you have meetings tonight everyone here is trying to make money well you don't want to look at the person to the left of you look at the person to the right of you in the next April that person could either help you or hurt you it depends on how they act you may never know them that may be a Jew someplace in the world that did business with someone and because of that you'll get another deal you'll do all you'll do something you'll be more months together and God forbid if it's not true because calling Israel are raisins deafness that means we have a responsibility and an obligation and an honor to serve us come tomorrow just today I don't make up stories let me tell you I don't make up stories when I tell you it's true it's not like some runway I know told me then every saw every story he tells is either true or will be true no my story's not true the MS today today when I was in my office and I'm working on a very very big thing today a technology thing that could change the entire industry than a minute and I was talking to somebody on the phone leading our technology and development department and he said to me you know why Stevie said you know what happened ten years ago I met somebody who was an Orthodox Jew and that person was so honest he was so infant son Laura that I decided that I have to deal with most of excuse and so when you came along with your company trying to put up the money in this millions of dollars to become our partner I said everybody there was enough Jews let's do business with them I don't know who that person is I never met that person but the course of that person I was open to be able to get this other thing Chloe CLR a who's ever said that's what it's about and what a company one time in Chicago Illinois a mr. Barun owned the company a wonderful person I bought it for a fair price everything was done great I came back two weeks later mr. Baron was still there I saw he looked very sad I said mr. Baron what's wrong you sold your company you're older now you could retire you've got more than a fair price and he said to me well I'm so upset my baby I loved it I said mr. Barry I'll tell you what I'll give you back your company you give me back my money and I'll give you back the company they said really yes guess what you lived another 15 years when he passed away he was not a Jewish person his daughter called me and asked me to be the guest speaker at his funeral because I gave him 15 years of life did I have to do it though was I thinking obligated to do it but why not do something that's nice and fair and calling in Russia they named a sham and it's not Louise in business but she'll come terribly short fun I know very well because for the years that I was president Leo you Michelle thought was one of the best employees you ever had I think what we're not Union in the conscious Department there was a person named rabbi Alexander Rosenberg he was one of the first people to run the concert department the years after he passed away the following story happened it was a company in South Carolina they were getting to do a run for concerts a big run they needed all the ingredients one of the ingredients unfortunately did not come and so therefore the company called the Orthodox Union and said tomorrow morning we are going to do there's going to be one ingredient that's not kosher and we will put out a disclaimer we'll put out all the advertisements because we can't help but we have to do this run and the rat life of the oh you said let me see what I can do any when we called another company forty miles down the road a competitor of this company and he said you don't have to do this but this competitor of yours he lives this particular ingredient do you think you could get it to him and sell it to him for exactly what you pay for the person said but it's a competitor of mine why should I do it he said you don't have to do it but it would be a wonderful thing for the Jewish people and the person said would ratify Rosenberg who passed away the rabbi Rosenberg know about this in heaven he said yes no nobody know about it it'll bless you for this that's what it means to make a commission and that's what I'm here to tell you tonight be successful do what you have to do that go out and remember that what happened to the base of interest and what happens in your shul doesn't just stay there but becomes the foundation like Moses is Moses and business and business don't ever forget this lesson it's so important let the taurah and taurah principles beat your investment banker and if you do that I promise you and guarantee you you will not only be successful and very very wealthy but you'll live a long life a Wonderful Life with your family that's what it's all about and so it's up to you tonight to say we're here is business people we're going to make money and we're gonna do great things and we're going to make a connection and if you do that you're gonna be helping somebody that you don't even know and because of that literally you can change the history and the destiny of the Jewish people [Applause] [Music] [Applause]