Press '9' for an Outside Line!
Mar 24, 2022 14:15:10 #
What I am about to reveal is a true story, it really happened. Only the names have been changed to protect the guilty!
During the 1990s I was a broker with Smith Barney in one of the offices in downtown Houston. It was announced our office would be moved to the Galleria, some 2 miles or so away from downtown. Now, ordinarily I would have been delighted to make the move because it was a lot closer to where I lived and would have made my daily commute much shorter.
However, on the flip side, I had just been elected as president of the Rotary Club of Houston and our Rotary Offices were downtown about four floors above another Smith Barney office in that same building. I asked my manger if he minded if I went and talked to the other branch manager to see if I could remain downtown and be closer to the Rotary offices, which I knew I would be visiting regularly. I wound up with approvals all around so rather than going to the Galleria, I stayed downtown.
I had never realized there could be so much difference in the culture in different offices of the same company. After moving to the other downtown office, I requested a direct line for my personal computer. At that time, there weren’t any other brokers who had a personal computer to handle their database of leads, prospects, and clients. Since I did, the request was granted. I needed a direct line, and at that time my computer program wasn’t set up to make outside calls and dial “9”!
Now, I must admit this office was a world of difference in that the senior brokers, those with long service records did pretty much as they pleased. It was like “Wall Street, The Movie”! Several brokers smoked cigars in the office, that and the ‘saltwater fish tanks’ they maintained, along with the cigar smoke, caused a rather dank and disagreeable smell to prevail. But since I wasn’t the branch manager, I kept my head down, my mouth shut and did my job.
Sometime later the branch manager came and asked me if I would mind moving to another office, saying that one of the senior brokers needed to have my direct line, immediately! I agreed since I could have another line installed. Only later did I learn why this change was required.
The other senior broker needed my outside line so he could manage his line of ‘hookers’ and allow them to call him and not have his secretary involved. As it was, one of his ‘girls’ would call, he would be on another call, and they would cuss the secretary because she would not immediately connect them to the broker. His secretary had threatened to quit, and they didn’t want that to happen.
Well, within a year this branch manager retired and received a super retirement party, a gift of an expensive over and under shotgun and all the accolades as if he had run a super branch! The new manager came aboard and after about six months fired all the miscreants who should have been gone years before.
Much later, I had another member of Rotary whose wife was one of my clients. One day we were talking, and he said, “Bob, you are with Smith Barney, do you know Mr. X?” I replied, sure, he was in my office and was recently terminated. Why?”
He then tells me that his father had this character as a broker at another firm. The broker had claimed to have a ‘foolproof method of trading options, to make clients a lot of money, but in fact had lost his father almost his entire account.” His father had said I would have killed that
bastxxd, if it were not for I am a believing Jew, and know I would go to Hell for murder if I did!” I told my friend that when the news of the list of brokers who were with another firm at the time, had been indicted for fraud, this broker was marched down to the branch manager’s office and terminated.
So, you can see why press ‘9’ for an outside line rings a bell! Just Sayin…RJS
During the 1990s I was a broker with Smith Barney in one of the offices in downtown Houston. It was announced our office would be moved to the Galleria, some 2 miles or so away from downtown. Now, ordinarily I would have been delighted to make the move because it was a lot closer to where I lived and would have made my daily commute much shorter.
However, on the flip side, I had just been elected as president of the Rotary Club of Houston and our Rotary Offices were downtown about four floors above another Smith Barney office in that same building. I asked my manger if he minded if I went and talked to the other branch manager to see if I could remain downtown and be closer to the Rotary offices, which I knew I would be visiting regularly. I wound up with approvals all around so rather than going to the Galleria, I stayed downtown.
I had never realized there could be so much difference in the culture in different offices of the same company. After moving to the other downtown office, I requested a direct line for my personal computer. At that time, there weren’t any other brokers who had a personal computer to handle their database of leads, prospects, and clients. Since I did, the request was granted. I needed a direct line, and at that time my computer program wasn’t set up to make outside calls and dial “9”!
Now, I must admit this office was a world of difference in that the senior brokers, those with long service records did pretty much as they pleased. It was like “Wall Street, The Movie”! Several brokers smoked cigars in the office, that and the ‘saltwater fish tanks’ they maintained, along with the cigar smoke, caused a rather dank and disagreeable smell to prevail. But since I wasn’t the branch manager, I kept my head down, my mouth shut and did my job.
Sometime later the branch manager came and asked me if I would mind moving to another office, saying that one of the senior brokers needed to have my direct line, immediately! I agreed since I could have another line installed. Only later did I learn why this change was required.
The other senior broker needed my outside line so he could manage his line of ‘hookers’ and allow them to call him and not have his secretary involved. As it was, one of his ‘girls’ would call, he would be on another call, and they would cuss the secretary because she would not immediately connect them to the broker. His secretary had threatened to quit, and they didn’t want that to happen.
Well, within a year this branch manager retired and received a super retirement party, a gift of an expensive over and under shotgun and all the accolades as if he had run a super branch! The new manager came aboard and after about six months fired all the miscreants who should have been gone years before.
Much later, I had another member of Rotary whose wife was one of my clients. One day we were talking, and he said, “Bob, you are with Smith Barney, do you know Mr. X?” I replied, sure, he was in my office and was recently terminated. Why?”
He then tells me that his father had this character as a broker at another firm. The broker had claimed to have a ‘foolproof method of trading options, to make clients a lot of money, but in fact had lost his father almost his entire account.” His father had said I would have killed that
bastxxd, if it were not for I am a believing Jew, and know I would go to Hell for murder if I did!” I told my friend that when the news of the list of brokers who were with another firm at the time, had been indicted for fraud, this broker was marched down to the branch manager’s office and terminated.
So, you can see why press ‘9’ for an outside line rings a bell! Just Sayin…RJS
Mar 24, 2022 14:55:19 #
Mar 24, 2022 16:19:45 #
EZ Fishing
Loc: College Ward, Utah
Robert J Samples wrote:
What I am about to reveal is a true story, it real... (show quote)
Gteat story really enjoyed the read.👍👍
Mar 24, 2022 16:30:10 #
Mar 31, 2022 21:58:55 #
Slimshady wrote:
I can see why it would remind you
Yes! You do not have to get in the pen and roll with the hogs to remember the smell.
Reminds me of one day I was driving with my great-nephew in the back seat. We were on a major street in Houston and say some bums panhandling in the median. Now we had been surprised with this great nephew having been dropped in our laps as a foster child to get him off the streets himself. This happened because we were the only blood relatives available.
As we passed these panhandlers, he said without any prompting, "I will never do that!" I think because he had been there and knew what it was like.
He was formally adopted by a great couple on December 3, 2021. They are a super couple, have great jobs and love him dearly. I thank God for how this had turned out. He truely had "found a birdnest on the ground!"
Just Sayin...RJS
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