The Name of the Game

I started my professional journey in late 1999, shortly after returning to Los Angeles to welcome our first child, having spent most of our honeymoon year studying abroad.

Since then, I’ve been blessed to be immersed deeply in the world of Healthcare, an industry rich with opportunity and ripe for meaningful impact.

In July 2022, shortly after celebrating the engagement of my second daughter, I unexpectedly found myself, for the first time in my career, caught in a painful business dispute with former partners over a company I had sold.

At the time, the event felt seismic.

I felt betrayed by my own wide-eyed naïveté.

I felt jolted awake from a gaslit haze—a haze of my own making that I’d unknowingly inhabited for the better part of two decades.

I resolved then that enough was finally enough. Determined to right wrongs and convert pain into purpose, I chose to see this challenge as a catalyst for growth.

But just as clarity emerged, I was met with an intensified barrage—what felt like a coordinated attempt to undermine my business through claims I believed to be both untrue and severely misleading.

I felt gaslit once again—this time by what seemed like a calculated effort to pressure me into financial exhaustion as punishment for daring to acknowledge and voice the truth.

“Rabbi, tell me what to do,” I lamented.

Sitting in my Rabbi’s home office, I poured out my hurt and frustration, admitting to the resentment I felt growing inside me.

“My dear,” he replied gently, eyes twinkling with kindness and wisdom, “do you know why our holy teachings emphasize, ‘קנה שם טוב קנה לעולם’—‘One who acquires a good name acquires it forever’?

“Because,” he continued, “when you earn something through years of integrity, authenticity, and genuine hard work—a truly good name—it’s yours forever. You’ve acquired it. Nobody can strip it from you or claim it for themselves.”

In that instant, a profound wave of relief washed over me.

I felt renewed gratitude for the loving support of my family, the wisdom of my friends, and the loyalty of true partners.

I emerged from that conversation with clarity, empowered by a defined personal and professional mission.

Recently, I reconnected with an industry colleague whom I hadn’t spoken to since 2007. Divine providence, it seemed, was bringing our paths together again with exciting partnership opportunities.

As we spoke, we marveled at life’s remarkable interconnectedness—how brief, positive interactions from nearly twenty years ago could blossom today into meaningful, impactful partnerships.

Colleagues, friends, partners—these roles can be beautifully intertwined.

It truly is all in the name.

Disclaimer: The business anecdotes shared above reflect personal recollections, lived experiences, and subjective impressions. They have been anonymized to respect privacy and are not intended as statements of verifiable fact about any identifiable individual, company, or entity.