Chris Thompson, CFA, went from training to be a mechanic at a Brooklyn vocational high school to managing over a billion dollars on Wall Street. The thing that changed his trajectory wasn't talent. It was a math teacher who told him he was good at something he couldn't yet see in himself.
In this episode of Ronderings, Ron sits down with Chris Thompson, impact investor, executive coach, and JP Morgan investment banking alum, to trace one of the most improbable career arcs the show has covered. Raised in Crown Heights by his Jamaican immigrant mother after his father died when Chris was two, Chris enrolled at Automotive High School for one reason: to learn a trade fast and help put food on the table. Junior year, a Jamaican math teacher and a business teacher saw something in him and redirected everything, pointing him toward college credits, a JP Morgan scholarship, and a path nobody in his world had a map for.
Chris graduated valedictorian of Long Island University, earned an MBA from Duke and the CFA designation, and worked corporate credit through the 2008 financial crisis. He also carries a loss that reshaped everything: his mother died suddenly in front of him at 43, just as he was planning for business school.
Today Chris ties his finance skills to something bigger, deploying capital into affordable housing and community projects, and coaching the people coming up behind him. He and Ron, both children of immigrants who lost a parent young, get into mentorship, legacy, survivor's guilt, and the discipline of putting one foot in front of the other when you want to stop.
Tune in to hear why Chris calls that JP Morgan scholarship an impact investment in his own life, and what he'd ask his parents if he could.
Chapters:
🌱
01:47 Two island kids, children of immigrants, meet through a mutual friend
🍽️
02:53 No vision, no path, just trying to see the next meal
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04:27 Losing his father at two and growing up with a superwoman mom
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08:21 Choosing Automotive High School to learn a trade and help fast
📐
09:51 The math teacher who said, you're good at this, why not pursue it
🎫
13:18 The JP Morgan scholarship that changed everything
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17:09 Graduating valedictorian and earning a seat at the investment bank
📉
20:08 Reading the warning signs before the 2008 crash
🕯️
25:25 The hardest part of the story: losing his mother at 43
🤝
28:59 The village that carried him, and a sister he leaned on
🌍
31:42 Tying finance to purpose through impact investing and coaching
🌺
36:00 The question he'd ask the parents he lost
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43:49 The Ronderings value: find a way to keep going, one step at a time
🔗
46:41 Where to find Chris and the work he's doing now
Links:
Email: chris.d.thompson12@gmail.com
Reach out to Chris Thompson directly by email to learn more about his work in executive coaching and impact investing.
Connect with Ron:
www.linkedin.com/in/rapatalo
Episode 98
