Episode description

Joe is the founder and former CEO of Morningstar, a financial services and investment research firm that is one of the most recognized companies in finance. It provides investment research and investment management services to many millions of people around the world. 

Morningstar has a market value of $10.6 billion and Joe earned his spot on the Forbes 400 with a reported net worth of $5.6 billion. 

Joe also owns magazines Inc. and Fast Company, as well as two professional soccer teams – the Chicago Fire in the MLS and FC Lugano in UEFA League.

Time stamps:

02:11 Joe’s childhood

• Had a lot of unstructured time
• Liked to do various projects 

06:33 Joe’s first entrepreneurial experience

• Went to a ham fest with a friend
• Bought Drake 2B receiver for $200

09:19 The Room 607

• Studied at the University of Chicago
• Lived in a new dorm with no place to buy soda or snacks

11:20 The magic of boldness

• You grow by going beyond your comfort zone
• Just give it a try and be willing to stand out

16:34 The Christmas tree business

• Rented a truck, bought Christmas trees, and set up a shop
• Learned that managing your inventory is the key to success
• Broke even, but learned a lot 

19:50 Should starting a company be fun?

• It should be fun and you should enjoy it
• Finding something you are passionate enough 

21:04 How important is perseverance as part of the passion?

• Left it and went into investing
• Real entrepreneurs won’t give up until they find a solution 

26:27 Funding an entrepreneur that failed

• Joe would fund entrepreneurs that failed
• Failure is a great lesson, not a black mark 

28:07 A night manager at Arby’s

• Wanted to start a concept of healthy fast food
• Got a job of a night shift manager at Arby’s in Chicago
• Found out he hated it

32:06 How important is customer satisfaction and customer service to our success?

• Satisfying customers is extremely important
• Learning to deal with people is highly valuable 

34:18 How did Joe get excited about investing?

• Book mention: John Train, The Money Masters
• Started working in an investing company - Harris associates 

38:47 The great revelation about the mutual fund industry

• Had a lot of reports and other material
• Realized that he had valuable data
• Looked deeply at the mutual fund industry
• It was a very obscure industry

49:27 How important is it to do research when starting a company?

• Research + instincts + judgement
• The data is out there and it is extremely important to research

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