Dave Porter P’11, owner and managing partner of Baystate Financial Services, offered career, life and leadership advice to students on March 1 with his presentation titled “Moving Forward with Accountability.”
Porter spoke to students on the topics of internships, operating your own company, selling yourself in an interview and leadership.
Porter emphasized the importance of accountability and how he believes you determine your fate. He said one of the ways to get yourself to where you want to go was to simply be kind.
“You don’t have to be a rocket scientist,” Porter said. “You need to be nice.”
He determined that the four keys to success were to say please and thank you, be on time, finish what you started, and do what you said you were going to do.
Many of the students in attendance were interested in hearing Porter’s thoughts surrounding internships and interviews. Explaining that he obtained his first internship by being persistent, Porter said that he was able to intern in Washington, D.C. and meet President Reagan because of his persistence and work ethic.
The one question he asks in interviews and one question you should ask is, “What is your definition of success?” Porter said the answer he does not want to hear is money. “Money does not buy happiness,” he said. “It buys opportunity.”
Keeping with the accountability theme, Porter said, “I think people should have ownership in their future.” As far as hard work goes, he said to keep pushing through, putting one foot in front of the other, and the rewards will follow. To succeed, he said, “Know what you do well and be comfortable with what you don’t do well.”
Porter is the co-author of “Where Winners Live,” which was published last month. A copy was provided to all the students and faculty in attendance at his presentation.
Porter is a member of the Elon University Board of Trustees. His family’s major gift to the university has endowed the Porter Family Professional Development Center in the Martha and Spencer Love School of Business.
Porter grew up in Ramsey, N.J., and has a bachelor’s degree in political science from Westchester University. He and his wife, Jen, are parents to Tim, who graduated from Elon in 2011, Katelyn, Kathryn, Mackenzie and Jack.