Acknowledgements
The following individuals helped and offered inspiration in writing this book, although I have almost certainly failed in recalling all those deserving of thanks on my part.
My father, Allen Karz has been a guiding light and consistent supporter throughout the process. Many authors inspired me and offered advice including another Doctor, William Bernstein, who I first discovered around the time I started publishing in the 1990s, and has since become a very successful Author and Investment Advisor. I also met best-selling Author Eric Tyson in the 1990s and he has been a wise and thoughtful advisor.
The late Actor/Producer Ben Mittleman was a close friend and client that inspired me personally, as well as through his film "Dying to Live" (see trailer below). My Grandfather Jack, passed away while I was in my twenties, but was one of my initial role models as a successful businessman, philanthropist, and family man. My first professional mentor was Lewis J. Kaufman, who employed and trained me in the 1990s, as I assisted him with several large investment banking deals, and I pursued the CFA credential. Mr. Kaufman joined Goldman Sachs in 1953 when the firm had roughly 400 employees. He was tasked with establishing the firm's west coast office in Los Angeles in 1961 and became a Partner a few years later before retiring from the firm voluntarily at the end of 1970 when the firm had roughly 2,000 employees. More recently I had assisted Mr. Kaufman in his attempt to write a book about how Goldman Sachs was preparing in the 1950s and 1960s to later become the pre-eminent investment banking firm in the world. Sadly, Mr. Kaufman passed away on December 31, 2018 before he completed that book.
Mark Edwards hired me in 1998, encouraged me to formalize numerous research projects at Plexus Group, and gave me opportunities to work with some of the biggest and most successful money managers in the world. My lone published journal article was co-authored with Graham and Dodd Award winner Wayne Wagner, who I was fortunate to work with for roughly a decade at Plexus Group.
The greatest motivation for writing this book came from my remarkable sister Zippora. It was extremely motivating to see her go through the entire process of publishing her memoir The Sugarless Plum about becoming a Soloist with the New York City Ballet, despite having been diagnosed with juvenile diabetes at the age of 21. She serves as a Repetiteur for the George Balanchine Trust, and is an Artist in Residence at the Glorya Kaufman School of Dance at my alma mater USC. She also introduced me to Sabrina Mesko at Arnica Press, the perfect person to help me formally transform my manuscript into this book.
My sister Michele Rosenbaum has found multiple oversights in the hard copy that I have fixed in the online version. I owe my wife Sarit and our four children a tremendous amount of gratitude for their patience, support, and trust.
