Fired. Then Built a $96B Empire.

Estimated Reading Time: 3 minutes

🌟 Editor’s Note:

Welcome to Behind the Books! A 3-minute read with stories, tools, and lessons from real companies—what worked, what didn’t, and what founders can learn.

💼 The Story:

In 1981, Michael Bloomberg was riding high at Salomon Brothers.

Then the merger hit. He was fired suddenly, with no warning.

But he walked away with $10 million in severance.

Most people would’ve coasted. Bloomberg built.

He launched a product no one asked for:

→ A real-time financial data terminal

→ Market info delivered digitally

→ Faster decisions for Wall Street pros

At first? Crickets. Then Merrill Lynch ordered 22.

That was the break.

Bloomberg LP was born and grew into a $96 billion empire.

Salomon Brothers? Gone.

The Lesson:

What looks like failure might be disguised funding.

Bloomberg didn’t plan his pivot. He just used the moment. That’s how a lot of great businesses start:

→ The job ends

→ The old path disappears

→ And the builder steps up anyway

The market wasn’t ready. But the timing was right.

From Behind the Books:

The money, momentum, or motivation you didn’t plan for… might fund the version of you that’s been waiting.

Your weekly prompt:

What “ending” in your life could actually be your starting line? Write it down. Reframe it.

It might be your best trade yet.

See you next Friday,

—Yan

P.S. Know someone navigating a tough pivot? Forward this. They’re probably closer than they think.