Trevor Hightower’s Post

I am at Main Street Summit . Feels like Christmas to me. How to describe Main Street? Think of it as a Woodstock of the most incredible people that you would want to have in your network. A Burning Man of business owners, operators, investors, and just frankly people I want to be like when I grow up. Why is this conference so unique? The Permanent Equity team knows that relationships rule the world. They optimize for it. They focus on relationship over transaction and it just happens to create the most aligned transactions. Its fueled by hospitality and team who embodies it is the definition of world class. "thinking of you before you get there" is what this incredible team does in countless ways. The speakers and attendees do well and do good. Its all equates vibe I want to inject in my veins. I am reminded of a quote about Rivendell in Tolkien's middle earth: "whether you liked food or sleep or story-telling or singing (or reading), or just sitting and thinking best, or a pleasant mixture of them all. Merely to be there was a cure for weariness...." Merely to be at Main Street Summit has been a cure for weariness for me. I hope to see you here (this year or next!) and hope it is a cure for any weariness for you like it has been for me.

Relationships run the world and the quality of our relationships is directly proportional to the quality of our life. If any of the following HIGHTOWER update below spurs you to prioritize your most important relationships, that would be very good indeed.

Relationships run the world!

So, I started my firm, HIGHTOWER. Let's Go!! Fired up and beyond grateful. I help select clients (GPs, Fund Managers, Entrepreneurs) connect with aligned capital. Emphasis on the "select". :)  In turn, I serve a trusted network of investors by only sharing investments *if* they are in line with the investor’s mandate and values. Emphasis on the "aligned". :) My promise to investors in the HIGHTOWER network is they will only see my client's investment opportunity if I know it is in the fairway of the investor's mission and goals. I can only do this if I have spent time doing what my mentor Terry Looper calls "Listening Out". Really understanding what the investor is looking for in a given season. In this way, I am a trusted source of unique deal flow for these investors. It's slower and more intentional. It's also how trust and value compound. I wouldn't have it any other way. Beyond grateful for this to be a reality.

Yesterday my son turned 13! It’s impossible to describe how much I love him. How proud I am and how much hope I have for him. I can see the incredible hero’s journey ahead for his life. It is clear to me he is learning, growing in, and walking in his true identity. He’s a Conscientious Leader. He’s keenly aware…you can just see it in his eyes. It creates an attractiveness that draws people in. It makes him uniquely funny and cool. Is his false self, he can be prone to anxiety caused by unhealthy fear. A fear rooted in wanting to control things he can’t. Healing in this area will be a big part of his journey. In his true self, he’s going to be someone I just want stewarding a lot … he’s simply made to deeply care for things. Over time he’ll learn that his true identity gives him unique gifting to steward resources that are spiritual and relational in addition to financial. His journey is just going to be awesome. Adventure, challenge, abyss, gaining earned strength, giving this strength to others. Becoming more and more of who he truly is. It will be so hard. It will be so great. I find myself overcome with longing and hope for him. And….I would do anything so that he walks this journey well. Never to remove any good pain or abyss that is needed for him (as painful as it will be for me). Always beside him, whispering encouragement and truth in his ear, reminding him that he is loved and he has what it takes. I share all this to make this next point especially clear to you my friend. I am a (highly) imperfect father. Emphasis on the “highly” part. Walk into my home on an average weekday night and I promise you, you would not be asking me to write a parenting book! So here is a thought experiment given my shortcomings combined with the reality that everything I shared above barely scratches the surface of my hope for my son: Imagine how a PERFECT Father would feel about you and your journey. Perfect in love and wisdom. Perfect in every way. How much more would this Father hope for you? How much more would He long to see you become your true self and to walk in your true identity? How much more would He be beside you, whispering truth and encouragement in your ear? How much more pain would He have for you in your abysses? How much more joy knowing it’s what you need to have more freedom, joy, and power on the other side? I want to contend that perfect Father is a reality for you and for me. My hope is you hear that Father whispering (shouting!) in your ear words of encouragement and truth. Keep going son, keep going daughter. Your journey is beautiful, hard and on purpose and all things are working together for good as you become more and more who you were made to be.

This is just excellent. Again! One of things I admire about Permanent Equity and their team is how they build trust at scale. They default to creating and giving value. They know who they are. They know who they serve. They communicate this by giving to a broader ecosystem It’s done in their authentic voice. It’s done with excellence. This makes it really clear if they could be for you and if you could be for them. You can do the same. Don’t copy Permant Equity. Do implement their principles! Know who you are. Know who you serve. Communicate with value to your ecosystem. Do this in your authentic voice (your brand). Do it with Excellence. Start small and find ways that compound how you add value. Build Trust at scale.

The quality of our lives is the quality of our relationships. How is the quality of your relationships? How can you improve the quality of your relationships?