Editor’s note: This article was first published in February 2014; the description of Duff’s situation, including his work as a writer, reflects his circumstances at that time.
This is the true story of Turney Duff, an ambitious young man who arrived in New York in 1994, at the age of 24, and built a successful career on Wall Street, even though, as he admits, he knew nothing about finance or the financial world when he got there. This is his account:
When I got to New York in 1994, I was 24 and looking for a job in public relations or journalism, and I was already frustrated at not landing one. My father suggested I call my uncle, who knew everything about finance, and even though I had no idea about the financial world, he managed to get me an interview at Lehman Brothers.
The moment I walked into that investment firm’s building, I could feel the grandeur in the air, and I knew I wanted to earn that money and live that lifestyle. I wanted it for myself.
I didn’t get the job at Lehman Brothers, but I eventually got one at Morgan Stanley, where I started as a sales assistant, a position also known as a “glorified secretary”. Once I had some experience, I moved to the hedge fund firm Galleon Group, where I began managing and investing other people’s money.
The commissions were huge, and all of Wall Street fought for a slice of my business. I got the standard of living I had been looking for, with access to the best restaurants and the most exclusive clubs. Before long I was earning more than 2 million.
I was invited to the Super Bowl, flown there on a private jet with all expenses paid. I was also invited to a party with 40 Wall Street executives and just as many women. I don’t know if it was the cologne or what I was wearing, but I could have literally any woman there. Everything was great.
The first time I was offered cocaine, I turned it down, because I had always thought people who take cocaine don’t usually end well, and many of them die young. Six months later, though, after spending time with those successful executives who used coke, I decided cocaine wasn’t as dangerous as it seemed: I could plainly see it hadn’t cut short the careers of these highly successful people in the Wall Street industry.
The first time I took cocaine, it was the most incredible thing in my life
It felt so good that I knew it was going to get me into trouble.
In 2006, with more than 10 million dollars in capital, I was spending over 600 dollars a week on cocaine, not counting the drinks and the other entertainment that came with it.
I had a girlfriend and a daughter in those dark days of my life. I was using cocaine five or six days a week, and despite the shakes, the sweats and the bleeding the next day, I could still make it to work. If I felt really low, a hit of cocaine would get me going again.
Alcohol and cocaine every day began to take their toll, and I started missing work again and again. One day the office was spinning and I didn’t know what to do, but I knew that if I missed another day I would lose my job. So I came up with an idea for getting out of the office that day (obviously I wasn’t thinking rationally): faking an assault.
I went down to the street and threw myself into puddles until my clothes were torn and my knees were bleeding. I limped back into the office, unable to speak, and told them I had been attacked.
The plan didn’t go very well: 72 hours later I was out of a job and on a plane to my first rehab. After staying clean for more than a year, I relapsed and had to go back to rehab again.
Later I had another chance to work on Wall Street, with a seven-figure paycheck, but I didn’t feel right at all, so I sabotaged the interview myself.
I hurt a lot of people, especially my family. I wish I could go back and not hurt the people I love and who love me, but the truth is I don’t regret going through all of it, because otherwise I wouldn’t be the person I am today.
Now I’m a writer, far away from Wall Street. In my book, The Buy Side, I tell my story, a story that is almost becoming a Wall Street cliché: my situation is very similar to what many Wall Street figures have been through, and to what many young people just arriving in this industry, which makes you lose your head, will fall into.
Nothing is left of the 10 million dollars, between the cocaine and the bad investments I made…
Moral of the story: “Money doesn’t always bring happiness. Sometimes it turns you into a jerk.” As we can see, the “Wolf of Wall Street” lifestyle is very common on Wall Street.
Turney Duff is the author of The Buy Side: A Wall Street Trader’s Tale of Spectacular Excess. His article was written for The Telegraph and picked up by Business Insider; this version is adapted and modified from it.
Further reading
- What does being rich really mean? A former Goldman Sachs banker explains
- 11 reflections on money that will change the way you see it
- 10 money and finance tips to follow before you turn 30
- 15 habits and choices for success in your career or business
Featured image: David Ohmer, CC BY 2.0, via Flickr.
