by Paul Mampilly
The Sovereign Investor
“Walk fast. Don’t stop. Don’t look at anyone. Put your cash in your shoes. Stay on the edge of the pavement so you can escape if someone grabs you.”
It was April 1987. And that was the advice I got about navigating New York City alone as a 19-year-old college student. This was during a time when the streets were riddled with crime, and I’d been living in the U.S. for less than a year. Looking back now, I can see I was a naive kid, even though I felt independent. After all, I’d been on my own for most of my childhood, going to boarding school since the age of 6.
I thought I knew how to handle myself.
So I made rash decisions, like the time I traveled alone at night to see one of my favorite singers back then, Paul Simon, who was performing at Radio City Music Hall.