Every week, Evan Harp sits down with one of the founders of Exchange to learn more about them, their perspective on life, and what they hope Exchange can bring to the industry. This week, he sits down with Lindsey Markewitz, head of operations at Advisor Circle.
Evan Harp: What is something surprising about you that people wouldn’t discern right away?
Lindsey Markewitz: I’m a huge history buff, anything to do with the Middle East. I love reading — I studied Middle Eastern history in college, and I’m a such a huge consumer of international relations current events that I can’t get enough of reading my New York Times and my Atlantic every day. My friends always tease me that I always have my head buried in The Economist.
Evan Harp: What inspires you creatively, spiritually, or emotionally?
Lindsey Markewitz: Hiking is probably my go-to when I’m feeling a little drained or I need to kind of get a little bit of emotional clarity or spiritual clarity. It’s not always the easiest when you live in New York City, but luckily, we have some mountains not too far out of the city.
I just went to Scotland and did a big hiking trip there. I came back to work feeling rejuvenated. It was one of the best trips — and I’m going to Norway in September on another big hiking trek. So that’s usually my go-to, getting outside of the concrete jungle and hitting the trails.
Evan Harp: What profession other than your own would you like to attempt?
Lindsey Markewitz: I remember when I graduated from Berkeley and my dad asked me, “So what are you going to do now?” I always wanted to work for the State Department because I find international relations so fascinating. So either in the State Department doing something international relations-related or working for a nonprofit. Unfortunately, nonprofits don’t really pay the bills in New York City, so maybe one day when I retire I can start working for a nonprofit part-time.
Evan Harp: What has been the most rewarding part of launching Exchange?
Lindsey Markewitz: I think the most rewarding part for me is having our team back together. For people who don’t know, I worked for many years with John Swolfs and Matt Middleton and Sovaida Noronha. We all put in a lot of hours into our former event to make it what it was. Especially on the ops side, you spend a lot of months working on that event. To be able to do it again and be back with the team, but also to be able to do it our way has been very exciting and rewarding. The numbers are so great — people are excited to get to Florida for this amazing event. I think that’s been one of the most rewarding pieces. But being back with the team is a highlight.
Evan Harp: What are you most looking forward to in Exchange: An ETF Experience?
Lindsey Markewitz: It’s funny, people always ask me leading up to the event, aren’t you so excited? My answer is always, “Not yet,” because I’m still in the thick of it. The most exciting thing for me is I look forward to seeing it all come together on site, when all the branding goes up and our colors are everywhere. My job is to bring everything together, all the moving pieces, to make sure everything lines up for this event. So once we get on site and the event kicks off, that’s when I get my second wind. Leading up to it is always a bit stressful, but once I’m on site and it’s all there, and we’re seeing it all come together — that’s the piece I look the most forward to.
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