A people person is more than being open and gregarious. As James is discovering, it is just as much about hearing, observing.
James came to us originally as an intern. “What surprised – and excited – me about Abacus is the emphasis on soft skills – people skills. You just don’t cover that in college classes. Some of our meetings seem more like therapy sessions – and I think that is so valuable for the team and the clients.” (James had a precursor in soft skills when he worked with young men at a summer wilderness program in Wyoming’s back country.)
Perhaps, to stretch a metaphor, James is drawn to reading people the way he is to exploring sheet music. Proficient in several instruments, he says, “I am a music theory nerd. I love reading sheet music and looking for fresh, exciting ways to approach it.”
- B.S. in Accounting, Washington and Lee University