What Maseches Rosh Hashanah Taught Me About Business

Baruch HaShem, I recently had the tremendous zechus to finish Maseches Rosh Hashanah. Besides being an amazing masechta to learn at any time of year, learning it during the period leading up to Rosh Hashanah gave me a much deeper understanding of this powerful day, how we prepare for it, and its ramifications. But as I was learning, I began thinking that perhaps there are some important business lessons hidden in there as well.

One theme that struck me throughout the masechta is the relationship between the individual and the community. There is significant discussion surrounding teshuvah and judgment on both an individual and communal level. The Rambam develops these ideas in Hilchos Teshuvah, and Rav Kook discusses them extensively in Oros HaTeshuvah. Truthfully, I had looked at Oros HaTeshuvah many times before, including with the commentary of Rav Moshe Weinberger, and parts of it made literally zero sense to me. It seemed to constantly move back and forth between the individual and the community. Only after learning Maseches Rosh Hashanah did I begin to appreciate how powerful that relationship really is.

We are individuals, with our own responsibilities, challenges, accomplishments, and opportunities for growth. But at the same time, we are part of something much larger. We are part of a community, Klal Yisrael, and ultimately the greater world around us. And perhaps “community” extends even further than the people alive today. We are connected to those who came before us and responsible for helping build something for those who will come after us.

That got me thinking about work and business.

I have been tremendously blessed throughout much of my professional career to earn a parnasah while also having opportunities to help other people. I started my career in banking, where, to put it simply, my job was largely about helping banks make money. I eventually transitioned into the business office of a private school, where I spent ten years. One of my primary responsibilities was helping facilitate the scholarship process. It was an emotionally difficult position because I was dealing with families and very real financial struggles. At the same time, it was incredibly meaningful. Through proper due diligence, empathy, and hard work, I could help families receive the assistance they needed to send their children to school. I had been given an opportunity from Above to earn a living while helping individuals in a very tangible way.

When I eventually transitioned into health and wellness and built Jump Into Shape, I found that same idea again. Yes, Jump Into Shape is a business. People pay us, and I am trying to build a successful company and provide for my family. But day after day, I also get to see what happens to the individuals we serve. People tell me they have more energy. They feel stronger. They are less stressed. Their health markers have improved. They are exercising consistently after years of doing virtually nothing. I get to see firsthand that the work we're doing is affecting people's lives.

And perhaps this brings us right back to Rosh Hashanah. Can we pursue our individual goals while simultaneously asking how those goals contribute to something larger than ourselves?

Of course, not everyone's job naturally provides an obvious opportunity to help other people. Maybe you work in a field where your primary objective really is simply to earn a living and provide for your family. There is certainly tremendous value in that itself. But perhaps we can still ask: Where is the community in my work?

Maybe it's being the team member who goes beyond his job description to help a colleague. Maybe it's mentoring someone younger in the company. Maybe it's noticing the employee who is struggling and offering assistance. Maybe it's encouraging your company to support a worthwhile project, organize volunteer opportunities, or use some of its resources to benefit the broader community. A company itself can ask the same question an individual asks: Are we only here for ourselves, or can our success overflow and benefit others?

And if your particular workplace doesn't provide those opportunities, then perhaps the question becomes even simpler. I spend a significant percentage of my waking hours earning a living. What am I going to do with the resources that work provides me? Can I contribute some of my income? Can I contribute my professional skills? Can I volunteer my time? Can I use my connections to help someone? Can I mentor another person? There are countless ways for the success of an individual to become a source of strength for the community.

That, to me, is one of the powerful messages I am taking from Maseches Rosh Hashanah. We have an enormous responsibility to work on ourselves, to do teshuvah, to grow, and to become the best individuals we can possibly become. But we don't exist in isolation. Our individual growth should somehow overflow into the people and the world around us.

Maybe that's a question worth bringing into our professional lives as we enter 5787: How can I succeed this year, and how can my success help someone else succeed too?

May we all be blessed with tremendous individual growth, tremendous communal growth, meaningful parnasah, and the ability to use our work, talents, resources, and opportunities to make the people around us better.

Gemar Chasima Tova.