Meet Our Mentees: Chris Moorman


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About a year ago, Chris Moorman was getting ready to meet with a venture capital firm here in Indianapolis when he noticed the Forty Under 40 issue of the Indiana Business Journal (IBJ) sitting on a counter. Flipping through the pages as he waited, he saw EDGE’s CEO – Dave Neff – on that list, and was intrigued by EDGE’s concept of faith-based professional mentoring.

It was intriguing because Chris had spent the early part of his career as a trader in New York, admitting that he would have labeled himself as many things in Manhattan – and “Christian” certainly wasn’t one of them. “I was hesitant to join EDGE at first because of the faith aspect. But a buddy of mine told me, ‘As long as you don’t actively shut God out, sometimes he has a way of finding a way in on his own. Just don’t put up a wall – everything else will be fine.’ And he was very much right.”

After reaching out and applying to EDGE, he was placed in a group with Doug Wilson, chairman of Monon Capital, as his mentor. “There have been times I’ve looked around and thought to myself, ‘Somebody really knew what they were doing when they put me with Doug,’” Chris said.

While Doug has always been a leader and a mentor, he’s revolutionizing the meaning of mentorship with Chris and the rest of his EDGE group. “Doug has a passion for developing talent, but it’s in a different context here with EDGE than with his company,” Chris said. “When you’re the CEO, you need to develop talent so it can perform at a high level for the organization. But when you’re an EDGE mentor, you just want to do it for the joy of seeing people grow.” 

As the founder and CEO of his own company, Rubicon Agriculture, Chris has been able to turn to Doug and his EDGE group for both guidance and balance while navigating a career path that’s a world away from his life in Manhattan. He’s seen the cut-throat side of business and the never-ending quest of “more” – more money, more promotions, more pride – and he had a problem with it. So he asked Doug how he has learned to handle success. Doug’s answer was simple: “When I was your age, I met with a financial advisor. And he said, ‘I have two questions: How much is enough? And what are you trying to accomplish with it?’”

“For Doug, it’s about having an understanding of what’s truly important and what you’re trying to accomplish for others with what you have,” Chris said. “You could have whatever you want, but you’ve made a decision and said, ‘I know what enough is. And beyond that, I want to accomplish these goals in my community.’ That’s the greatest lesson Doug has taught me – how to handle success as a solution for others instead of an addiction for yourself.

Almost a year after picking up that Forty Under 40 issue of the IBJ, Chris has had hours of meaningful conversation with the men in his EDGE group, he’s become a stronger leader for his company, and he’s even taken a trip to Washington, D.C. with Doug.

“Doug and I were able to sit down with two senators while we were there, and I ended up in five different congressmen’s offices, telling them about my business and what my plans were,” Chris said. “EDGE opened up a very different network for me. By not putting up a wall and by allowing people like Doug to show me that success doesn’t have to be ruthless – I was able to see success from the perspective of abundance instead of scarcity. That was refreshing, and it really does reinvigorate your faith in people.”

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