April 2014
| Business World Magazine | 65
I
t was a powerful reason for a significant decision.
Though Richard Weissman was both a capable and suc-
cessful Wall Street mover and shaker in the late summer
of 2001, the events of an unforgettably awful Tuesday morn-
ing left an indelible mark.
“I was in the investment banking business and it was just
after Sept. 11,” he said. “Being an investment banker on Wall
Street then was a nightmare time for me. So I made a decision
at that point that I was going to take a change in life direc-
tion.”
And in doing so, he took his career forward by taking it a
step back.
Leaving chaotic Manhattan for scenic South Florida,
Weissman went back into what had been his family’s cottage
industry and founded The Learning Experience, a chain of
franchised child development centers that’s since grown to
