In 2011, Jeff Martinovich was barred by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority from any role in selling securities or associating with FINRA members, and he’s currently serving a 16-year prison sentence, with about 2.5 years more on home confinement in Norfolk, Va. An ankle monitor on his left ankle keeps tabs on his movements. 

But Martinovich has few regrets with the decisions he made, including rejecting three government plea deals. He hasn’t let his experiences defeat him, as many barred brokers have; rather, he believes it’s all part of a larger purpose in life and that what you take away from those moments shapes who you become in the future.

“I don’t think we come down on the planet to lead this life of luxury, retire and go fishing every day,” he says. “I think it’s all a journey, and it’s about overcoming fear and all of us are faced with these incredible challenges at different times.”

In this episode, Diana Britton is joined by Jeff Martinovich, First Gulf War veteran, CEO of JAM Accelerator, a business consulting and incubation firm, former founder and CEO of MICG Investment Management and author of “Just One More: The Wisdom of Bob Vukovich.” Jeff shares his experience growing his first business and how he found himself in legal trouble, eventually going to trial against the U.S. Government and ultimately prison.

Diana and Jeff discuss: 

• How Jeff’s legal troubles began, his experience with trial and in prison
  
• What made him reject three government plea deals
  
• What kept him from falling victim to despair
  
• How Jeff was able to grow from his experience and build a new company
  
• Whether he has any regrets with regards to how he handled the ordeal
  
• The love story that was going on during this whole experience, and the good things that came out of it
  

Connect With Jeff Martinovich:

• LinkedIn: Jeff Martinovich
  
• Jam Accelerator
  
• Just One More: The Wisdom of Bob Vukovich 
  

Connect With Wealth Management & NREI:

• WealthManagement.com
  
• LinkedIn: Diana Britton
  
• Read John Kador’s Story on Jeff 
  
• diana.britton@informa.com
  

About Our Guest:

Jeff Martinovich has thirty-years of experience building startups and executing mergers and acquisitions. He has enjoyed extraordinary success in business and life, as well as overcome great failure, all which provide JAM Accelerator clients and partners a rare library of wisdom for not only building significant shareholder value, but also protecting it. Jeff’s commitment to stand up for what’s right following the 2008 Financial Crisis, and the resulting legal challenges, are the topics of multiple books and national articles.

Jeff is generous with his expertise in leadership and management, financial statements and strategies, sales and growth outperformance, and operational efficiencies to increase gross and net margins. On top of everything, Jeff’s engaging personality and commitment to joint success create an enjoyable experience with advisor and client. Many great successes and failures bring wisdom, experience and the ability to now see around corners.