Jeff Weinstein, Editor in Chief, Hotel Investment Today, interviewed by David Kong

For decades, Jeff Weinstein told the stories of others. This time, it’s his story.

A deeply personal conversation about leadership, integrity, fatherhood, and the perspective gained from raising a son with autism. A reminder that success is one thing, but who we become along the way matters far more.

Transcript

David Kong 0:02

Greetings. I'm David K, the founder and principal of Its Personal Stories. I'm delighted to welcome Jeff Weinstein. He's the editor in chief of Hotel Investment today, and many of you may know Jeff and remember him as Editor in Chief of Hotels Magazine and also the creator of Hotels Investment Outlook. Here's a five time recipient of the prestigious Jesse. Neil Awards for Excellence and Business Generalism. Jeff, you've had a fabulous 40 some year career. We are delighted to have you on our show.

Jeff Weinstein 0:39

Thanks, David. It's great to be here. I appreciate you taking the time and sharing with me.

David Kong 0:45

Jeff, I know this is gonna be a special conversation. You've spent decades telling the stories of leaders across our industry, but today it's about your story, the person behind the editor. I, I would love to start where I always do with your journey. So let's talk about how you started in hospitality, journalism, and some of the key inflection points that led you to where you are today.

Jeff Weinstein 1:11

Yeah, well, you know, I, I graduated university with a journalism degree and knocked around some newspapers, did electronic publishing before the internet, and, uh, got an opportunity to write about the restaurant business. And as fate would have it, the uh, chief editor who hired me loved golf. And I could talk off with him. And so during the interview we talked about Nick fau a lot that's remember, and I think he liked me, so he gave me the job and, and I started writing more. It was a restaurant industry publication, and I didn't write about food. Wasn't a foodie so much, but I did write about business. Deal making and the financial angle. And that ended up serving me quite well. I spent eight years there and got a call one day across the hall where Hotels magazine in the same building and uh, they had an opening for a chief editor. And I was lucky enough to score that job and, uh, spent 28 years, uh, loving. Writing about the hotel business a lot on the op side. Uh, we were global, which was wonderful. We also got a real great education about the global business. And um, as you mentioned, um, about two or three years in, we decided to start a, uh, investment publication, a quarterly at the time and called Hotel Investment Outlook. And that. First interview was with Saudi Prince Ali when he was, uh, running for, well, he was a big investment in Four Seasons and Movingn Pick and Fairmont and a few others. So I went out to the Saudi Desert at the height of one of the Gulf War crisis, and I was with the Kingdom Holding team and a lot of the Four Seasons execs. And sat out in the desert while, uh, prince Ali was being benevolent. He was giving away money to all the bed winds who has come up to him on horseback and need a new roof on their house or something like that. And, uh, that was. I realized I was in a great business right then and there, um, ing together. We spent the night out there and, um, I got on a jet and flew back to the States the next day. That was quite an experience out in the desert with him and, um, so it's been a great ride. I love the hotel business. I, I tend to romance it perhaps naively so. Uh, as a business that provides shelter and sustenance. And that's how I've chosen to look at it over these many years because if I were to get too deep in the weeds and, and I probably wouldn't feel as good about it as I do when I think from that romantic perspective. So, yeah, it's been a great ride.

David Kong 4:14

Yeah, it really has been. And what a wonderful industry that we're both in. Lots of fond memories.

Jeff Weinstein 4:20

Too many.

David Kong 4:22

What were some of the most important lessons that you learned?

Jeff Weinstein 4:27

Oh boy. I don't know where I learned this, but be accountable, be available, and be nice. That's, I have a daughter who's 21 and I'm trying to teach her the value of being a good person and being nice. Sometimes that gets you further than anything else. Yeah, I, I think just being a good human really matters. And it might not matter in the moment, but it seems to matter longer term. And by being a good human, you have good self-worth and you have good self-worth. I think you're a better leader, you're a more honest leader. So those are the most important things I've come to know over the years.

David Kong 5:15

That's for sure, and I totally agree with you being kind to people is first and foremost you have a 40 some year, very spectacular journey. What are you most proud of, personally and professionally?

Jeff Weinstein 5:32

Professionally, you know, always kind of keeping our integrity, keeping church and state separate all the time. Never wavered. Uh, luckily I had people that I worked with who felt the same, and I don't know if I could have done it otherwise, because I'm, I'm really just an, an old journalist at heart, you know, and that's what matters. You know, being stand up and being objective and not giving into the growing pressures too. You know, kind of cross lines. So I think I'm really proud of that. I'm proud of the work I've done. I'm really proud of the relationships I've created over the years with so many developers, investors, hoteliers. Um, I just, I love hotel GMs. Uh, those were always my favorite people. They were so polished. They are so polished. I mean, they usually speak four and five languages. They know everything about food and wine. They're dressed impeccably. I, I should be that lucky, you know? But, so they were really impressive and it was so much fun spending time with them. And, and they're the ones who are really driving this bus, this industry. I mean, they have to, they're the day to day warriors, you know, managing their teams and checking people in and out. And, you know, I, I really. I grew to respect and love that more than anybody. I don't know. Did you say personally as well?

David Kong 7:05

Yeah.

Jeff Weinstein 7:05

Proud of, uh, being a father by far. I mean that none of this matters compared to being a good father, um, and being a good family person. I'm. I tell that to everybody I talk to. It's like, you know, this is great. I feel very fortunate and we've been very lucky to work in such a fun business.'cause it is, it can be fun. I know it's not, not that easy, but it's, it's somewhat glamorous and I've loved it. Um, but at the end of the day, at, at home, I'm the garbage man. I, you know, I, I do the dishes. I, I cook. I'm a single parent. And, uh, being a good father, that's, you know, that allows me to sleep well at night and makes me feel really good. And it translates,

David Kong 8:02

oh yeah.

Jeff Weinstein 8:02

The business. When you feel good about who you are personally, you do a much better job professionally.

David Kong 8:08

That's absolutely true. You've said, interviewed many successful leaders in the last four decades. What separates leaders who endure from those who don't?

Jeff Weinstein 8:21

Boy. Um, well, you know, I mentioned the interview with Ali. That was just fun. I mean, that was, and at the time he was a pretty big deal in the hotel business. Still is to a degree I think about is he sharp, you know, and his, and his approach through the golden rule and leading as a golden rule. And oh my God, I love horse shies. He leads with his heart. He's strong, he's tough, but he's got a huge heart and he believes in service in being the nobility of service. And I, every time I've talked to him, and I think I did a profile on him, I don't know, maybe five or six years ago, my last at hotels and. Just hearing him talk and it just, everything clicks and he's, you know, he created such an iconic brand in, in the Ritz Carlton. And while some people kind of laugh at him for his credo of ladies and gentlemen, serving and gentlemen, it works for me. Uh, it's a little formal, it's a little dated, but it's right on, you know. And he knows how to manage people. He knows how to understand what the guest needs. And he, he was one of the, my favorite interviews throughout the years. So those are two that come to mind. I could go on and on. There were so many GMs I loved and loved talking to. And, and, and Izzy was great because it was Golden Rule. And then I'll go one more and I'll give you Adrian Zika who created him on. He created something special and he wouldn't, he wouldn't compromise. Maybe it wasn't the best decision for him financially, but, but he created something really special in the luxury that, you know, really created a buzz, created something that not many had been able to do. Uh, so those are some that have really stood out.

David Kong 10:39

Those are remarkable icons of our industry. Had a good fortune to work for him at Hyatt when he was the corporate food beverage vp, and he was tough, but he's, like you said, very kindhearted. He ultimately cares about people.

Jeff Weinstein 10:58

There's nothing wrong with being tough.

David Kong 11:00

Yeah.

Jeff Weinstein 11:01

You know, it's tough love maybe sometimes, but as long as you're fair and you have, you have that other side to you that comes out from time to time. I don't know. I think people sometimes appreciate tough, helps'em grow

David Kong 11:14

for sure. Now you've ended with so many people with any conversations that surprise you, you or changed your perspectives.

Jeff Weinstein 11:27

That's a good question. I don't know that I've been surprised very much if you do your homework, know what you're getting into from an interviewer perspective, changing my perspective. Boy, no, I'm, again, I've always gravitate towards the ones who also romance the business like I do. They, they speak my language and of course I, I love what they have to say on the investment side. You know, you'd think some of these billionaire investors, I'll give you a quick l bang of CDL and in, uh, Singapore, I had a chance to sit down with him. I was pretty nervous walking into his high rise in, in Singapore, but he was. Really steadfast in his approach. He was tough. He was in charge large and in charge and demanding. So it was a little surprising maybe that, you know, running into some people, interviewing some people who were just really demanding. But once you got past it and you saw what they've accomplished, again, demanding isn't always bad. So I, you know, nobody's really changed my perspective that I can think of off the top.

David Kong 12:57

That's great. If you don't mind, we would start going to the personal story of Share Weinstein. Let the audience get to know you with the permission. I'd like to talk about your son because you and I had conversations about your son and he has autism. Can you tell the audience how has raising a son with autism shaped who you are?

Jeff Weinstein 13:21

Hmm. It shaped me a lot. I have a son who's now 24, still with me. I've been his single parent since he was eight with help. Of course, his let me keep doing my job, but it's been me and him. And he's, you know, you hear a lot of these stories about autistic kids that do these great things and are on the basketball court and they got three point shot that, you know, and the whole crowd erupts. Well, my son is profoundly autistic. He's not verbal, he's lower functioning, but he's a goofball. He is silly. He's funny and he's the light of my life, as is my daughter. I always feel like I have to mention, I have a daughter who's just about to graduate, university. But my son has given me incredible perspective on life. Taking care of him has really taught me about what matters, what truly matters at the end of the day, and being there for him while I manage this. This career has made me feel 10 feet tall. David, like I, it's amazing it nothing will ever touch it. From a personal perspective on how you feel about yourself, and it's been an amazing journey, uh, that's still going. And what's most important now is the future because I'm not getting any younger and he's, you know, 24 years old and, and needs to find his future. So that's a big part of my focus at the moment and will be my focus moving forward. But he's, he's just given me so much humility. He's, and I, I appreciate anyone who acts similarly, who has humility, who understands there's a lot more to life than a spreadsheet. And it's just been, it's just been beautiful. It's, it's grounded me. It's made me again feel. He's giving me my value as a human more than I ever thought I would feel. And you know, it's been a beautiful journey and it's sad and tragic at the same time because he suffers and we all suffer. We suffer every day, and, but we get through it and we move on and it just grows you as a human. It's, it's a beautiful thing.

David Kong 15:56

Yes, in many ways it's a beautiful thing, but it must be tremendously difficult for you. I remember having a conversation with you during COVID and things were really rough for you. Can you describe that period for us?

Jeff Weinstein 16:11

It honestly wasn't any different other than he wasn't going to school. He was in school at the time, so he was being homeschooled, uh, which was tough for him because being profoundly autistic. Doing a virtual school, it didn't work. So luckily, I've had a live-in nanny for 11 years. She's like a, like a mom to him, and she was there with him and during the day and take him to school. And we got through it. We stayed healthy. I think we all caught a mild case of COVID at some point. But nothing, nothing terrible. And we got through it fine. So, but it was, it was really good when we were able to go back to school and things started opening up. But you know what, David, it all boils down to doing the right thing. And it's as simple as that. People ask me, you know, how do you do this? I never really thought about it. Never do think about it. You just do it. It's what's in front of you. It's what's important. It's what matters. So you just, you just get it done. You do the right thing, and that's what it's been all about.

David Kong 17:32

Yes, always come back to that. You talk about big heart, you have a tremendously big heart and it's so full of love. It's admirable and it's a beautiful thing.

Jeff Weinstein 17:43

Child of the sixties, David.

David Kong 17:47

What's your advice to leaders who are quietly carrying personal challenges and stay up the go, show up or work?

Jeff Weinstein 17:56

Yeah, I don't know. I've had some really rough days, uh, for various reasons with my son, and at the end of the day, I get him in bed, falls asleep, I get in bed and I make a conscious effort to kind of. Shake it off, dust it off, put it away. Realize tomorrow the sun's gonna rise and we're gonna go at it again. New day, new venture. And more often than not, the next day is better than the day before if it's a rough day. So just dust it off. I'll also say, don't work so damn hard. You know, take a step back if you can. If there's one thing I've learned, it's not to work so hard. I mean, I have worked too hard. That's the problem. And we all have a lot of deadlines, we all have a lot of pressure, and we all have a lot of commitments to fulfill. But I think there's a way to find better balance, and I would urge leaders. To find that balance. I've seen it on some social media platforms where people toward the end of their lives were asked what the regrets were, and more than anything, people said they worked too hard and too long. So my best advice is stop and smell the roses. Give more time to the people in your life that matter. And nothing's gonna fall apart. The next day will come and you can pick it up from there. But find time for yourself and for your family. Find more of that time.

David Kong 19:54

That is such outstanding advice. Doing COVID. We were all going through incredible hardship personally and professionally, and I had that zoning too. It's. A realization that my whole life I've been working too hard and I hadn't had a proper balance. One day you're gonna be gone. And how are people gonna remember you? You know it's your family. That's

Jeff Weinstein 20:18

right. Right. And look, we got through COVID. If we could have gotten through that, you know, how bad can anything else be that you can't get through? Nothing's gonna be, hopefully nothing's going to be much worse than that.

David Kong 20:31

And also like what you said, that today is gonna end and tomorrow's at New Bay.

Jeff Weinstein 20:35

Yeah.

David Kong 20:36

Let's talk about your very impressive career, 40 some years, and business journalism and multiple recognitions. How would you like to be remembered?

Jeff Weinstein 20:51

I don't know. I'm not looking to be remembered by my peer, my fellow journalists. I think they probably mattered to me the most, the ones that I respect, that they saw me as, you know, do having done a good job, being a good reporter. Um, and I think I've got that. I mean, they're doing a good job of lying to me, so being considered standup. And honest and objective and fair amongst my contemporaries seems to matter to me was as I think about it, of course, you know, I've made a lot of great friends in the business based on getting to know them via interviews and, um, having those friendships endure and continue. It's not something a journalist should really be saying,'cause I'm supposed to be objective and just, you know, take care of my business there and you can't get close to your, your subjects. But I don't look at it this way. The thing I've loved about my job are the relationships I've created and still have if I mentioned it, but you know that I'm planning to retire shortly. And the response I got from putting that news out there was overwhelming. It was so gratifying. So many people reached out, not because of the job I've done, I think because of the person that they know and have gotten to know, and it all kind of goes full circle for me, David. It's not so much about what I accomplish as a professional, but what I accomplish as a human. Being a good person and a good father and a good friend. So if I'm gonna be remembered, I guess it's more that I'm kind maybe funny sometimes and you know, just generally fair and And go ahead.

David Kong 23:00

Yes. You'll always remembered as a very good person. When I looked at your LinkedIn post announcing your upcoming retirement, I was. Really impressed how many reactions you get. Probably a thousand some reactions by now. And people were just so effusive and their compliments to you and most of them without you as a person too.

Jeff Weinstein 23:22

That's good. That's, I wanna hear that's what matters. Should matter for all of us.

David Kong 23:28

Yeah. That's remarkable. Can I ask you, what did you understand about Mike today that you didn't 20 years ago?

Jeff Weinstein 23:38

Uh. I think that whatever it is, unless it's like emergent, it can wait and the world's not gonna, I have a hard time with that. I like I, if something needs to get done, I want to do it now. I mean, I'm bad in a lot of ways because my, you know, I carry my. Cell phone, it's like tethered to my thigh. Even, you know, after hours I'm answering email, you know, keeping on my computer to, if a story breaks at night somewhere else in the world, I like, I need to be first. I need to have it first. And you know what, no I don't. If I have a second, it's okay. So I've kind of. Come to that realization. Yeah. And slow down. You know, slow down for a good lesson in general because it gives you a chance to think about what you're doing. Uh, you don't make quick decisions. You know, you give yourself a chance to reflect. Even with stories that I write, you know, the best thing to do is write a draft. Put it away, you know, even overnight or at least for a few hours and then come back to it. You know, if it's not breaking, breaking news or you gotta get up, gotta get it out there like now let something breathe. You know, give it a chance to breathe. And you might realize that, oh, I can do this better. You know, I could have said this differently. You know there's a mistake here because I didn't see it the first time. So slow down. Learning to slow down.

David Kong 25:41

That's very good advice. Now, what brings you the most joy today?

Jeff Weinstein 25:46

Besides my kids, my friends. I have a group of buddies. There's seven of us. I'll say we go back to kindergarten. We go back to the beginning, like we grew up, you know, we grew up in the, the wonder years of the sixties on, you know, in a like a mile radius or so of each other. We all went to the same grammar school and same high school. We, we went to different universities, but we all ended up back here. And you know, we have a text thread, you know, where we're constantly trashing each other. I mean, we've known each other 65 years. We're still thick as thieve. We're going out, we're going to a casino talk, play craps, and go out to dinner and then go to a show in about a week or so. And you know, this is the way we've always been, I mean, forever and a day. So having a group of buddies who I've known forever and you know, we're, we'll give each other the shirt offs our back. That's been a real joy, you know. Privilege to have those kind of friendships for so many years.

David Kong 26:59

Yeah. You're very fortunate to have childhood friends like that.

Jeff Weinstein 27:03

Yeah.

David Kong 27:04

What are you most grateful for at this stage of life?

Jeff Weinstein 27:09

I'll say, uh, my parents, you know, growing up my dad was a tough, tough guy. He was really tough. He worked. He walked the walk though he worked really hard and conversely, my mother was a saint for putting up with my dad for all those years. So I got a bit of both sides. I got this toughness and drive from my father, and I got this gentle kindness from my mother. So it really. Turned out to be a great combination. And you know, without them of course, I don't think who I, I'd be who I am today and so, yeah, I'm most grateful, I think for my parents.

David Kong 28:02

Yeah, our parents have profound impact on so many of us, and I feel the same way. I'm most grateful for my parents.

Jeff Weinstein 28:10

Yeah.

David Kong 28:11

Yeah. Good chef. I feel like I can talk to you forever. Regrettably, coming to the end of the show, we always have one final question that we like to ask our guests, and that is what is the final advice that you'd like to offer on personal empowerment?

Jeff Weinstein 28:30

Yeah. I thought about this and I came up with one sentence, David, and that is Let your goodness guide you. It speaks for itself. It's real simple. We don't have enough of that. Everybody's new, bottom line driven, and I find that very, but there's one thing that's bugged me about the hotel business is the corporate side of it, where it's all about bottom line and not enough about the people. And this is a people business and some of the inequalities that are out there are really, to me, very unfortunate. So if you can try and be more, you know, lead more with your goodness.'cause I know we all have it, and have that as a guide more often. I know it's not easy. I get it. You know, numbers are important. That's the way the world goes around. But there could be, again, better balance. So yeah, let your goodness guide you at least more often.

David Kong 29:41

Let your goodness guide you. I love that. I absolutely love that. Thanks so much, Jeff. I appreciate you taking the time to share your wisdom on this show. I, I think it's tremendously beneficial for people to hear your insights and perspectives on so many things. Thank you again, Jeff.

Jeff Weinstein 29:58

My pleasure. Appreciate your time

David Kong 30:00

and to our audience, if you enjoy the show, I hope you'll join us on our website. It's personal stories.com, where you find many other very interesting and engaging stories of industry leaders. Thank you.