Mike Steiner found himself on Penn’s campus at a young age not really knowing what he was supposed to do next. Thanks to helpful roommates, he started to figure out how to take advantage of the opportunities around him. He started getting more interested in math, statistics, and finance. He eventually ended up interviewing in New York and ending up at the famous training firm Susquehanna Investment Group (SIG). As a part-time trainer at first and then in a more central role, Mike started to experiment with different ways of teaching things like market making, probability, thinking in bets, and the behaviors needed to “make it” in the trading pits.

This conversation was a delight and I think you’ll enjoy it. We cover:
• Ending up at Penn and not really knowing what he was going to do
• Figuring out he enjoyed math and finance
• Getting a job at SIG
• Joining the training team
• Leaving finance to spend more time with his kids
• Becoming a high school teacher
• How he thinks about teaching & mentorship
• His 20-year journey in creating his game “Stockslam”

Learn more about stockslam:
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Website:

⏳Timestamps
0:00 Video Intro
0:37 Introduction
1:38 What are the scripts Michael grew up with?
3:07 Arriving at Penn
4:04 First-Gen Student
5:59 Struggling to find self-confidence
6:53 Deciding to work in finance
9:12 Joining Susquehanna
10:34 What was the culture in Susquehanna like?
11:29 Michael’s love for statistics
15:00 Applying knowledge about statistics in real life
18:03 Teaching methods at Susquehanna
22:20 Mock trading and market making
25:13 Susquehanna’s approach
27:02 The learning process
28:29 Influence of teaching others on one’s own learning
30:04 Turning a shy young person into “market-making monsters”
34:25 Gamification of the teaching process
36:36 The multipath model of education
39:58 Struggle vs pain/suffering in learning
42:39 Leaving trading
44:02 Being a stay-at-home dad
46:57 Becoming a teacher
47:52 What is it like to teach teenagers?
52:10 Making the best students his TAs
52:57 Where does Michael get the energy to teach from?
54:04 What do people have wrong about the next generation?
56:07 Creating Stockslam
1:01:55 What are the plans for Stockslam?
1:03:57 What can people learn by playing Stockslam?
1:07:03 Where can people learn more about Stockslam and Michael

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Link do Vídeo