The Obsessive Compulsive Jim Cramer

I attended the first ever TEDx Wall Street  last week, and a fine show it was.

Speakers included:

• Alexa von Tobel, Founder and CEO of LearnVest.com
• David S. Rose, Founder of New York Angels and Associate Founder of Singularity University
• Don Tapscott, Bestselling Author and Strategist
• Doug Dachille, Co-Founder, Chief Executive Officer and Chief Investment Officer of First Principles Capital Management
• Jeff Hoffman, Founder of ColorJar and Former CEO of Enable Holdings
• Jeff Stewart, Global CEO of LENDDO
• Jim Cramer, Host of CNBC's Mad Money
• Matt Gould and Griffin Matthews, Award-winning writers and performers
• Michelle Rhee, CEO and Founder, StudentsFirst
• Rahaf Harfoush, Author and Digital Foresight and Innovation Strategist
• Scott Shay, Chairman of the Board, Signature Bank
• Sergio Fernandez de Cordova, Founder of Fuel Outdoor, Member of the Global Entrepreneurs Council at the United Nations

All was good but the best bit was being hosted in the New York Stock Exchange.

I’ve never had a reason to go into the New York Stock exchange before but, as a first impression, it was a great experience.

Like going back in time.

Like a walk into history.

Literally.

That’s because we were privileged to have a day on the trading floor including a drinks reception.

Now, I’ve only ever seen trading floors with open outcry – where buyers and sellers deal face-to-face with coloured jackets and folks looked dishevelled – in America.

In London, I remember an American asking to see the trading floor at the London Stock Exchange about five years ago and the receptionist answered: “oh, we used to have one of those but not anymore.”

The incredulous tourist looked at her aghast and said: “but how do you trade?”

“Oh, it’s all electronic these days”, she replied.

The same is true in the States but, for posterity’s sake, they still have a trading floor and a closing bell at the New York Stock Exchange.

Lovely.

I’ll write up a few of the speeches over the next few days and, to start things off, here’s the twitter stream during Jim Cramer’s Mad Money speech, which was the cringiest speech I’ve heard in … oh, ever.

Jim Cramer is the guy who said buy Bear Stearns, as Bear Stearns crashed through the floor.

He’s also the guy who lost big time on TV against Jon Stewart, as a follow on from that debacle.

So I thought his speech would be about how he has survived the crisis, built his reputation back, continued a career that was diving out of control …

… but no! 

Instead Jim talked about how he spends his day.

He made sure we all knew he gets up at 2:47 every day, gets picked up by his driver at 6:32 in a BMW 750, has a very exact agenda throughout the day, treats his staff like dirt, loves himself to pieces and goes to bed for a short three hour and twenty minutes of kip.

Some loved it and some hated it and, whatever your view, it definitely showed the man suffers from Obsessive–Compulsive Disorder (OCD).

You can make your own mind up from the tweet stream during his 15 minutes pitch:

NYSE Money Sense ‏ @nysemoneysense: @jimcramer takes the stage. the jacket is off! #TedXWS

David Marine ‏ @david_marine: @jimcramer is awesome. On stage at #tedxws

Neal Ungerleider ‏ @nealunger: #TEDxWS @jimcramer speaking. dude could carry the room even without a microphone. impressed.

Natalie Jansen ‏ @NatJansen: @jimcramer pumps up the room. #TedxWS

Florence Lowe ‏ @florencelowe: "hey I'm cramer"... @jimcramer #TEDxWS "I get up at 2:47am... since college"... that's one way

@nysemoneysense: "My life is so truly nutty I don't wanna share it." But today, @jimcramer is getting personal! #TedXWS

@nysemoneysense: “I have been getting up at 2:47 a.m. since college because I have a sleep disorder.” @jimcramer wasn't kidding -- personal! #TedXWS

Chris Skinner @chris_skinner: When do you sleep @jimcramer is the commonest question asked of me - and I get up at 2:47 a.m. every day #TEDxWS

Ali O'Rourke ‏ @NYSEAli: Cramer says he has gotten up every day at 2:47am since college because he has a sleep disorder. @jimcramer #TEDxWS

@Chris_Skinner: Getting up at 2:47 a.m. every day meant that i always was ahead of other hedge fund managers in Asian and European stocks @jimcramer #TEDxWS

Corey Trippiedi ‏ @CoreyTrippiedi: The early bird does get the big bucks on Wall Street @jimcramer @NYSE_Euronext #TEDxWS

@NYSEAli: Cramer's best tweets come out between 3:30 and 4:00 am! @jimcramer #TEDxWS

@Chris_Skinner: This guy has an exact agenda - up at 2:47 and driver arrives to take him to office at 6:32 every day @jimcramer - creature of habit #TEDxWS

NYSE Euronext ‏ @NYSE_Euronext: I guess you can say I'm a bit of a creature of habit -@jimcramer. If it ain't broke, don't fix it! #TedXWS

@Chris_Skinner: Something obsessive compulsive about @jimcramer #TEDxWS

Judy Khan Shaw ‏ @JudyKShaw: I'm exhausted just listening to @jimcramer! He gets up @ 2:47 am? I thought getting up at 4:30 am every morning was rough. #TedxWS

@nealunger: #TEDxWS @jimcramer staff follows google to help decide which pop culture references to make in tv show

@Chris_Skinner: All @jimcramer's segments are written by his sister's kid, who writes in Jim's exact voice with jokes for different demographics #TEDxWS

@Chris_Skinner: If any segment is leaked, folks get fired - @jimcramer for #TheApprentice #TEDxWS

@jen_chicago: "I found stocks in a hopeless place" per @jimcramer #TedxWS.

Bonifacino ‏ @rbonifacino: The machine that is @jimcramer. The energy truly in his DNA, or maybe it's all about rolling up the sleeves. #TEDxWS

@nealunger: #TEDxWS i thought i have a busy work schedule. @jimcramer has me beat, hands down.

@Chris_Skinner : You remember bulldog in Frasier - I think @jimcramer is bulldog in reality #TEDxWS

@NYSEAli: "Booya is like saying Mazel Tov for the Northerners." Nice @jimcramer #TEDxWS

EI digital ‏ @EIdigital: @jimcramer thinks his kids cheat when playing #wordswithfriends #TEDxWS

@Chris_Skinner: Lights out 11:47 and up at 2:47 - @jimcramer the insomniac #TEDxWS

Alex Schwartz ‏ @Schwartzee: @jimcramer sleeps 3 hours and 20 mins a night. Every night. #TEDxWS

@nysemoneysense: @jimcramer's iteration of his day left us exhausted! Hats off to high energy. See you on the floor! #TedXWS

@NYSEAli: Everyone in the room must be exhausted from listening to Jim Cramer! @jimcramer #TEDxWS

@david_marine: Hardest working man on cable is absolutely @jimcramer. Shared his daily routine at #tedxws. Nuts.

@JudyKShaw: I'll never look at @jimcramer the same! His energy is amazing for someone who barely sleeps! #TEDxWS

More on TEDx tomorrow.