Working for your best friend’s dad can come with some amazing benefits, especially if that person is Steve Harvey.
Upon completing his undergraduate studies at Morehouse College, Thabiti Stephens was a hot commodity among several Ivy League institutions across the nation. Now, he’s Mr. Harvey’s right-hand man, managing all of the international business development as the Chief Strategy Officer for Steve Harvey Global.
Prior to connecting with Harvey’s eldest son, Broderick, during his college days, Stephens had already launched his own business, Steps By Stephens, an organization that donated meals to women’s and children’s shelters for every pair of shoes that were sold.
The Meeting That Changed It All
In 2015, Stephens had a meeting with Harvey that changed the course of his life forever.
“He sat me down and basically asked, ‘What are you doing?’ [I said], ‘I’m gonna go to Harvard or Wharton.’ [He asked], ‘How much are you going to make?’ I told him the total. [He asked,] ‘Why are you going?’ I told him to network and he basically asked if I could make more money and make better connections without wasting two years of my life, would I do it? At the time I said ‘No. I wanted to go to school because it was free,” Stephens shared in an interview with AfroTech.
Taking The Risk
After exiting the interaction, Stephens had a revelation.
“I walked out of his house and it wasn’t even three minutes before I was like, ‘Wait, hold on, this is a one in a billion opportunity. I ended up calling him back and asked if I could think on the offer and call him back in the morning.”
Ultimately, he took a chance with Harvey’s offer. From there, Stephens began to show what he was capable of, showcasing his love for stocks that has been present since the age of 14. From Payback to Match.com, the 30-year-old began to help Harvey make investments in companies that were aligned with the iconic brand he’s built over the years.
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Working Alongside Steve Harvey
“I tell people all the time, when they ask how it is to work for Mr. Harvey. I always say, he’s one of the greatest men I’ve ever met, outside of my father,” Stephens expressed. “I work in an environment of empowerment, encouragement, and he was an underdog before so he gives opportunities that people would never have. I should have never had that opportunity to manage the money and the way that I did. It just goes to show that preparation, hard word, and building a name for yourself and your skills pays off. He could have gave me the money and I could’ve easily lost it… It’s not just a gift.”
While Stephens is making serious waves in his position at Steve Harvey Global, he still has his sights set on continuing his work as an entrepreneur… but first, he has a promise to fulfill.
“When I signed up, I told Mr. Harvey, ‘I’m gonna help you make a billion dollars and then I’m gonna part ways and do my own thing,’ Stephens recalled. “Right now, we have done very good on that journey. We probably have nine, or a few $100 millions more to go, but right now, I’m extremely happy to be in a position where I’m learning. Every day, I’m blessed to be the youngest in the room and building a name for myself working with presidents of countries, nations and companies. In the next five years, I’m really just going with the wind. I have the opportunity right now to build something great.”
