I stayed at Morgan Stanley for 27 years because it was fun. I

The words of Ruth Porat—“I stayed at Morgan Stanley for 27 years because it was fun. I kept learning.”—shine like a modest ember in the furnace of ambition, yet within them lies a timeless truth about the nature of purpose and perseverance. In her simple confession, she reveals not the greed of success, but the joy of growth, the sacred fire of curiosity that keeps the soul alive. The ancients would have called this the “divine spark,” for to learn continually is to remain forever young, forever moving toward the horizon of wisdom.

There is a quiet majesty in her words: a reminder that work, when driven by passion and curiosity, is not a burden but a pilgrimage. The length of her tenure—27 years—is not a tale of routine, but of renewal. She stayed not because she was chained by comfort, but because she found meaning in discovery. In every year, she found another lesson; in every challenge, another world to explore. Such a spirit mirrors the scholars of old—men and women who spent decades studying the same stars or scriptures, yet always found new constellations within them.

Throughout history, the greatest minds were not those who rushed from one pursuit to the next, but those who dug deep into their chosen craft until the very soil revealed its hidden gold. Consider Leonardo da Vinci, who never ceased to ask “why” even in the face of genius. To him, painting, engineering, anatomy—all were branches of one great tree of learning. So too with Ruth Porat: her “fun” was not idle amusement but the joy of creation, of shaping ideas into action, of watching the rhythm of markets and minds unfold before her eyes. True mastery, she teaches us, is born from joy in the process, not obsession with the reward.

In a world that prizes novelty and speed, her words stand as a rebellion. She reminds us that to stay is not to stagnate if one’s mind is in motion. The true traveler is not the one who moves between places, but the one who journeys within ideas. Like the monk who tends the same garden for a lifetime and discovers a thousand forms of beauty within its bounds, Porat teaches that the path of fulfillment lies not in changing direction constantly, but in walking one road with deeper vision.

Her sentiment echoes the wisdom of Confucius, who once said, “Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life.” Yet Porat’s version bears a modern strength—it adds endurance to passion, discipline to delight. For love of learning is not always easy. There are days of confusion, moments of doubt, seasons of fatigue. But she stayed. And in that staying, she grew. Thus her joy was not naive happiness—it was the mature joy of one who understands that learning itself is the reward.

There is a lesson here for all who chase their dreams: seek not the position that flatters your pride, but the work that feeds your curiosity. If your days are lit by learning, your years will pass not in monotony but in meaning. Whether you are an artist, a teacher, a craftsman, or a thinker, let your labor become your classroom. Let every failure be a teacher, every success a question, every challenge an invitation to grow.

And so, when we hear Ruth Porat’s words, we should not only admire her longevity but imitate her spirit. To “stay” is to endure, but to “keep learning” is to transcend time itself. For when the heart delights in its work, the years cease to weigh upon it. The truest kind of fun is found not in escape, but in engagement. Thus, let us live as she did: finding joy in our calling, wisdom in our effort, and wonder in every dawn that brings us another chance to learn.