Before leaving for his next life / career challenge in the nation’s capital, Gary Cohn offered a farewell to his loyal Goldman Sachs troops. In a Tuesday morning podcast, Cohn touched upon many things. He recapped his rise from a dyslexic Cleveland youth to the top of the finance food chain. He discussed his trader-borne toughness and how that has served him as an executive, and how he excels at “delivering tough messages harshly and delivering tough messages softly.”

Gary Cohn closed with the following remarks:

“Saying goodbye is hard.  This has been 26 years – literally, I finish my 26th year next week – it’s really hard. I always knew I would say goodbye, everyone needs to leave someday but it’s hard. Y’know, I want to be remembered as a great partner, someone who everyone was comfortable calling, someone who everyone wanted to work with, someone who everyone wanted my opinion whether they agreed with me or disagreed with me. I think I was a hard worker. I never hesitated to get on a plane, I never hesitated to go somewhere, I never hesitated to deliver the tough message that needed to be delivered…But most importantly I think it does come down to the people, and that’s what I’ll remember and that’s what I want to be remembered for. Goldman Sachs has a unique culture, and it’s a culture that continues to evolve. I felt like I was part of the culture, and I was part of the evolution of the culture. I was here as a private company, I was here through the IPO, I’ve been here through the transition into a very public company where the vast majority of people here at Goldman Sachs don’t remember the private company. But what I’ll miss most is the people.”

   “Now I’m going onto a spectacularly new challenge, and I’m sure many of those voids will get filled. But this spot in my heart, in my mind, will be here for a long time.”