20 years in: 8 lessons at the midpoint

I walked through the doors of Deloitte & Touche 20 years ago today to start my career, a fresh-faced 23 year old, wondering where the journey would take me.

It turns out it has taken me pretty far and wide: from audit to macroeconomics, government, a public body, a regulator, financial advisory, a hedge fund, to academia, to sustainability, and now strategy consulting. From Stockholm in the North, to Johannesburg in the South; from San Francisco in the West, to Kuala Lumpur in the East.

When talking careers with young professionals just starting out, I increasingly try to summarise the key points I wish I had known starting here at Deloitte in the autumn of 2002, which would have made my life and career that bit easier. This personal milestone feels as good a time as any to share these points more widely. So, here are eight things I pass on to people taking their early career steps:

1.?????In a world full of generalists, go deep on something. The most interesting (and most valuable) team members I have worked with have some sort of specialism. It actually matters less what that is and more about the fact that you have gone deep on a particular subject, or topic, and have fully wrestled with the complexities, interdependencies, and trade-offs. It’s hard to out-generalise people and you will find that knowledge learnt in your specialism can be applied to other sectors and domains. Have a major amidst a bunch of supporting minors.

2.?????Start your search for likeminded people, not jobs. Everyone seems to start their career search looking for jobs; I get that, in that we all need to pay our bills. What I underestimated was that likeminded people can help find you jobs. Surround yourself with people who have similar professional interests for three reasons: first, you will find the right talks and seminars to attend to hear voices at the frontier of your subject, and get involved; second, those people will hear about job opening in your area; and third, as they rise the ranks, you will organically have an increasingly senior network.

3.?????Trust your gut, it’s all you’ve got. Many people will want to give you advice on what you should or shouldn’t do. Particularly in your early 20s, you are shaped by your upbringing, your parenting, and your peer groups at school and university, as well as societal expectations. It will take some time to find out who you are as an adult. Don’t underestimate gut instinct, however, as that has been built up through twenty years or more of experience. And conviction is rare. If you have it, run with it. On reflection, I have had true conviction only a handful of times a decade. Seize those moment for all they’re worth!

4.?????Be intellectually curious, and push to the frontier. The world is less fixed than things appear, and doesn’t run along the lines of academia and theory. In your area, learn the ropes and then look for ways to improve, and challenge, the status quo. Progress only comes from change, and change is difficult. Inertia is rife and vested interests are strong. In parallel, being at the frontier of a topic, and providing thought leadership, can be extremely uncomfortable at times. It’s much easier to be a fast-follower and sit near the front of the peloton. The most worthwhile and invigorating experiences I have had, however, have been when I, and a small likeminded group around me, are pushing ourselves to our professional, and intellectual, limits.

5.?????Work out the exam question, beyond the job description. Every role will have a job description, which is important to review. The overarching objective, for me, is to determine what is the ‘big’ question you are working on. At the moment mine is: ‘How do we embed climate fully into corporate strategy in an authentic and meaningful way?’ That is my guiding light through the day-to-day maelstrom and noise. I have one for every role, connecting the narrative across my professional experience, which I then hope makes the whole more than the sum of its parts.

6.?????Be curious and have fun: it’s a marathon not a sprint. Be open to new experiences, have a growth mindset, and have fun along the way. Some of the best professional moments of the last 20 years have been with colleagues on the fringes of work, socialising and sightseeing. It’s important to enjoy the journey and don’t take yourself too seriously, as people will see through it. The more you are yourself the more you will find your way. You can’t do it all in one leap either. Experience and expertise takes time; as long as you are learning and are stretched in areas that are meaningful to you, you will get there. I’ve done more in 20 years than I could have envisaged, and it was certainly not a linear journey, with a few diversions and dead ends along the way. You sometimes have to step back to jump forward.

7.?????Be grateful to everyone: you can’t do it alone. Be thankful to everyone who is part of your journey, however junior or senior. You can’t do it all by yourself, nor would you want to. I have worked with over 1,000 people since 2002, the vast majority of whom are now part of this network. I’m grateful for every piece of advice, support, and help I have had along the journey; and yes, that has included people to cry with, laugh with, and celebrate with. It’s been truly memorable so far.

8.?????Pay it forward and it often comes back. I believe in ‘paying it forward’ and over the years, the value of lifetime networks and the goodwill this has extended has often come back with interest.?But nearly every time, the reciprocal help or support isn’t immediate, or obvious. Sometimes people get ahead of you in the short-term. It has rarely mattered over time. You just don’t know what one action, message or meeting will eventually mean. Take the call or coffee. You never know where it might take you.

Overall, I hope this advice is useful to some of you. Thank you for the past 20 years, it’s been an absolute blast and here’s to the next 20!