Don't Forget Where You Came From!

Don't forget where you came from.

It's a mantra for me. I can't say for sure how it's become so ingrained in my psyche. And while my sometimes spastic and nearly quinquagenarian brain might forget an occasional detail, I don't forget this.

In my days as a Chief Innovation Officer , I read extensively on the topics of creativity and innovation and how to instill it within your work and your workplace. One piece of advice peppered throughout much of my research was that you should never look back. Face forward. Be willing to test your meddle against new challenges. Seek out new opportunities to be bold. I agree with that advice, to a degree. You can't dwell on mistakes. We all make them. You 'fess up. You learn from them. You move on.

But there is value in looking back to where you came from in your career, and contemplating how you got to where you are today. I suppose I'm feeling particularly reminiscent because this week I am celebrating my first anniversary with SAP . After over two decades of public sector service , I've now got a year under my belt "on the other side." It has been a breathtaking and hectic year. But I've been surrounded by great (and very patient) people who have helped me grow . Yes, SAP is a global organization of 100K+ employees, but I've managed to find my team, my tribe...my peeps!

But, my other peeps...my former teammates, colleagues, bosses, and friends from past jobs are very much a part of my good fortune and my daily routines. I did a quick stats check. I worked for four local governments during my time in the public sector. In just the first month of 2022, I have had lunch meetings, texts, emails or phone conversations with peeps from each of those organizations. And no, it wasn't a one-sided conversation of me hitting them up for SAP business! ?? By my count, I've had 17 personal and professional exchanges with former peeps who care about my success and my life and my family and I likewise want to know that they're also doing well.

Although we rarely use tangible business cards these days, I still keep some of my old ones, to keep me grounded and remind me of how I got here. To me, it's a great visualization of the fortunate stepping stones that have elevated my career to where it is today.

I didn't always know where my next opportunity would come from but if you don't look back occasionally, you might just miss out on a chance to stay connected with the cool kids you can learn from and the peeps who helped you get to where you are today...and who knows where that will lead next?

Over a decade ago I made a connection with a peer (in a virtual world, long before Meta came along!) We became friends and, as long-distance friends do, we checked up on each other occasionally. Fast forward to last year. I was feeling the itch to try something new. I called her to check in and ??, she had an idea! The rest is career transition history and now we're working together doing challenging work AND still providing service to our public sector colleagues across the country!

I can't possibly tag all my peeps (the former and the new!) in this post. But, chances are good that you know who you are. I am grateful for each of you - for what you've taught me and what you've still got to teach! And if we haven't talked lately, shame on us! Let's rectify that, ASAP!

In the meantime, for what it's worth, my advice is that you take the time to try it yourself. Think about where you're going, where you are coming from and how you can merge the two to get where you want to be!