MY RESPONSE TO STEPHEN SARGEANT'S POST CIRCA NOV 12, 2023
Faisal Anwar, CCEP-I
Senior independent consultant with diverse experience in Compliance, Operations, Shared Services at top-notch banks like BoA, ABN AMRO, RBS. Based in Greater Toronto Area (GTA), Canada and Karachi,Pakistan
This is not an article but a response to Stephen Sargeant's post of circa Nov 12, 2023 and the exchange of our comments Nov 23-26, 2023. This response got too detailed to be covered in the space provided in the comments field which is restricted to 1,500 characters. The topic under discussion is too important for me to be dealt in a cursory or casual manner and still barely scratches the surface.
??Stephen Sargeant -- It is good that we are having this discussion but, of course, you can opt out of it anytime as I have all the time in the world to engage in it but you may not have that luxury.? I am sure you have a busy working day tomorrow and must be regretting getting entangled in this discussion.?
While many people may have the same views that I have, everyone has a different story to tell which should be heard patiently by those who have made it by dint of their “luck” or “hard work” or both, rather than dismissing such views (or plaintive stories) as rantings “heard many a time before”. ?Amidst their breathless quest for achieving greater heights, they should stop once in a while, look around, and try to genuinely help others who are left behind.
As you have clarified as well, “luck” is not the whole reason for anybody’s success.? Also, I do not imply the kind of luck that gamblers may strike while playing the slot machines of Niagara Falls casino but “breakthroughs” which could happen by being, for example, at the right place at the right time; catching people in a gracious or giving mood; being born in a certain type of family or society; being able to get a really good mentor, etc.? You may find it ludicrous but even “merit” could be a matter of luck!?? Mathematically, a lot of what happens in this mysterious world is random.? Long discussion but, if you have the time and the appetite to read something a bit contrarian, please do read these articles about it:
I am not sure why you refer to the labels, that I have used, as generic.? These labels (arrogant, egotistical, hypocritical) are well thought-out and specific to the un-named people I have alluded to and there are more than 3-4 instances for each that drove me to label them as I did.? I know and appreciate they must have worked very hard to attain their goals so far but I don’t have to know them “very well” to describe them in un-flattering terms.?? Their struggles and the consequent achievements should have made them humble rather than making them descend into hubris!?? That is enough for me to know to the extent of my experience with them.? ?
While nobody is perfect (and I am far from it), I am not a bad judge of character and am reasonably accurate in my assessments.? We all have to make judgements every day whether hiring employees, doing performance evaluations, voting in the elections, negotiating a deal, etc., but complete/accurate information is not always available when we judge others (which we must).? It is a high-paced VUCA world anyway.? We should learn to use some logic and a bit of gut feel based on others’ overt actions and conduct –- and perceptions do matter! ?I am not self-righteous but stand by my judgements of others and will be pleasantly surprised if proven wrong!
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It is also de rigueur to stress incessantly about “positivity”, though you have not raised it explicitly.? The “positivity brigade” when extolling the virtues of positivity, gives the ridiculously impractical advice of surrounding yourself with positive people ONLY!? The brigade forgets that the world is not a perfect place and that too much of positivity germinates toxicity as well.? It breeds overconfidence which leads to arrogance.? It also breeds selfishness as the positivity brigade does not leave any incentive to even give a patient listening (forget about helping) to “negative” people who are a waste of time for them.? The brigade does not want their merry-go-round to be stopped for a second!?? However, there is enough research and anecdotal evidence to suggest that, when the sentiments of despair and non-violent anger are judiciously used, great things have been achieved!? You may “LOL” this assertion too, but please do glance through the following articles if you have a few minutes:
I am no stranger to living and studying in the US/West and working in large American/Western banks in senior positions for several years but the professional reception I have received here for the last three years has been disappointing. ???While I highly appreciate your and others’ invaluable sessions on helping foreign professionals to settle in Canada, one big shock that many experienced foreign professionals get here is the age bias/discrimination, though it is vehemently disclaimed by most so-called “EEO” employers and consultants here.? The ground reality is different.? Much of the advice given by Resume’ experts centers around “toning down” the resume’ (for example: omit to mention a master’s degree, skip or change the senior-level job titles held during the pre-immigration career, even dye the hair to brown or black if one has too many of grey hair).?? Are these pieces of advice ethical??? Do they reflect the Western/Canadian values?? Points to ponder AND to be called out and resisted with anger, otherwise nothing will change!!
Good night and warm regards.
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11 个月Faisal Anwar, CCEP-I - Here is my detailed response to your detailed response - It would be “arrogant” for me to say to get a pen and paper ?? but I have “unzealously” shared my secrets to success here. https://www.dhirubhai.net/posts/stephen-brent-sargeant-cams_i-got-called-out-on-linkedin-and-here-activity-7135989894362906624-cNmr?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_ios