1.Biggest Mistake?

The biggest mistake I have made in recent times is not following my own rule of doing things the way I am comfortable with. I made a number of investments on my own account where I was less actively involved, and I also chose to work on projects with people that I was not 100% certain about.

In all cases, the result was a failure varying from a bit of a mess to total calamity. Furthermore, it has cost me quite a lot of money and, more importantly, wasted a lot of time, which is the one commodity you can’t get back!

After sorting out the various messes and extracting myself from a few different situations, I decided I needed to be true to myself and stick to the principles I have learned during my career.

So now I try every time to assess:

Whether I respect the people involved in whatever project it is, and whether I think we can work together. I don’t have to like them, although it certainly helps, but I will not work on things where I have doubts because when I have ignored my instincts, it hasn’t gone well.
If I have sufficient involvement and control so that I can make a difference during critical moments in the business or project, and the rewards justify the risk.
Make sure it's fun, but ensure the paperwork is in place, because despite my background, when I haven’t done the necessary paperwork, it always blows up in my face.

I have boiled this down to a more straightforward principle of ","

2. A lightbulb moment

I think my lightbulb moment came whilst working in Corporate Finance early in my career. I always wanted to be top dog, and whilst I had aspirations to do my own thing, I wanted to conquer the corporate ladder first. After getting passed over, or more accurately black-balled by someone I didn’t even work with, for an early promotion, I realised that I needed to just be myself.

I was trying to be a corporate animal and to fit in with what I thought was required rather than just being myself and having fun.

Ever since then, I have tried to always be me; be good, give honest advice, believe in fate, have fun, and challenge myself.

Oh, and remember, don’t work with dickheads!

3. Tip for tomorrow

It's easy to say but not so easy to do, but I aim to start every day with a clean slate and list out the 3 things I am going to achieve that day and try to ensure that there is:

(a) A challenging task.

(b) A fun task.

I don’t always succeed, but as I start with a clean slate, you go again…and again…and again.

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