Meetings, meetings, meetings

I had a whole day of face-to-face meetings on Wednesday this week. It involved some sweaty tube rides, and there was an overdose of caffeine, but it was great to be out and about connecting in real life.

I caught up with someone I placed in late 2013. At the time, they were moving out of academia in Russia. Now he’s a Senior Quant, well established and doing interesting work. Midway through our chat, he looked at me and said in a relaxed way, “You had a big impact on my life.”

When you’re in the trenches, reducing it all to revenue is easy.

Sometimes, you help someone land a role they didn’t even know existed. Sometimes, that role changes the direction of their life.

Back then, I was just a kid trying to earn a couple of extra quid. I didn’t think I was changing anyone’s life. I was just doing the job. But looking back, that conversation and subsequent introduction helped point him down a path that shaped his whole career.

That’s something worth remembering. Most of the time, you won’t know which conversations mattered until years later. So try to approach every one of them as though it might.

Uncertainty

I was listening to an episode of The Art of Accomplishment called Making the Most of Uncertainty, which resonated.

We live in uncertain times, specifically in my line of work. The rise of AI will create opportunities, but it might take some away, too.

Some will swing to full-blown optimism, pretending things are fine. Others spiral straight into doom. Neither approach is helpful. If you’re too negative, you stop trying. If you’re too positive, you stop seeing reality.

You’ve got to be able to admit things are hard while still holding space for curiosity, hope, and even wonder. Not in some floaty, spiritual way. Just in a practical, forward-looking way.

The only certainty available is how you are in the moment. Why not lean in and make the most of what is?

Check out the episode – https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-art-of-accomplishment/id1540650504?i=1000704947257

(Not so) Huge Life Lesson

Final note. Completely unrelated. But important.

Don’t leave your Crocs in the sun.

They shrink.