Act Intentionally

Many years ago, I worked in a bank function with a guy called Charles. He was always incredibly well turned out. A sharp suit, polished shoes, understated tie. And the firm handshake. Every bit a city slicker.

The fact that we were in our mid-20s in fairly low-level roles within an international banking division was neither here nor there. He looked the part. He acted the part. This was back in the day when being dressed to impress screamed “banker”.

The interesting thing about this guy was that he hadn’t been to university. He had worked his way up from the bottom rungs of the banking world, starting his career at 16 or 18-years old. A proper entry-level job. He learned the ropes in some very old-school repetitive and basic roles. This was long before automation had taken the manual processes out of account statement reconciliation, for example.

Here he was now surrounded by a group of guys and girls that had degrees. This was at a time that university qualifications were highly regarded for bank roles – degrees weren’t as commonplace as they are now. Many had come through graduate recruitment schemes, as they were viewed as the future of the bank. They (we) all had the “where do you see yourself in five years’ time” question nailed. And the graduate interview process was a breeze. But to a person, we (the degree holders) didn’t dress as well, nor carry ourselves as well as Charles. Maybe we had a certain sense of entitlement. Charles didn’t. He knew that he had to make that little bit more of an effort to stand out. And he did on both accounts. He didn’t leave it to chance either. He acted intentionally.

So it was great to reconnect with him on LinkedIn decades later. There was a bit less hair and one or two more kilos on his frame. But the smile on his profile picture was unmistakable. We didn’t actually converse after we connected (I don’t know many that do on LinkedIn), but I did get a good look at his work history. Pretty impressive stuff. He’s now the head of a business function at a leading bank in the UK. It’s safe to say, he’s done far better than a lot of that younger work cohort.

But what stood out was the intentionality of his approach to work. He knew he wanted to get ahead. He also knew he didn’t have the academic qualifications to compete on that level. So he worked hard to project the correct image. He dressed well, carried himself in the right way, and engaged in a manner that differentiated him from a lot of the graduates. He dressed for his future self. There was no entitlement. Just hard work. And focus. And he’s now experiencing the fruits of his labor. It’s a lesson to all of us. Act intentionally.