This is the time of year when many of you will receive M.B.A. degrees and march out to the real world.
I received my M.B.A. in 1991 in the teeth of a nasty recession. The economic environment then was similar to today. I was lucky to find a job at all.
Along with 10% of my graduating Harvard MBA class, I went to work for McKinsey & Co. Obviously, original thinking isn’t a priority for the desperate job-seeker. If you are fortunate enough to know what you will be doing next, or even if you don’t, I have some advice.
I have always believed in the inspirational force of music. So here is my advice coupled to some great songs. If you don’t know these songs, you should. Or maybe I’m just getting old.
- Love the One You’re With: If you can’t have a job you love, love the job you have. Some of you are bound to have met with disappointment in the recruiting season. Get over it. This is your first job post-MBA. It won’t be your last. About 70% of my MBA classmates had different jobs by our fifth year reunion.
If you are at Merrill Lynch & Co. (MER) and you wanted to be at Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS), the only way to get there will be to prove yourself at Merrill. Your colleagues won’t appreciate hearing daily about your regrets.
- Beast of Burden: There really is no substitute for hard work, especially in your first job. Be first to arrive at the office and last to leave. Raise your hand for the thankless job nobody else wants to do. Your colleagues may think you are a toadie, but so what? A reputation for busting your butt has never hurt anybody.
- London Calling: Take risks. You are offered a posting in London? Don’t hem and haw. Grab it. Every ‘risky’ opportunity, I was offered, I took. Most worked out, some didn’t. But even in failure, I was never worse off than before I took the risk. If you are in your 20s, do you think it will be easier to move to Hong Kong today or when you are saddled with three school-age children 15 years from now?
- With a Little Help From My Friends: To succeed, you will need friends throughout the organization. You must develop a mentor who has a stake in your career. And this takes effort and luck.
While the best friends are those higher-up, don’t underestimate the sway of lesser mortals. The woman who did all the presentation processing in my first job at Goldman almost brought my career to a halt. My work was always at the bottom of her pile. After struggling for months, it dawned on me that I needed to grovel. She was as important to the department as the snot-nosed junior banker giving her the work.
- All Apologies: Be humble. Many of you already have a fair bit of work experience, and confidence is a good thing. But remember, you have an MBA, not a Nobel Prize. You may be proud of yourself but don’t parade your pride for your boss and colleagues. They will want to kill you. And if they can, they will.
- Even Better Than the Real Thing: Early in my career I learned that flattery works in business. Goldman’s relationship bankers were the most skilled practitioners of flattery I had ever seen. And, of course, clients loved them.
It took me years to understand the flattery principle’s corollary: Flattery always works - even when the ‘flatteree’ knows he is being flattered. To those of you in sales or client management, it is imperative for you to grasp the power of this principle. Be careful, though. The unskilled novice can misuse the principle and get himself fired quite easily.
- Enjoy Yourself (It’s Later than You Think): Whatever job you end up taking, remember that you only get one shot at life. Stick with the 1980 version of Enjoy Yourself from The Specials, it perfectly captures the right spirit.
Enjoy yourself, it’s later than you think.
Enjoy yourself, while you’re still in the pink.
The years go by as quickly as a wink.
Enjoy yourself, enjoy yourself. It’s later than you think.
眼下又有许多人即将拿到自己的MBA学位证书,杀奔到现实的职场之中。
我在1991年从哈佛大学(Harvard)拿到了自己的MBA学位;当时经济处在令人沮丧的衰退时期,整个经济环境和现在有点像,所以我能找到工作已经算是鸿运当头了。
和10%的哈佛MBA同学一道,我进入了麦肯锡公司(McKinsey & Co.)。显然,对于一个急着找工作的人来说,当初的理想已不再是最紧要的问题。如果你运气够好,知道自己接下来会做什么,我这里有一些建议可以参考;即使你还不知道自己下一步何去何从,我的话也同样适用。
我坚信音乐能人带来灵感;所以我为我的建议配上一些很棒的歌曲。如果你不知道这些歌,那你应该去听听……或者,这只能说明我是老了。
《珍爱身边人》(Love the One You’re With):如果你找不到自己喜欢的工作,那就去喜欢现有的工作。在招聘季节中,你们当中有的人注定要与失望为伍。不要过于介意,这只是你MBA毕业后的第一份工作,而不是最后一份。在我和MBA同学第五年聚会时,发现大约70%的同学都跳过槽了。
如果身在美林公司(Merrill Lynch & Co.)的你对高盛(Goldman Sachs Group Inc.)心驰神往的话,那么想去那里的唯一办法就是在美林证明自己的实力。你的同事一定不会喜欢听你每天抱怨不停。
《驮兽》(Beast of Burden):没有什么能够替代辛勤工作,尤其是对第一份职位而言。记得要第一个来,最后一个走。即使是那种没人愿意干的吃力不讨好的活儿也要主动担当。你的同事可能会认为你这是在拍马屁,但那又怎么样呢?你的拼命三郎精神不会给任何人带来伤害。
《伦敦来电》(London Calling):要勇于冒险。如果你在伦敦找到了工作,那就不要再犹豫了,赶快接受它。我抓住了每一个降临到我身上的“高风险的”机会。它们当中大多数还不错,有的则不行。不过即便最后以失败收场,我也没有变得比冒险之前更差。如果你现在是20多岁,那么你想想看是现在搬去香港、还是15年后家里有三个正在上学的孩子时再搬去容易些?
《从朋友那里得到帮助》(With a Little Help From My Friends):要想取得成功,你需要在整个组织里面拥有朋友;你必须找到一个和你职场利益相关的导师,而这需要努力和运气。
虽然最好的朋友应是身居高位的人,但也不要低估了那些职位不高的人所能发挥的影响力。我在高盛从事第一个工作时遇到了一位负责所有演示处理工作的女士,她几乎成了我职业生涯的终结者,我做的所有工作在她眼里都那么不入流。在苦苦挣扎了几个月后,我终于顿悟到自己应该在她面前卑躬屈膝才是。她对整个部门的重要性,就像那个给她工作的小银行家之于她。
《无尽歉意》(All Apologies):保持谦卑。你们当中许多人已经颇有一些工作经验了,而且自信也是件好事。但切记一点,你现在只是拿到了个MBA,而不是诺贝尔奖。你或许会感到自豪,但千万别把你的骄傲暴露在你的老板和同事面前。他们会想杀了你的,如果能这么干,他们一定会动手。
《比真的更要好》(Even Better Than the Real Thing):在我职业生涯的早期阶段,我领悟到拍马屁在做业务时真的很管用。高盛的客户关系银行家是我在“拍界”见过的最有技巧的人;当然,客户爱死他们了。
我花了几年时间才懂得“拍界”真谛,那就是:拍马屁永远行得通──即便被拍者深知你这是在恭维他。对于你们当中从事销售或客户管理的人来说,必须谨记这条原则。不过你们也要小心。拍得技巧不够可能会适得其反,很容易引火烧身。
《及时行乐》(Enjoy Yourself It’s Later than You Think):不论你们最终做了什么工作,都要记得这不过是人生中的一页。看看The Specials 1980年推出的这首歌的歌词吧,它完美地写出了正确的心态应该是什么样的。
及时行乐,快乐总是姗姗来迟
及时行乐,趁你还是能乐的年纪
时光飞逝,如一眨眼
及时行乐,快乐会比你期待得来得晚
(Enjoy yourself, it’s later than you think.
Enjoy yourself, while you’re still in the pink.
The years go by as quickly as a wink.
Enjoy yourself, enjoy yourself. It’s later than you think.)