10/07/2025
A message to 16 year old me.... one of the biggest unlocks early in your career will be "proximity"...
If you’re around people who challenge your thinking and stretch your standards, that's a really important blessing.
The thing you will work on matters a lot less than the calibre of the people around you.
If people are impressed by you that's great - but you need to keep asking a more important question... am I impressed by them? am I learning from them? do I aspire to be more like them?
If your answer is no, you are probably in the wrong room.
The most valuable environments you will be in will not flatter you - they will humble you - they will make you raise your game and frankly make you a little nervous.
If you're treated like the most capable person in any room - take it as both a compliment and a warning.
If you want to grow at the pace you’re capable of, you will need great friction.
You need to feel slightly out of your depth.
You need to look around and think, “I’ve got work to do.”
Because potential without pressure is just potential!
So you’ve got a choice: fight to bring smarter people into the room you’re in - or go and find a better room.
