When it comes to both your personal life and professional life, your peer group profoundly impacts… well, everything. Your peers influence whom you socialize with, who becomes members of your professional network, what socially derived expectations you do or don’t have for yourself, and the filter by which you consider all life decisions. If you [...]
success in industry
When most people hear the words “corporate politics,” it’s usually perceived as a negative. I don’t think this is the right way to think of politics. It doesn’t matter if corporate politics is good or bad. What matters is that regardless of your view on it, it exists and must be managed in order for [...]
Most people who get an Ivy League MBA do so to get a coveted job at a consulting firm, investment bank, or in industry. They aspire to be a McKinsey partner, a Goldman Sachs partner, a startup CEO or a leader in industry. Many get an MBA to avoid the most “blue collar” of professional [...]
When I was at McKinsey, fact-based, well-reasoned logic was prized. It didn’t matter if you were in your 15th year at McKinsey or your first 15 days, the person with the logical conclusion ruled the day. I remember being repeatedly told that if I had the logical conclusion demonstrating that the Partner’s thinking was wrong, [...]
My favorite question to ask my teachers and mentors is “who are your teachers and mentors?” I thought I’d introduce you to one of my teachers. I first met him when he was 24 years old and possessed an incredible amount of knowledge, wisdom, and experience — far surpassing his biological age. He dropped out [...]
The market of a rising star career path involves getting jobs with increasingly greater responsibility in a relatively short period of time. The average professional expects (incorrectly) that if they simply do a good job, that’s the basis for getting promoted. This thinking leads to… S L O W career progress. Here’s why. Employers like [...]
Clear thinking leads to clear writing. Fuzzy writing often reflects fuzzy thinking. One of the best ways to improve your thinking is to articulate your thoughts in writing. When you write out your thoughts, you have something to analyze, revise, and improve. Editing = Clarifying Your Thinking The more your write and edit, the clearer [...]
An engineer engineers. A marketer markets. A salesperson sells. A finance professional finances. A CEO… “CEOs”??? Unlike all other roles in a company, the word “CEO” is not a function. There is no CEO department. The engineer thinks about how to engineer a solution to a problem. A marketer thinks about how to market a [...]
A friend of mine flies airplanes as a hobby. As a smart person, he doesn’t like taking unnecessary risks. Every month he reads a monthly publication that includes the forensic analysis of every plane crash that has happened in the United States. Unlike car crashes that aren’t always investigated, the Federal government investigates every plane [...]
The #1 reason new McKinsey consultants get fired is what I call the firm’s “kiss of death.” What offense could be so egregious to warrant being fired? It occurs when it’s been determined that you’re… “Uncoachable.” Huh? The McKinsey culture involves others giving you a lot of feedback on how to improve your performance. It [...]