Reboot, Part 1
I mentioned in one of my earlier posts that I would be making a life changing decision. After about 9 months of deliberation, I have made the decision to leave Egon Zehnder by the end of the year.
It was certainly not an easy decision, and on one hand I am sad to leave this Firm which I love, which has defined and been my life for the last 22 years, also to leave a profession I really enjoyed and have thrived in and finally to leave many great friends and colleagues. But on the other hand I am looking forward to starting a new chapter in my career and life as a "young at heart" 55 year old :)
I am grateful for the trust given by all my clients and candidates, and for the opportunity to work with many of you as well as with many colleagues from around the world, and for the many friendships built over the years as a result. I would not have been blessed like this if not for the wisdom and generosity of Mr Egon Zehnder whom in 1974 opened up his Firm so that many of us in Egon Zehnder could become Partners and owners in his great Firm. I will be forever indebted to this great man whom I so much respect, admire and adore.
How did this all start?
About 2 years ago I went to an Egon Zehnder training designed and facilitated by Mobius Executive Leadership. It helped me to look deep into myself and my life journey to that date. I discovered that I needed to rethink my future and to engage the dreamer in me. I came out of the training refreshed and went on another renewal journey in the Firm. Then about a year ago, in a discussion with my friend Nick Chia about how technology is changing the world, he suggested and encouraged me to embrace social media to reach out to more people and increase my sphere of influence. That’s when I started to be more active in LinkedIn which in the course of the year, through the articles and sharing of insights from leaders around the world added more trigger points for me to rethink my life, to think of trying something new, to dare to take risk and to be bold in making calculated decisions and to change. In a funny way as I look back and read all the history of my likes, shares and comments, LinkedIn has sort of been my diary. One of my roles as an executive search consultant is as a “career option” maker, so I also then started to imagine and think about what other career options could be interesting for me.
I feel after 22 years in the executive search industry, that I have been successful and perhaps mastered the art of executive search, but the other side to mastery and success is a comfort zone which could lead to complacency. I believe I could comfortably work until 62, and that I would also want to continue to work beyond 62. Therefore if I wanted to start something new in my career, that it would be better to start something new now at 55 than at 62. I am grateful for the many friends who were there for me to advise and counsel me, and help me to make the decision to change and find renewal outside the Firm.
The original plan was to take some time off in January and then to start exploring other career options, but as it stands, (similar to my daughter's applying for an "Early Decision" into college) I am also faced with a similar early decision. I received an offer from a client, whom I have been working for continuously since 1998. Things have moved so fast, and I am humbled and honored with the trust and confidence given to me and therefore I have decided to accept and will join PT HM Sampoerna Tbk (Philip Morris International) starting in January 2018. At about the time I made my decision, Satya Nadella released his autobiography "Hit Refresh" on “renewal” which sort of reaffirmed my decision, and to which my friend Diono later commented :
"Joe its not Renewal for you, its Reboot".
The original article was published in LinkedIn by Johannes Wardhana: Link