Twenty years ago, I left my senior leadership role at National Australia Bank.

Three years ago, I wrote a post on the seventeen things I had learnt over seventeen years. It was one of my most popular posts and I had many people tell me they printed it out and put it on their fridge or desk.

I thought it was worth another share as I keep adding another insight each year. So, we are now up to twenty things over twenty years.

Twenty Things

In no particular order, here are the twenty things that I know to be true for me.

1. Don’t wait to be good at something before you do it.
2. Put effort into maintaining and strengthening relationships.
3. Be yourself, don’t pretend to be someone else… unless you are a dickhead, then pretend to be someone else.
4. Be easy and fun to work with.
5. It will be alright in the end. If it’s not alright… it’s not the end.
6. Outsource stuff that you are not good at and does not give you energy.
7. Discuss price openly at initial sales meetings – written proposals are overrated.
8. Don’t leave a meeting with work to do (see above for case in point).
9. Invest in your own professional development and keep investing in you.
10. Avoid doing something out of pure obligation to others… it rarely ends well.
11. Take control of your brand.
12. Get good at saying yes to opportunities.
13. Get better at saying no to stuff that doesn’t excite you.
14. If you want a life by design, then design it and stay true to it (see above two previous points).
15. Know your non-negotiables. If it is important to you, prioritise it and put it in your diary.
16. Actively maintain your energy… know what works for you and what doesn’t.
17. Busy is overrated. Bored is undervalued.
18. Have at least one holiday planned and organised each year.
19. Look for ways to challenge yourself.
20. If it is not a hell yes than it is a f@%k no.