Uncertainty is a Given. Now What?
John
McStayManaging Partner of John McStay and Associates
Friday, May 22, 2009 9 a.m.
Dean Gilligan, distinguished members of the
faculty, proud parents and honored graduates.
I am honored to have the privilege of sharing
in this remarkable time in your life. You are a distinguished
group with a record of meaningful achievement that began long before you
entered the University of Texas. It began in your home towns, in your
high schools, your grade schools, your Y sports and summer camps. It is
only because of that record of distinction you were admitted to UT.
And, without that record of accomplishment, you would have never been
admitted to The University of Texas McCombs School of Business. At this
point, you have jumped many hurdles and you have every reason to be
excited about the potential of a successful and promising future.
However, you are leaving what is in reality a rather small and a rather
secure environment for a great deal of uncertainty. So, for a few
minutes let’s talk about that uncertainty and how to deal with it.
My initial comment to you was that it was an
honor for me to be with you today. You might well ask “while it is
an honor for you, why are you here and what’s in it for me?” I hate to
add to your anxiety, but I have really struggled with that question.
I must confess I accepted the invitation without really knowing the
answer.
Is it possible that I actually have something
of value to say and, if so, can I say it in way that you can hear it?
I very much hope so as Dean Gilligan thinks that I do and I would hate
to embarrass him. Well, however relevant, I shall do it quickly as I
realize that I am nothing more than a speed bump standing in the way of
the brass ring for which you have so tirelessly worked.
In preparing for an event of this nature, so
many thoughts and remembrances go through my mind. Having been the proud
recipient of both an undergraduate business degree and graduate business
degree from this university, my parents in Vernon, Texas were quite
excited. My parents, like most of yours, had made serious sacrifices for
my college experience. They would have loved to have attended my
graduation, but in both instances I mistakenly thought it was more
important to get on with my life, as though a missed work week would be
a defining moment of time in my career. They would be very
surprised with my attendance today at my first UT graduation ceremony,
and even more so that I would be the one giving the commencement
address.
Well, after a great deal of soul searching, I
am going to mention three concepts I am confident will be very important
for you to understand. When you hear them – and by the way, you have
heard them before – you will be pretty sure they are too simple and too
elementary to be of any real value. Please, trust me for a few
minutes.
The first is to recognize that life is
unpredictable and much of what you have encountered and will encounter
in the future is beyond your control. Second, perseverance is the serum
for this randomness in life. And, third, be nice. Treat others the
way you would have them treat you.
I will give you an example of each of these
very simple concepts important to your life, to my life, and the life of
the person on your left and right.
First, life is unpredictable and some very
important things are out of your control. For example, looking back for
a moment, how many of you chose your race? How many of you chose your
parents? How many of you chose the country in which you were born? I
think we would agree that these are significant events and you were not
at the table participating in any of these decisions.
How many of you visualized your career with
the bull market economy of 2002-2007 as your backdrop? It would have
been reasonable, at least predictable, for you to have assumed that
would be your environment. But, instead, you find the job market to be
rather hostile. You find that just having a job, much less the job of
your dreams, is what has become important. Or you may find that you have
a job, but that suddenly your father or brother or sister does not. This
is a shocking change from a few years ago.
Well, things do change. In the business world
they are called recessions. And very few escape time in the penalty box
when they come around. They occur, on average, every seven years.
Each is different, but they all rest on the foundation of excess. The
current recession will end soon, but you will see others. Plan for
them. Learn from them. Grow with them.
Recognizing that it can be difficult to even
anticipate your next breath, much less life changes, I am reminded of
the man who died and appeared before St. Peter. “Have you ever done
anything of particular merit to get in Heaven?” St. Peter asked. “Well,
I can think of one thing,” the man offered. “once, on a trip through the
hill country of Texas, I came upon a gang of bikers who were threatening
a young woman. I told them to leave her alone, but they wouldn’t listen.
So, I walked up to the largest and most heavily tattooed biker and
smacked him in his face, kicked his bike over, ripped out his nose ring,
and threw it on the ground. I yelled, “Now back off!! Or I’ll whip all
of you right now!” St. Peter was impressed, “When did
this happen?” “Oh, just a couple of minutes ago.”
This was clearly something this gentleman had not planned.
While it is easy to focus on unforeseen
changes that relate to your business career, it is true in all aspects
of your life. Constant success, health, wealth and power are not
the natural state of man. When things are going well, be grateful, be
careful to give as much credit as you take. And when things are
difficult – persevere.
And this is the second concept –
perseverance. I described it as the serum or antidote to the
difficulties that will come your way. My guess is that you are
thinking, okay, I get it. I know that perseverance means to work
hard, attain some benchmark, and beat the student next to me. Well, not
exactly. In the world you are entering some of those attitudes can
get you in trouble rather quickly. In fact, they can be the enemies of
perseverance. Examples have to do with your expectations – the specific
expectations of instant gratification, ego and pride. These are deadly
characteristics in the business world. They are not uncommon, but in the
long run, deadly none-the-less. The world you are entering is not
concerned about the pace at which you expect to find success or whether
your job allows you “to be in touch with your inner feelings”. In other
words, it is not about you.
The perseverance I speak of allows you to
appreciate hardship, to learn from it and to use it to your advantage.
Let me tell you a quick personal story. When I left UT’s Master of
Business program in 1966 to work in the investment industry, the Dow
Jones Industrial Average had just hit 1000 and was on its way to 570.
Little did I know that my entry point coincided with the beginning of a
secular bear market that lasted the following 15 years! The Dow did not
reach the 1000 level again until 1982. I assure you, by that time all
the investment clubs had become support groups! Believe me, that 15
years was a learning experience. You will find, as I did, that in
adversity you will learn things that simply would not happen in a bull
market with the wind at your back. When you go to work every day knowing
that whatever flaw your research did not detect will be, in time, left
open and visible to the market, it makes you a better analyst, a better
manager, a better student of the game you are in. As counter-intuitive
as it may seem, embrace the challenge of hardships.
And, finally the third concept – be nice.
Show up early, do what you say you will do. Say please and thank you,
smile and laugh out loud. In the late ‘80s, Robert Fulghum
published a book entitled All I Really Need to Know I Learned in
Kindergarten. There is marvelous wisdom in that thought. Never
underestimate the power of your personality – not necessarily in being
the most fun guy in the room, though I’m told that is nice – but in the
context of being a leader. I am reminded of a recent meeting I had with
a young man seeking my advice. In the course of our time together
he told me he wanted to be a leader and how could he achieve that. My
response was that it wasn’t up to him, but rather whether others choose
to follow. Leading by example, and leading because others want to
follow, is the only sure way to successful leadership.
Well, there you have it. Three very simple
things that seem to characterize the essence of my career – anticipate
change, persevere, and be nice, treat others the way you would have them
treat you.
I conclude with a challenge to you. You
find yourself at the threshold of a new and different life. You owe it
to yourself to strive for nothing short of excellence in all that you do
and in each relationship that comes your way. Recognize that each
relationship is a gift that comes into your life for a period of time,
but never forever. Treat each gently.
You are the gifted. You are the blessed. And
you carry the torch of the University of Texas McCombs School of
Business. Carry it well.
More info:
Lauren
Cove
For information on speaking events at McCombs, contact Public Affairs Representative Gayle Hight, 512-475-6423, gayle.hight@mccombs.utexas.edu.
