OXLAEYBe Careful What You Wish For
From Bergen, Norway, I flew with my bike to Amsterdam and rode southwards to the Dutch city of Eindhoven, home of XYZ. I signed a contract to become their new executive Vice President External Affairs.
What happened to traveling? What happened to “people are more important”?
I thought a lot about the job offer during the last few weeks of my bicycle trip. Starting a new job didn’t mean I had to give up my North Cape goals or even to re-priortize them. It would require a smarter work-life balance…
My two future bosses (who reported to the CEO), Mr. CTO and Mr. General Council, both promised me total entreprenural-styled control. They wanted me to completely build the PR and lobby teams, even if it would cost the company heavily in restructuring fees. One of the major goals was to save jobs in Eindhoven, rather than them being shifted overseas to Asia. I was very clear to them: I am not a “corporate” person. I don’t do baloney. I do things differently, but I will get you results.
Now I was in Eindhoven, The Netherlands, to sign the contract. I said to them, “Look out the window”. I’d set up my tent to dry outside the corporate headquarters, in view of Mr. General Council’s office.
Let’s be clear, dear Reader, anyone who has the gonads to arrive at their job interview in hiking gear & later set up their tent outside the boss’s office… that person is guaranteed to be an “out-of-the-box” thinker. I wasn’t trying to be disrespectful or provocative. I was simply trying to be transparent. I was doing my best to let the real me shine through. Besides, they had already met me in my suit a few times (and I didn’t even own one at this point in time) so I didn’t see a need to put on a show. This is one conviction I had won from from my voyage to the Nordkapp. Be yourself.
I felt the job was a unique opportunity. How many “carte blanche” opportunities to completely overhaul an entire department does one get in a career? I’d also get to fulfill a few of my new goals: to work in a new country and learn a new language. I’d also promised myself that in the future I would only work for and with people I felt were honest, open and genuine. I thought I had met two such people in Mr. CTO and Mr. General Council. In fact, during my job interview Mr. General Council had put his foot up on the table, obviously feeling pretty relaxed. At the time I thought, this person is obviously not afraid to be themselves.
So I signed the contract and took the job…. but not before negotiating one more month of vacation.
Next stop: Marseille, France!
