It’s a common saying that a traumatic experience can bond you with those you share it with. Typically, it’s a loss, or a major event within your community, friend group or family. But what happens when this traumatic event is felt around the world like a groundswell? What happens when the crisis becomes everything anyone is talking about on any given day? How do you remain bonded with the world?
It’s not a coincidence that many of today’s Unicorns started after Lehman Brothers declared bankruptcy in September 2008 and the financial crisis ensued in 2009. During the period, Dropbox, Evernote, Spotify, Airbnb and Uber all started and got VC funding to spur growth as the economy was rocked by the financial crisis.
There are a lot of uncertain questions that come from events like this current global pandemic, stock market crashes, and 9/11. What I think matters most is that as a community, no matter how small or large, we band together. The next most important thing is what you take away and how you react to your world changing in the blink of an eye.
I experienced this in 1987. I had just joined Barings as a securities analyst. At the time, it was one of the top banks in the City of London and had a strong presence in Tokyo, selling Japanese stocks and other investment products. This was also my first role working from home in Silicon Valley. They didn’t have an office in the San Francisco Bay Area, and I asked them to please not open an office just for me, and save some of the budget. Besides, I had to report both to the New York and Tokyo offices daily, and commuting was definitely something I didn’t need nor want.
? Mayumi’s Message: Do not hesitate to ask what you need and want to perform your best and reach the team’s goals.
For my first day with Barings, they asked me to come to the London office to meet with the team and leadership. When I arrived at 8am sharp, I was led to a conference room, next to the trading floor. It sounded very busy, almost chaotic. This was on October 19, 1987. We had no iPhones to send you push notifications of breaking news, and no one was coming to talk to me. The financial market crashed that day, and would later be known as Black Monday. Everyone was too occupied with the crisis to deal with my onboarding.
Starting at the bottom of the market in this case, was something beneficial for me just beginning my role. Lots of investment positions and client accounts lost exorbitant amounts of money, but there was only one way to go: up! Our teams were open-minded, and we discussed what type of research reports our clients would love and how to differentiate from competition. Around that time, I learned the motto of successful traders: “eternally optimistic with amnesia.”
? Mayumi’s Message: Remain positive when all hope seems lost. You may not be able to control events, but you can focus on what you want to do, what you want to try, and how to differentiate yourself from your peers. A crisis is like an “AC” button, all clear.
Due to Covid-19, there has been a debate about employees working from home in towns that have a lower cost of living and whether their pay should be adjusted from their big-city wages. To me, employees in the same country should be valued for the output and contribution to the corporation on the same scale. While I was working remotely for some of the world’s largest banks from my home in Silicon Valley, it never occurred to me. I believe I was always paid fairly, sometimes at premium, and was very satisfied with my compensation. Plus they installed Reuters, and later Bloomberg Terminals at my home, which were several thousands of dollars per month back then. The reason was clear. They knew my ROI and I delivered quality, differentiated research that was useful for all our equity sales teams in NY, Tokyo and London.
?Mayumi’s Message:
1) Know your worth, and don’t hesitate to ask for the infrastructure that you need to perform your best.
2) Communicate proactively how you can contribute better to the team. Don’t wait until the performance review time, but check frequently with colleagues.
3) Try not to let your imagination go without facts. Working from home alone, you may feel lonely, and imagine negative situations that may be affecting you without any basis. But you can turn those feelings into positive action items, by basically doing “field interviews” and “market research” about your work with colleagues and clients.
My career was progressing. I was making a very good salary and bonuses. But I started to feel I would not want to be doing the same thing after I turned 40. I felt the change coming and knew that something bigger and better had to be around the corner. I loved studying and researching for innovative technology companies as an analyst. I also fondly remembered how much I enjoyed the pragmatic process to develop product market strategies at McKinsey. So when the dot-com bubble burst in 1999, I found the crisis as a sign.
? Mayumi’s Message: Let a crisis push you to launch something new that you always wanted to try. While you are at it, why not add a side hustle that creates synergy to learn new skills and test extra income sources?
Through all this, I learned to be brave in times of crisis, so I started my own consulting practice, MIV Consulting, in 1999 to help Silicon Valley startups and other US companies form strategic alliances with Japanese companies. I also became a cofounder of SOZO Design, an industrial design firm with several young designers. They designed innovative products, from computers, to cancer treatment laser equipment, to a new generation of diapers. They focused on design research, and I was one of the team members. I was also their HR and CFO. I wore many hats. I simply could not have done it all, if I was commuting to an office, wasting my time in traffic, nor being efficient at all hours. It was an exciting time.
Running SOZO’s HR and being a CFO taught me how much I don’t like paperwork, dealing with payroll etc that are inevitable if you have employees. I became resolved that my career path should stay on WFH as a solo entrepreneur without any full time employees, surrounded by talented design-oriented minds.
?Mayumi’s Message: Try and learn what you don’t like as quickly as possible. Design and build your career accordingly. WFH gives you the freedom to deliver excellent results in your own way. For inspiration, I enjoyed the book; Designing Your Life by Bill Burnett and Dave Evans.
Today, I run Chrysmela operations from home with a number of talented freelance professionals in PR, social media marketing and accounting.
As they say, we are entering the era of 100 year life span. I’ve made the transformations in times of crisis before. If we’re living to 100, I am ready for my next phase. I have a good set of tools to navigate and stay resilient, no matter what life may bring.
