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The Other Side of the Desk

This weekend was a recruiting trip to NSHMBA in Minneapolis, MN. This is one point in time where a group of hopeful MBA's hit the networking trail hard to try and find a job in Corporate America. Given the location, Target was a prominent sponsor. They had red carpet, red flashy bobbles, and the Target logo everywhere. I'll admit, I almost want to go over there and talk about potential opportunities.
This year, I was recruiting for potential Sr. Consultants at our firm. If there is one thing I enjoy, it's definitely talking to smart and hopeful candidates. There are definitely some impressive ones and many of them have pretty incredible resumes.
As I was sitting on one side of the desk reading the same case for what seems like the umpteenth time, I thought to myself, "Man, I'm pretty lucky to have a job." Then I quickly thought to myself, "Man, how lucky can I stay?"
The one thing about my job is that for it to be a career, there is luck involved. Just because I may want to be a partner someday doesn't mean that I'm actually going to be a partner. There are others that control that decision - the partnership, clients, relatives, friends, pets, Kevin Bacon.
In all seriousness, up to a certain point in this business I think you can control your career path. But there's a point where the lottery has got to hit and you have to place the right bets on clients and opportunities to chase. If you bet incorrectly, you end up being that guy in the suit on the other side of the desk.

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