The power of words

I remember vividly my first job out of Uni, being a small accounting practice in Bristol. I loved the people and the social but I really struggled with the work.

I recall the day when the Tax Partner called me in and fired me. I had only been there 4 months. There was no warning, no second chance, and I couldn’t even go and say goodbye to the team. It was brutal – all the more for being my first job as an Accounting & Finance graduate. Just not the start you expect.

But I’m actually grateful to him. Partly because I was given a very harsh reality check. It seemed life didn’t in fact owe me a living, a principle that still serves me well today.

But, the main reason I’m grateful to him is because he said to me, and I quote:

"Adrian, you will never qualify as an Accountant."

And this was before I had even started studying!

Over the coming days and weeks, as I overcame the setback and found a new job, his words still rang in my head. However, rather than defeat me I chose to make them a real “F.U.” moment and became determined to qualify to prove him wrong.

4 years later I was fully qualified (CIMA). I will openly admit I didn’t find the exams easy, but in those difficult moments, I would remember those words and they stirred a real “I won’t be beaten” mentality, and I’m convinced this helped me prevail.

My point is that words can have real power, but this goes both ways – they can literally make or break someone.

So I have 2 questions for you if you’ve read this far:

1) Do you always consider the impact your works might have?

2) Are you aware of the impact today of what someone has said to you in the past, good

or bad?