The end of August in Europe and Labor Day weekend increasingly signal what I describe as the “The Corporate New Year”, in the northern hemisphere. Executives, investors, bankers and advisers return from the joys of the East End, Stromboli or Antiparos to their offices. The Ralph Lauren satin wide legged trouser, the textured silk min flared Zeus + Dione dress and the limited edition Jacques Marie Mage sunglasses sit in the closet, a reminder of fun times with exotic and glamorous friends renewing acquaintances or new friendships.
Industry conferences and meetings click into rapid gear change in the first week of September, as precursor to predicting changes in the operating performance and impact on market valuations. The kids are back at school. An air of renewed vigour is in the air at a time of increasing global volatility and disruption.
Summer concerns about the outsized growth of global private credit and the impact on debt-fuelled aggregation of industries and sectors (financial services, business services and professional services) persist. The consequences of tariffs, migration, wars and political re-alignment are largely unchanged since Jannik Sinner grasped that Wimbledon trophy. Now the focus turns to Flushing Meadows, stock market indices scream wariness of big tech to the ongoing Sino-US hegemony battle. Wait for it, Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, is back with a new series feeding the carnivorous appetite of disgruntled journalists seeking easy click-bait to impress their peers and their editors.
We can allow our renewed energy and clearer head space to be directed towards events largely outside our control and influence (politics, economics and social concerns with close to zero impact) or we can concentrate on what we do have power, control and influence over (our own lives, careers, and opportunities)? Reinvesting in our own learning and skills or worrying endlessly about the impact of large language models, where even the world’s best experts can only hazard an educated guess about their impact. Where is your priority?
