Introducing the Hippy In A Suit
I’m told that, at a dinner party that I couldn’t attend, a friend was struggling to think of a way to describe me to another guest. After scratching his head for a while he settled on “Stephen is like a hippy in a suit”. Apparently the other guests agreed that he had it about right.
So, how did I earn that title?
The suit part is easy. I do like a nice suit. I have a job that allows me to wear one when I choose. And I have inappropriately strong opinions on how they should be buttoned (ask if you really want to know).
But, hippy, really? Where on earth does that come from? I mean, look at me. Do I look like a hippy to you?
I laughed when I heard it, but over the following months I checked with some colleagues and they all seemed to agree that it was fair description of me as a person. So I decided to own it, to embrace it and to reflect on it. It’s an unusual combination of attributes don’t you think?
It was only when I wrote this article for the Corporate Rebels website that I finally understood where it comes from.
In my career I have been fortunate to learn from some wonderful experiences and I have been moderately successful. I worked for Hewlett-Packard in France when Bill Hewlett still ran the firm. I worked in a startup in London in the dot-com boom and…
