Saturday 28 October 2017

Reunion Learnings

What did I learn from the reunion of the Commercial Bank of Australia, Melbourne Office that took place last night?

Perhaps the first and most obvious thing is the fundamental personality of those attending had not changed during the intervening 30 plus years. Everyone was the same person, despite individual paths of very different destinations.

The banter of protagonists of our youth picked up where it left off all those years ago. The quiet observers were still the quiet ones and the extraverts were unchanged as well.

Age may have wrinkled smiles but they were the same smiles none-the-less.

Many stories were told and re-told about the fun we had back then. It is impossible to imagine the one hour 10 beer lunches taking place in this day and age. In reality, it is impossible to imagine they took place back then. What were we thinking?

Perhaps what was most educational was the affection we all held in our hearts of that time spent together in our 20’s.

Everyone, without exception, articulated the time spent working at the CBA Melbourne Office in the iconic 335 Collins Street office was the best working experience of their career. We recalled how much we learned about business, ourselves, life and cooperation. We all took great pride on what we were doing and we all had fun doing it.

Ironically, it is only afterwards, perhaps only now that we realise this.

The biggest learning is to be far more in the moment, to enjoy the present while it is the present, rather than only realising it was the best time of a long career, 30 years later.

To my friends and colleagues of all those years ago, thank you.

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