How Would You Start Again?

Managementtoday.com’s  If I had to start again… feature on September 1 spotlights Sir Alan Jones, Chairman Emeritus of Toyota UK. He says if he were starting out in business today, he would “still choose the science and engineering route,” and he believes that more young people in the UK need to consider a similar career path, if the country is to remain competitive globally. A big reason is that so many people who work in these fields are over the age of 45, and there may not be enough high quality people to replace them in the future. I can’t get enough of these brief, first-person, what-I’ve-learned features written by people who have been successful and want to share their knowledge and experience. A similar, bite-sized Q&A ran almost exactly two years ago on independent.co.uk, My way: Sir Alan Jones, Toyota UK’s Chairman Emeritus, on opportunity. In the Management Today essay, Sir Alan says that it’s important to look for opportunities, make your own decisions, and if there are problems, learn from them and try not to worry about what’s happened in the past. “When I joined Toyota,” Sir Alan writes, “there was almost a farming culture there and a real belief in continuous improvement (kaizen).” He believes that people need to be inspired to believe they can change the world; others have done it and there is no reason that each of us as individuals can’t do the same, in our own way. Beyond the executive lessons represented by these essays, If I had to start again… should give food for thought to everyone. Suppose Managementtoday.com asked you to write your thoughts. What would you say? And if it looks like a good idea, what is stopping you from starting again?