How a former M&A lawyer found his place in investment risk management

What I've learned is that there aren't many skills which aren't going to be useful for you at some stage. So giving something a go and learning as part of that process is something which you’re rarely going to regret. 

Law is something which was attractive to me, but I found after a few years of law that I definitely was not cut out to do that forever. I don't think it used all the things I was good at and the skills I had. 

I enjoy playing with numbers and understanding how they work, but also the way of working, I found very isolating. I needed to be out there. I needed to be communicating, getting new ideas and finding solutions as part of a team environment. And I found that here in asset management. 

I moved on to London Business School where I did a Masters in Finance. Now, that was 2010, it was a difficult time to, well, do anything after the global financial crisis. What I saw around me were lots of entrepreneurial spirits who'd taken time out in the middle of their career to learn more and push themselves in a new direction. I can still remember the pitch decks which we were given for a new client who was setting up a hedge fund. I remember reading about their strategy. I remember thinking, this was really fun, and I'm excited to get these guys on the road. 

What I enjoy most about asset management is that it's a team game. There's an organization which has a lot of different roles and everyone's working together. I'm lucky in that I've had a varied career journey, and I've got a lot of skills which come with that. Where my skills are useful in this business are that I have experience across a lot of those areas. I've been a corporate and M&A lawyer. I've worked in venture capital with startups, trying to help businesses at the early stages of their lives. 

If I had to give my younger self some advice, I'd tell them three things. I tell them, you're on a journey. You're growing. With a growth mindset, I understand that everything I'm doing is part of that journey, and is something which I can take with me and take the experience from and make me stronger going forward. I'd also say try not to use the word, “just”. Don't think that's just stupid or that's just the way it is. Look past it. Try and understand the things you see and understand what's behind them. And finally, I'd say celebrate. Take an opportunity to reward yourself because you deserve it. 

Every day there's going to be plenty of hard work to do. But it's not every day where you achieve something. So go and celebrate it.