Inspiring as the start of each new Gregorian cycle may be (which I fully acknowledge as a hopeless stickler for beginnings), there is also something to be said for the accompanying pressure of annual reinvention and the artificial promise of an entirely fresh start. There are indeed a good number of things that need to be fresh and crisp to be truly savoured, but perhaps the new year is not one of them. Rather than succumbing to the pressure of showing up as entirely new and improved, it may potentially be more compelling to recognise and embrace our layers, the stuff that arises out of the continuity and fluidity of our ongoing life and learning experience. As a lawyer, perhaps these concepts are beyond the areas of my expertise or ideological realm of comfort. As I walk back slowly, the purpose of this note is not to descend into a philosophical diatribe around an optimal approach to life and living. Instead, it is to share my personal intention to traverse the new year as the same me, but equipped with the few lessons that form part of my most recently acquired layers.  These are some of them.

Authenticity - Urgh!

Authenticity may have become an overused, broadly-framed buzzword that offers little direction except to serve as the panacea for success - "show up as yourself", they say "and you are sure to make it".  But encouraging authenticity within environments that foster homogeneity or impose a "fit-in" culture makes the task of being authentic much harder than fitting into someone else's world. Showing up as ourselves is arguably much more tricky than the buzzword captures. Going forward, my focus will be on the inclusion project so that showing up is an outcome that arises out of an enabling environment, not an obligation or a prerequisite for success.

Let's talk about our mistakes

We are all fallible. We all make mistakes. It is inextricably linked, in my view, to developmental learning. I want to recognise and be more open about my own mistakes. I want to challenge the quintessential idea of perfection. Instead of saying "They are the perfect employee; they are meticulous and hardly make mistakes", I want to be able to say "They are the perfect employee; they are meticulous and own, talk about and learn from their mistakes".

Constant velocity, zero acceleration

In typically hierarchical institutions, entrenched perceptions around the correlation between age and efficacy is often an impediment to maximising true growth potential.  Grey hair is more trusted and younger talent need maximum resilience to endure the hard years, relying singularly on years of experience in a "constant velocity, zero acceleration" model.  There is a rigidity associated with age that is perhaps worth reconsidering in order to harness complementary skills and maximise overall potential.

Not another buzzword!

Work life balance is hard, especially as one is climbing the ladder. Again, it can be an over-used buzzword but equally, a mirage in the dessert.  There may be a tendency for performative, box-ticking initiatives, including wellness programmes that operate, precariously and sometimes paradoxically, alongside driving output rigorously. In my view, wellness and work-life balance transcend the wellness programme - it becomes more meaningful when it involves two things: (i) bespoke conversations around individualised needs; and (ii) a willingness to accommodate those needs in a manner that suits business.  Enhanced output is potentially a consequence of these brave conversations!

2022 Post-it reminders for myself

As we head back into the office in 2022, I developed some notes to self that arise from all the layers and will hopefully help me develop more:

• Remain uncompromising on values and closest to your truest self
• Resilience does not require inflexibility - it is okay to capitulate, give-in and change course
• Listen to connect, not to retort
• Ask more questions
• Part of your agenda is to foster enabling, inclusive spaces
• Remember and recognise your privilege
• Don't take yourself too seriously
• Acknowledge your mistakes and celebrate your infallibility
• Have honest conversations - needing things is not a weakness, expressing them is not a weakness either
• Make courageous decisions, including choosing vulnerability
• Have loads of fun - it is in the joy that there is true purpose!

Happy New Year!

Written by Lerisha Naidu, partner and Head of Baker McKenzie's Antitrust & Competition Practice Group in Johannesburg, a member of the office’s Management Committee and head of its Diversity and Inclusion Committee. She advises international and domestic clients in mergers and acquisitions, prohibited practices (including cartel-related matters), and compliance and risk mitigation.