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Barbering, Hustling, and Hard Work: Unusual Skills That Prepared Me for Corporate America

 

Looking back at my career today, with my rise to the top of the major engineering firms, such as SmithGroup, WSP, and eventually Introba within the Sidara network, people tend to think that my leadership skills were developed in the conference rooms or on the university campus, or through corporate mentorship programs. The reality is however, much more surprising. These were the most fundamental skills that equipped me to work in corporate America and these were acquired in my childhood days and during my teenage life in Jamaican ghetto of Shaolin where hustle was a way of life and hard work was not a choice, but rather a necessity. In From Grit to Glory, I reveal the character traits that were developed through barbering, hustling, and day-to-day discipline and led me up the ladder to executive leadership.

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One of my very first duties was barbering and I learned much more than how to cut hair. My humble barbering shop in Shaolin was soon transformed into a service to the society. Individuals would not only come to get their hair cut but also chat, bond and confide. Being a manager of my small barbershop, I was forced to figure out how to manage time, customer care, and communication skills much earlier before I attended a meeting with a corporation. All the clients demanded quality, reliability, and professionalism. I had learned at a young age that trust is a type of currency- and to maintain that trust one had to be consistent.

Another thing that barbering taught me is discipline. I could not do half of an act of cutting hair. Every detail mattered. In case of rushing, it reflected in the results. I was not a distracted person and the customer did not miss it. These lessons at an early age then assisted me in handling engineering tasks that needed accuracy, managerial tasks that needed dependability, and company tasks that needed diligence

Another thing I learned was hustling. Hustle in Shaolin was not about cutting corners and pursuing shortcuts, but rather, survival and creativity. Selling box drinks and bag juice to climbing the June plum trees and making seasoned fruit ready to share with school mates taught me to make solutions out of limited resources.

The option of not working hard was just unavailable in Shaolin. In each household, hard work was required and all children understood that there was no guarantee of opportunity. My parents and grandmother used to work long hours, which taught me a lesson of making an appearance even when things were not right. The work ethic was integrated into my personality whether I was working on callaloo, selling snacks, or cutting hair into the late hours of the night. Further on, in college (sports, school, and finances), the training that I received as a child helped me out.

That learning came in very handy when I had to face one of my most difficult times in life, my motorbike accident, in the course of my university life. It required the physical and mental strength to recuperate. It demanded time and dedication. It needed the kind of determination that I had cultivated in Shaolin in hustling. I used my hard work-induced resilience to overcome the accident instead of letting it destroy my dreams.

These initial lessons proved useful even when I emigrated, Jamaica to Trinidad to London, and, lastly, the United States. When I entered professional circles, where the number of people who aided my background was very few, I knew that my bizarre skills were my competitive edge. The process of barbering also taught me how to deal with various personalities in a confident manner. Hustling made me realize that you have to grab a chance and be flexible. Working hard has taught me the importance of being accountable, consistent, and not giving up even when the doors are closed or when things get tough.

When I developed as an engineer and became a leader in some of the largest companies all over the world, I applied the principles that I was taught in Shaolin and that is how I dealt with my teamwork, mentoring, and decisions. I acquired that I should be a good listener, be resourceful in my thinking and appreciate the human face of leadership. I knew that you can be more successful with titles, but it is service, which barbering taught me well before I first stepped into my first office.


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