~15 years in IB & PE, mostly in the U.K., also a couple of years in Nigeria.

Hated it.

The toxicity!

One day, I’ll share.

Until then, here’s what I’m saying to career women especially:

Be yourself. Speak up. Walk away.

At any age.

Never be ashamed or afraid to restart.

There’s so much toxicity in work cultures that value conformity and reward “expertise” in very early careers.

Work cultures that insist that you’re only “good” if you talk, think, dress a certain way...

...that undervalue creativity and reject diversity beyond the superficial.

Watch carefully - those are the same cultures that systematically produce blowhards...

...that often struggle to operate without the familiar infrastructure and the comfort of the unspoken rules of their industry.