Earlier this year, I spent weeks travelling between treasury conferences, events and meetings.
- Texas
- Liverpool
- The West Coast
- London
- Amsterdam
At one point, I got back from the US on a Sunday, drove to Liverpool on the Monday, spoke at the UK Treasurers conference, came home, and then got on another plane to the Netherlands!
It was brutal.
I remember thinking:
Why am I doing this to myself?
Then I gave myself a fairly simple answer.
Shut up and do your job, Mike.
Because my job is to be wherever treasury professionals are.
Over those 6 weeks, I was in the room with over 3,000 treasury professionals.
I didn’t get to speak to every single one of them. But I had hundreds of real conversations about careers, recruitment, technology, salaries and the challenges treasury teams are facing.
Those conversations don’t happen while I’m sitting behind my desk.
I could have stayed at home. There were certainly moments when I would have preferred to (rather than being stuck in an airport for a four-hour layover).
And when I finally had a few weeks without a plane, train, or long drive, someone asked me what I was enjoying most.
My answer was:
“Doing nothing.”
I enjoyed being at home, catching up with work, and having a bit of normality again.
Anyone who travels a lot for work will tell you that travelling isn’t glamorous.
It’s work.
I’m not flying to Las Vegas later this year with the thought of extending the trip and spending a week by the pool. I’ll arrive, speak to treasury professionals, do the work, and get back on the plane.
But that investment of time is also why we are now so busy.
We have more roles coming through from the US.
Our events are growing.
I’ve been given opportunities that I could never have imagined a few years ago.
And that all started with putting my hand up and saying yes.
“Would you like to speak in Chicago?”
Yes.
“Can you come to Liverpool?”
Yes.
“Would you like to run another session in the US?”
Yes.
I’ll be honest, I don’t enjoy public speaking.
I never wake up excited about standing on a stage in front of hundreds of people.
But saying yes has taken me outside my comfort zone and opened doors that would never have opened if I’d stayed at home.
More importantly, it has allowed me to make a real difference to people’s careers.
At our recent Treasury Career Corner LIVE event in London, James Kelly asked Louise Woodroffe, Head of Treasury at Hastings Direct:
“Louise, who were the people who helped you progress and who helped you believe that you could be more, and what impact did it have on you?”
Her immediate answer was:
“Mike Richards.”
I’ve placed Louise previously, but hearing her say that in front of a room full of people genuinely stopped me in my tracks.
And no, I didn’t pay her to say it!
You can watch the moment here:
https://youtu.be/wGEbc2Yf1b0?si=uZceUhRE7f0smgA1&t=167
That is why I keep travelling.
It isn’t about collecting air miles or posting photographs from different cities.
It’s about being present, meeting people where they are, understanding what they are dealing with, and helping when I can.
You cannot attend one big treasury conference each year and expect to meet the whole profession.
Not everyone goes to the same event. And the US alone is enormous.
That’s why I go to Texas, New York, Chicago and the West Coast.
It’s why I attend events in London, Liverpool, Amsterdam, Barcelona and Luxembourg.
You have to go where the people are.
So I’m finally looking forward to a slightly more balanced travel schedule for the rest of the year.
But I’ll still be getting on the plane.
Because every time I consider staying behind my desk, I remind myself of all the conversations, roles and opportunities that started because I decided to show up.
Sometimes the answer really is that simple:
Shut up and do the job!
Best regards,
Mike
P.S. If you see me at an upcoming treasury event, come and say hello. The best conversations don’t always happen on the stage, they happen in the room.
