Ep 49 When You Stop Climbing the Mountain
For much of our careers, success is about moving upwards. The next role, the bigger challenge, more responsibility, more recognition. But what happens when you realise you’re no longer interested in reaching the next peak? Roberto Funari spent almost four decades building an international executive career, including serving as Global CEO of Alpargatas. Two weeks after leaving that role, a cycling accident left him dealing with memory loss and without the sense of control he had spent much of his career learning to master. Before the accident, his plan had been another executive role. In his words, “basically more of the same.” In this conversation, Roberto speaks with Angela about what happened when that path stopped feeling inevitable. They explore the difference between your identity and your job title, why successful executives can become attached to status, recognition and control and why Roberto believes fulfilment can come from going “inside the mountain” rather than continuing to climb towards the next peak. Roberto also talks about testing a return to the CEO world before realising he no longer wanted it, experimenting with different ways of working and learning that being capable of doing something doesn’t necessarily mean you want to do it. And they explore a different way of thinking about time: if we may have another 20 or 30 years of healthy, active life ahead of us, perhaps we don’t need to immediately fill all the space we create. Connect with Roberto: LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/robertofunari/ Connect and show support: LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/angelajscottuk/ Instagram: instagram.com/iam_angelajoy Email: angela@joynergi.com Buy me a coffee: buymeacoffee.com/angelajoyscott
