Sixteen years ago I took my first management job in the role of supervisor for the Quality Review Department for a health insurance company. 

I asked my dad for advice. His response was that I was going to have to change my whole way of operating, from how I talk to people to even how I dress. He said,

“It may mean the difference between a twenty dollar pair of trousers and a forty dollar pair of trousers.”

I thought it was interesting that of all the things I should consider, he highlighted trousers at the top of the list. 

I asked a coworker for advice, and he was more focused on the financial aspect. He noted that as I moved up the corporate ladder, I should be saving money so that I can eventually buy a house. He also said that once you have a mortgage, that becomes a top priority. You must always pay that mortgage on time and never be late. He said, “If my bank account ever got below $2,000, I’d piss my pants. Since I was still living in an apartment at the time and barely making ends meet, I told him if my bank account ever got above $2,000, I’d piss my pants.” Of course, I couldn’t be doing anything like that once I got the management job or I’d ruin a perfectly good pair of forty-dollar trousers.

This is the topic of today’s podcast episode, which has been quite a popular one.