Alexander Fisken is a senior recruitment consultant at Hanami International. After four years in recruitment and two years at Hanami, we asked him for a quick reflection on his career to date, what he has learnt and what he now considers important.
Year 1
I already knew recruitment was a tough job. Paying rent on a London flat I never saw, earning £18,000/year, the once eagerly promised commission still far from reach. These were tough times. I learnt why recruitment companies value resilience so highly, I saw 11 graduates come and go in my first year, in an office of eight. It’s not for everyone.
Year 2
I saw the other side. The money, eating at Sushi Samba, flying BA club class, great opportunities. This was what I had been promised. It was fun, but not fulfilling. When told money is God, and you realise it isn’t, what do you do?
Year 3
Through a twist of fate, I joined finance and audit specialists, Hanami International. This was a chance to do business in a different way, in a company with core values that matched my own. Honesty, transparency and respect; three words that always meant a lot to me, and mean a lot to Hanami. Obviously, we must still make money, no business exists in a vacuum. However, I knew it would feel so much better trying to make money while also trying to change the world in our own small way. All big change starts with small change, right? I joined confident, self-assured. I had success behind me, of course I could do it. How wrong I was. This was a headlong jump back to tough times, tougher than before. Better though, more rewarding.
Year 4
And now we’re here. Two years have gone in a flash. I understand better why others do things their way, I value more than ever the effort to do things differently. Recruitment, career, life? I’ve come to appreciate there is no destination; we must instead be true to ourselves on the journey. Money affords many trinkets and treasures. True reward comes from embracing the journey, doing something you believe in with people you believe in.
