I find it almost impossible to believe that it was 5 years ago today that Ad Idem was created, where does time go?
I was a fiercely ambitious recruiter with no idea whatsoever about running a business, controlling costs and dealing with back office operations. I had worked for years for someone else, generated millions of revenue for shareholders, and I reached a time in my life where I wanted to do it for myself.
So post-divorce, a single mum with 2 kids and a 18 year old Spanish nanny in tow, I decided it was now or never. Many of my friends and family warned me against taking the risk, I was 43 for Christ’s sake and had enjoyed 20 years of other people paying my wages and rewarding me handsomely for the generation of revenue. But I knew I had the vision of growing something and I knew it was something I was desperate to do for myself. With the support of an investor and a punchy business plan, a list of my loyal clients, a laptop and bags and bags of positivity and determination, Ad Idem was born in my bedroom in Jan 2016.
In reflecting on the our journey to date I have learned more in 5 years than in all of my career put together. I have acknowledged that the destination we are heading in remains clear but that the route and path to that goal has to be flexible, hitting obstacles, road blocks, and brick walls. I have learned that making mistakes is inevitable and will never be afraid to say that lessons learned from failure are those that make us better at what we do.
Would I have wanted to be further down the road than I am? Definitely. Did I dream big initially? Yes! But am I proud of what we have built collectively as a team? Absolutely. We navigated through a Covid-19 pandemic and that has to be my proudest professional achievement to date.
For anyone thinking of starting their own business and seizing an opportunity or idea and doing something for themselves I would say it is not for the faint hearted, It is not for those who aren’t able to put all of their heart and soul into making it a success. However to those who think it’s an impossible goal, something that others do and not you, I would urge you to think again. It is right within your grasp.
What does it take to be successful in these tough times? It takes passion, determination and bags and bags of resilience and hard work, day in day out. In the last 5 years I have learned to delegate, lead, listen, to learn from errors made and to take risks. I have learned to trust my gut, surround myself with like-minded passionate people and to above all to be humble in everything we do. Our industry has a reputation for ego, arrogance and bluster, however I am proud to have a business that stands for partnership, honesty and collaboration. 2021 has not started as we had all hoped – another hiccup, another side hustle may be necessary, but I can still see that destination I set out to reach 60 months ago. I have a team that I am incredibly proud of working with, who have as much passion and energy as myself, and all of us pulling in the same direction. The future feels bright despite the attempts of Covid-19 to prove otherwise.
So today we celebrate how far we have come, the people we have hired, the clients we have delivered to and the candidates we have placed. We are celebrating virtually, appreciating what we have built, and positively stride into the next 5 years with hope, energy and resilience…
