An eminent talent agent and manager, Professor Jonathan Shalit OBE, has revealed that he brings meetings to an end if anyone laments that 'the business isn't what it was' or 'things aren't like how they were'. He argues that such thinking is pointless and that staying relevant requires focusing on the present rather than the past.
Shalit's approach has prompted a columnist to reflect on his own mindset, which he describes as the complete opposite. He admits to being plagued by bad memories, even during tasks such as golf, where past failures flash before him on the backswing, preventing him from achieving positive outcomes.
The author recalls a recent visit to Heathrow Terminal 3, which he found to be jam-packed, tatty, and chaotic, with high prices for coffee, water, and parking. He contrasts this with the terminal's refurbishment in the early 1990s, which he describes as magnificent, and laments the loss of those better days.
Despite recognizing the futility of such nostalgia, the author struggles to shake it. He vows to change his ways and adopt Shalit's forward-looking mindset, admitting that dwelling on the past is a form of 'stinking thinking' that holds him back.
