This much I’ve learned: Pip Jamieson

The best advice I ever got...

‘You are the average of the five people you hang out with most’, thanks to the brilliant Claud Williams, Founder and MD of Dreamnation - an amazing organisation that helps kids dream big.

The worst advice I ever got…

‘Don’t start a business, it will never work’ – haha obviously I completely ignored that one :-)

Don't underestimate…

The power of hiring positive people - who focus on solution not problems. Managing a team is hard enough, without politics setting in!  

Don't overestimate…

Key Performance Indicators (KPI’s) -  they’re the death of innovation. Try Objectives & Key Results (OKRS) instead - invented by Intel, made famous by Google. 

The experience that taught me most…

Working as an Economist under the (blind) former Home Secretary, David Blunkett - it taught me that diverse minds and disabilities can be a superpower, as often the world is seen, from a different perspective. 

The most fun I had…

Moving onto our Houseboat Horace - I started The Dots and Horace; nothing beats feeding the swans and doing the weekly shop in Little Horace our row boat.  

The worst moment...

I’m very dyslexic and have constantly struggled over the years. Saying that, I have learnt to see my dyslexia as a positive – well if 40 percent of self-made millionaires are dyslexic, there has to be something special going on, right? Sometimes you just have to laugh off the mistakes (and there have been plenty, I assure you), like the time I emailed my Dad with my university results, signing off ‘I told you I was a genius’ but accidentally wrote’ I told you I was a Guinness’!

My peak career experience…..

Without doubt founding No Collar network The Dots. It’s a magic feeling coming up with an idea and scaling it! Everyone thinks that LinkedIn is insurmountable, but there is a whole generation coming through that don’t want a traditional White Collar job.  I just love supporting them and helping make their professional dreams a reality.

Pip Jamieson is the founder and CEO of The Dots

This article originally appeared in our print title, Market Leader. Hear more from Pip at our event The Neurodiversity Fishbowl.