This article was originally written on October 12, 2026.
It was my turn to present before the Management Committee that Saturday morning. It was our Monthly Profitability Report Session that we call MPR. All Branch Managers are required to give a feedback on the performance of their branches along various metrics.
I had come prepared that day. The previous month was exceptionally good. We had made some record profits and I was proud to share the achievements of my Branch. During MPR, the voices of those who had done well would always be loud. If your performance was shambolic, you hid your face and prepared for the worst—what we called ‘shredding’.
MPR as we used to have it then wasn’t for the faint-hearted. People came to defend their ‘shirts’. It was usually very rigorous. You could be praised this month and be ‘shredded’ the following month. No one lived on past glory. You are supposed to improve progressively. I believe that’s a picture of life. You cannot live on past glory. Success is a rolling stone, a moving target. Yesterday’s dinner is gone. You must prepare fresh breakfast or you starve.
Past success is not a permanent achievement. Keep raising your standards, because what worked yesterday may not be enough for tomorrow. Share on XSo on this particular occasion, I marched out with so much confidence as I projected my slides. I spoke on the major highlights and x-rayed the branch profitability to the applause of the audience. I basked in the euphoria of the moment. A few comments from the audience were very complimentary.
Until when I saw the hand of one of my bosses go up. I had worked with her in a previous organisation. When she spoke, she asked me to flip back to certain pages and started comparing what I had done to the opportunities that existed in that particular location. The more she spoke, the more those achievements paled into insignificance. She finished her review by saying, “Bayo, this is not the real you. You can do much better”.
Initially, I was upset and tried not to show it. But the reality dawned on me. There were still grounds to be covered. There was much more to be done. I was still playing catch up in some areas especially when compared to peer organisations in my location at that time.
I learnt a valuable lesson that day. While it is good to acknowledge current progress, never build a tabernacle around it. Your gaze must constantly be uplifted. Success should never be stationary. The needle must always be moved. Continue to raise your standards. Continue to push.
Recognise your progress, but do not settle there. Your next level may require you to challenge your current results and do more than you thought possible. Share on XI went back to the drawing board and set new strategies into play. We achieved some very significant milestones thereafter and that impacted my career in a way I could never imagine at that time.
The human mind has so much capacity. We are capable of much more than we are doing. Stretch. Stop playing local. You can do much more.