Page 107 - James Caan - Get the Job you Really Want

was that my tiny o≤ce was so awful I didn’t want anyone to
see it. The ploy worked, and I definitely owe some of my success
to that building’s splendid exterior. So, although superficial
gloss cannot achieve success on its own – there has to be some
serious substance behind it – you can still make sure you

present the best exterior possible.
I heard a great piece of advice recently: when you’re going for
an interview, don’t try to be the perfect candidate – that is an

impossibility – but just make sure you’re better than everyone
else who is applying for the job.
When it comes to presentation, I don’t think you can try hard
enough. I would spend far more time than most people would
imagine on that aspect.

Image is a vital part of any business. When I came up with
the name for Hamilton Bradshaw, my thought process was quite
deliberate. I was setting up a private equity firm. I wanted it to

sound, from day one, as if it was an old, established business
that had been around for ever. I needed it to project a sense of
integrity because it would be dealing with money, with invest-
ments. I was looking for a name that conjured up all of those
things. And for some strange reason – I don’t know why – I had

an image of the old advert for Bradford & Bingley with the two
gents in bowler hats. But in my mind I would not have called
them Mr Bradford & Mr Bingley. I would have called them Mr

Hamilton & Mr Bradshaw . . . So, you can see how much image
matters to me. Hamilton Bradshaw depicts or reflects, in my
mind, exactly what the company does.

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