A Day in the Life –
Musical Inspiration Through All This Time
Paolo Soares
I remember.
It was May 1967. I was only nine years old when the Beatles’ album Sergeant Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band was released. In addition to being revolutionary in terms of music and concept, it gave me my first opportunity to read English. (The lyrics were all printed on the back cover of the jacket the record came in.) In the 1960s, learning English in Brazil was not so easy or affordable for a middle-class child, and that album became my first English book and opened the door to my dreams of becoming a citizen of the world.
Woke up, fell out of bed, dragged a comb across my head…made the bus in seconds flat, found my way upstairs and had a smoke, and somebody spoke and I went into a dream…
I dreamed of having a career that would allow me to connect with other people, different cultures, new opportunities. Sometimes I caught myself thinking how nice it would be to study in the U.S. and graduate from a prestigious university there. Well, maybe it was just a dream…until somebody spoke and brought me back to my engineering studies at the University of São Paulo.
After graduation I started a job in a Brazilian bank, which turned out to be my only employer during my whole professional life. After working two years for the International Department, I was invited to participate in a newly created program for employees to pursue studies abroad with all costs paid for by the bank. The only proviso was that we had to be accepted by one of ten major American universities. Well…I studied like crazy and took all the exams (TOEFL, GMAT), and submitted applications in less than four months. Since I did not have enough time to do all this in addition to my job, I had to write very succinct essays. Some time later I received my acceptance letter from Stanford. And yes…the shortest essay that was mentioned during our inaugural class in the amphitheater was mine (five paragraphs).
What a wonderful time I had at the GSB. It was the experience of a lifetime. So much knowledge acquired, so many friends from all over the world, and a strong culture of ethics. I was very fortunate to have had the chance to know and to work with so many bright people and, mainly, to develop a friendship with classmates like Gregg Daugherty, Marko Dimitrijevic, Ian Mausner (my travel agent at that time), Joe Campa (great cook, specialized in spicy foods), David Jaffe, Gerardo Chapa, Jorge Villa (who helped me a lot when I was moving back to Brazil and great rock ’n roll fan – I still have some footage of a rock festival we attended together in San Francisco), Mauricio Valencia (always in a wonderful mood), and the late Eli Zelkha. I might be forgetting someone and for that, I apologize. I should also mention the enormous influence of professors Chuck Horngren (how he made it simple something that could have been otherwise very complex) and James Porterfield (who instilled in me a love math and finance, and helped me calculate the present and future value of everything else in my life).
When I returned to the bank, my career skyrocketed. In five years I was promoted to Managing Director and Board Member. Four years later I was selected by the Board to create our first European bank, based in Lisbon, where I served as its president. I stayed for almost four years. After returning to Brazil I was promoted to Senior Managing Director in charge of International Debt Capital Markets and International Treasury, not only for Brazil but all the other branches abroad (New York, Tokyo, Cayman Islands, Bahamas, etc).
Moreover, a few years later I became President of the Latin American Banking Federation (FELABAN), which allowed me to visit every single country in Latin America. When adding these to other countries I had to visit for professional reasons, I think I have reached a personal record that, as a matter of fact, I am not so proud of: receiving the Diamond Card for frequent flyers and visiting over 100 countries.
During this hectic career, as one can imagine, it was very difficult to spend sufficient time with my family or to consider other important issues for a “citizen of the world”– environmental questions and the needs of less-privileged people, among others. As I began this article talking about a song, there is another one which could define my days during this period: 1000 Miles Away, by Hoodoo Gurus.
Estimated time of arrival 9.30 a.m.
Been up before the sun and now I’m tired before I even begin.
(Now you’re flying) I got so much work in front of me,
(Really flying) it stretches out far as the eye can see.
I can see.
I spent half my life in airports doing crosswords and attempting to sleep.
Then I realized I should start planning my early retirement so I could dedicate my time to other activities and especially to my family and friends. My wife and I decided to work on weekends to help institutions dedicated to children who were abused or neglected by their parents. In these situations, the state seizes control over the maintenance and education of these children whose parents no longer have the ability to offer them health, love, and care. That work involved time and resources but, above all, understanding and affection toward our young charges.
I thought that, finally, I was starting to repay a part of my debt to society, considering the fact that I never had to pay a single penny for my education, having studied in public institutions during my entire academic career, from elementary school through my university degrees.
What I felt to be the proper time to stop working in the world of business arrived at last. Time to start practicing things that I always wanted to do but never had the time for. Time to learn a fourth language (Italian) and to receive my Italian citizenship, thanks to my Piedmontese grandfather. I also took advantage of this free time to start studying music and learn how to play the drums. Most enjoyably, I was able to see my daughter’s graduation as a veterinarian and be with her during her first steps as a professional in that area.
Now I should mention another song that had a huge impact in my reflections. This time I have to thank Mr. Phil Collins: Another Day in Paradise.
She calls out to the man on the street
“Sir, can you help me?
It’s cold and I’ve nowhere to sleep
Is there somewhere you can tell me?”
He walks on, doesn’t look back
He pretends he can’t hear her
Starts to whistle as he crosses the street
Seems embarrassed to be there
Oh, think twice, ’cause it’s another day for you and me in Paradise.
Although I was enjoying a wonderful time with my family, I am sure that we cannot have complete peace of mind unless we strive to help the ones in need. I had already finished that earlier voluntary work and it was about time to embark on another effort. I found a friend from work, also retired, who was starting a project to create a center where drug-addicted people could find a home and a place to change their lives. Here they would receive therapy, shelter, and food and learn job skills to enable them to reinvent themselves and find an occupation. During the first year, this project enjoyed some success but it eventually faced some problems, mainly related to governmental bureaucracy and laws that, unfortunately, made it easier for our clients to stay in the streets and receive some money (and only money) for their survival, with no controls on how they spent it.
More recently my friend began another project that, I should say, is highly important to my country: helping indigenous tribes (Guaranis) who live in the state of São Paulo. At this point, due to the pandemic, I have been able to help them only with donations of food. But as soon as this health situation is overcome, I intend to get engaged more deeply and participate in other activities such as the construction of schools, hospitals, and sanitary infrastructures.
Well, my friends, I should finish this article by thanking everyone and every institution that has been part of my life, and especially for all the knowledge and experience that I was able to acquire during my time at the GSB (“Changing lives, Changing Organizations,” right?). Just think, it has been thirty-five years since graduation! Everything has passed so quickly that it seems as if I just woke up from that dream I had back in 1967.
Allow me to finish by again quoting my favorite band, The Beatles:
And in the end the love you take is equal to the love you make.