At twenty-two, fresh out of university and brimming with theory, you enter the world of work with enthusiasm, but not much else. You haven’t yet formed a solid sense of self. You’re unsure how things really work.

Often, you either hold back too much and appear timid and tentative. Or you overcompensate and over idealise, pointing out problems without offering solutions.

The hard truth is this: your job is to add value. To become useful and to solve problems. It’s not to point out what’s wrong and then leave it there. Too many young professionals take years to realise this.

They arrive with energy and entitlement, but not yet with perspective.

The result? They risk slowing their own growth at the very moment they could be accelerating it.

Let’s look at the other end of the spectrum.

At fifty-seven, too many professionals are coasting. Riding the wave to retirement. Settling into comfort rather than chasing contribution. They’ve lost the edge, the hunger, the intensity that once defined their careers.

And yet, this stage of life holds enormous potential.

A bottleneck or a bottle opener?

Experience, influence, and positional authority can make you either a bottleneck or a bottle opener.

You can slow things down, insist on “how we’ve always done it,” and block the future. Or you can leverage your wisdom to inspire, connect dots, solve problems and raise the next generation of leaders.

The choice is clear: do you become the reason your organisation stagnates, or the reason it thrives?

Which brings me back to my mentor’s answer: thirty-five.

At thirty-five, you’ve gathered enough experience to know how a business works. You’ve learned what responsibility means. You’ve had your share of setbacks, so you’ve built resilience. You’ve developed presence and begun to shape a professional identity.

But just as importantly, you still have the energy, ambition, and imagination of youth.

You’re curious. You’re asking the right questions. You’re learning that success isn’t about you, but about how you enable those around you to succeed.

At thirty-five, you’re big enough to understand the ecosystem, but bold enough to want to reshape it. That’s why it’s the ideal age.

So, what’s the lesson?

If you’re twenty two show up with humility and curiosity.

Ask deep questions. Find out what keeps your CEO awake at night? Learn how your business works. Learn how it makes money, what really adds value and what doesn’t. Own problems instead of handing them back.

Put your hand up for the messy, unglamorous tasks others avoid. Be the person who says, “I’ll figure this out.”

Always remember … you’re not there to prove you’re smart, (that’s why you got hired) but to be useful by making other people’s lives easier.

If you’re fifty-seven, don’t act your age either.

Bring the vitality, openness, and energy of thirty-five into every room you enter. Stay curious and hungry. Be ready to learn and to be amazed.

Use your power and authority not to block but to build: clear bottlenecks, back bold ideas, and raise the next generation as your true legacy.

Whatever your age, be thirty-five.

It’s the mindset of contribution, curiosity, ambition, and presence that every organisation needs.

It was a lesson I’ve never forgotten.