Embracing authenticity leads to long-term career fulfillment
Most people underestimate how far being yourself can take you. Greg Finnigan, a founder and seasoned technology executive, calls his biggest career mistake something many people overlook: not being authentic. Early in his career, Greg was adapting too much. He wasn’t being his real self in professional settings. That took a toll, mentally and emotionally. It drained his energy and, more importantly, it disconnected him from what he was truly good at.
He changed that. He made a conscious decision to operate in the open, no pretense, no role-playing. His perspective was simple and powerful: “I’m good enough being my authentic self.” That shift unlocked a different kind of momentum in his career. It didn’t just make him feel better, it aligned his work with what he’s naturally good at. The result? A professional path across multiple sectors, distribution, security, cloud, that felt intuitive and sustainable instead of forced.
For business leaders, this isn’t a soft skill, it’s a performance driver. When people stop working against themselves internally, they contribute more externally. Authenticity improves team cohesion, innovation, and long-term retention. It’s efficient. It reduces friction.
So the question isn’t “Should I let my team be authentic?” The real question is: “Can your culture afford not to?”
Aligning career moves with instincts and industry trends fosters growth
Success in tech often comes down to timing and movement. Greg Finnigan understands this better than most. He’s moved through hardware distribution, into cybersecurity, and then into cloud. Each shift wasn’t just about chasing trends, it was about listening to what made sense, both personally and strategically.
He started in hardware sales. Simple motivation at first, money. But very quickly, he recognized something more valuable: proximity to great people and business models that scale. Over time, his view deepened. He didn’t stay put. When cybersecurity started to climb in relevance, he made the move. He joined big security vendors like Symantec, Kaspersky, and Intel. These weren’t side steps. They were strategic leaps into fast-expanding parts of the market.
Later, when the startup world gained complexity and momentum, Greg didn’t hesitate. He went in. As Managing Director of a FinTech startup and later co-founder of a clean tech venture, he operated at execution level. Eventually, opportunity pulled him back into the corporate sphere, this time with AWS, one of the most operationally sophisticated companies on the planet.
These moves weren’t random. They followed industry direction, but they also aligned with real curiosity and drive. For C-suite leaders, this is crucial. Today’s market punishes stagnation. But pivoting only works if it’s connected to something real, your team’s strengths, your instincts, and what the market is actually doing, not what it might do 5 years from now based on incomplete signals.
Greg’s trajectory proves it: move when it makes sense. Follow the industry, but trust your read on when you’re ready. Don’t anchor to one area of expertise longer than necessary. Scale your viewpoint as the environment changes, but keep control of the timing.
Failure offers essential lessons; external factors can derail even well-executed plans
You can make every right move and still face failure. Greg Finnigan knows this from firsthand experience. After leaving corporate life, he co-founded a clean tech startup and gained significant traction. They secured alignment with a UK government department. Their product even became embedded in public policy, specifically, a 2018 regulation called Boiler Plus. From a strategic standpoint, it was solid. High-level support. Market fit. Strong forecasts. Everything pointed to growth.
Then things changed. Political instability in the UK disrupted continuity across agencies. COVID-19 added to the chaos. What looked like a dependable foundation quickly eroded. The regulation’s momentum stalled, and with it, the startup’s business plan lost key support. Forecasts missed by wide margins, and there was no quick fix for an external shift of that scale. Greg called it a humbling experience. Critical lessons emerged.
Leadership can’t assume stability based on institutional signals, especially government. Even when everything appears locked in, regulations, partnerships, funding, macro-level disruptions can rewire the landscape overnight. Anyone leading a product, division, or company should keep this in view. Certainty is rare. And resilience matters more than precision.
For decision-makers, this isn’t about becoming overly cautious. It’s about building systems that expect disruption. Forecasts should flex. Institutional guarantees should be treated as useful, not absolute. And teams should operate with informed skepticism when stakes are high and external actors shape outcomes.
Greg didn’t retreat from that failure. He returned to the startup world with improved filters and sharper instincts. He now builds with an understanding that speed and adaptability are better bets than assumptions of certainty.
Prioritizing team values and leveraging cutting-edge tools are critical to career success
In today’s environment, you can’t separate people from performance, or technology from output. Greg Finnigan, a founder and former AWS executive, makes this clear. When asked what matters most for someone starting in tech, he used to give a one-word answer: people. Now, the answer has two parts: people and tools.
AI is shifting how companies operate. Generative and agentic AI are unlocking speed, precision, and scale that weren’t possible even a year ago. Leaders who know how to adopt and deploy these tools effectively are already seeing operational advantages. These aren’t future bets, this is happening now. Competitive edge today is increasingly a function of how well you pick and use the right systems.
Still, the tech doesn’t replace the team. According to Greg, what never changes is the importance of values alignment. He emphasizes trust, shared vision, and respect. Especially in early-stage companies or growth phases within corporates, values become the backbone of execution. Without that, the best tools won’t matter, because the work slows down, alignment fractures, and momentum fades. Good tech without good people isn’t enough.
For executives, that combination, right people, right tools, is non-negotiable. When you’re evaluating partnerships, talent, or internal teams, check for values alignment first. Then focus on tech leverage. It’s not just about skill or capital. It’s about who you have beside you, what they stand for, and what systems they’re using to do the work faster and better. Get that right, and you scale intelligently. Leave it unattended, and you lose time you won’t get back.
Greg’s point is simple, but the implications are far-reaching. Teams that operate on aligned values and can execute with modern tools are positioned to move quickly and outperform. It’s the new baseline for leadership.
Key takeaways for decision-makers
- Prioritize authenticity to drive alignment and efficiency: Leaders should foster environments where team members can be their authentic selves, as this reduces mental fatigue, builds trust, and unlocks more sustainable performance across roles and sectors.
- Navigate growth through instinct and industry awareness: Executives should encourage career mobility that mirrors both personal drive and external market trends, enabling talent to stay aligned with evolving industry demand and avoid stagnation.
- Build resilience into every plan: Even well-structured strategies can fail due to external forces beyond your control; leaders should stress-test business models and maintain flexibility to adapt when market or policy conditions shift unexpectedly.
- Invest in values-aligned teams and AI tools for scale: Winning organizations combine shared team values with cutting-edge tools like generative and agentic AI, leaders should ensure both are embedded to maximize efficiency and retain top talent.
