Post by Emmanuel Stroobant

Retrenchments have been hogging my LinkedIn feed in recent weeks. Behind every announcement, there are people who suddenly have to rethink their plans, their identity, and sometimes their entire future. I know it is easy to say, “Stay positive,” when you are not the one receiving the letter. So I will not say that. But I will share something my boxing teacher used to tell me many years ago: “We never judge a man by whether his knee touches the floor. We judge him by how fast he gets back up.” That lesson has stayed with me far beyond the boxing ring. Because in life and in business, all of us will be knocked down in some way. Sometimes we see it coming. Sometimes we don’t. Sometimes it is a slow exhaustion, and sometimes it happens in one conversation. But being knocked down is not the end of the story. Twenty-five years ago, when we opened Saint Pierre, I did not have a Plan B. There was no safe option waiting for me if it failed. No comfortable path to return to. We had to make it work. Even when we got knocked down. At the time, that felt frightening. Looking back, I realise it was also a gift. Because when there is no Plan B, you stop negotiating with your own commitment. You stop half-entering the room. You stop keeping one foot outside the door. You move forward because forward is the only direction available. For anyone who has been retrenched recently, perhaps this is not the ending it feels like today. Perhaps it is the moment life has cut away the Plan B you were holding on to. 🔵The “safe” job you thought you would never leave. 🔵The familiar title that kept you from asking what you really wanted. 🔵The comfort that made your true Plan A feel too risky to pursue. Of course, the fear is real. The uncertainty is real. The practical responsibilities are real. But so is the possibility. Sometimes we do not choose the beginning of a new chapter. Sometimes we are pushed into it before we feel ready. And still, we can rise. So if you are in this season now, I hope you do not look back for too long. Take the lesson. Take courage. Take the first step. And then keep moving forward. Good luck. I am rooting for you. 📸: Another “ancient” photo of me from when we first opened Saint Pierre. We seem to be in throwback season!