The more things change... the more others seem the same.

I have not had any doubt that moving to America was a good thing for me both personally and professionally. In the last week I received an email from a former manager of mine, a senior manager who I deeply respect.

It would not be appropriate of me to publish who this gentleman is, or the company that I worked for at the time. I will simply refer to them as "Hatfield" and those who know be personally will understand.

Perhaps I should have called this post the seven-year-itch, things change other remain the same. The name of the organization has been changed under the new ownership that quietly passed me by. Yet the one thing I truly find interesting is that many of my old colleagues are still there. Doing exactly what I am not sure but one thing I have gleemed from the list of names this email was circulated to suggest that my role at this organization was as high as I could climb without a significant change or career path that indeed did happen.

Had I remained, my career would surely have stalled with no clear opportunity for advancement. My career path certainly took the road less travelled before moving to America where the sum of my accrued qualifications, skills and experience have taken me to heights truly unattainable in the UK.

This email is vindication of a sort that the choices I ultimately made were right not wrong. The scenery along the way has certainly been interesting and has forced me to take a long clear look at myself and my ambition.

In the UK I lived within pre-set parameters, this is all you could do, this is how far you could go, now more. My new rule book, "The American Dream" throws out this career model and replaces it with green lights down the highway as far as you are prepared to work for it.

I have a good and valued friend who also worked for this organization in the UK the same time I did. He moved on and on since into another industry where I do agree with him that the lessons learned in Hatfield prove very helpful in business today.

In conclusion, this email has clearly reported to me that the more things change (in my life) the more things have stayed the same (in a life I have left behind).