is not wrong. Ambition should be encouraged. However, access must be matched by preparation. Before asking for the platform, we should ask ourselves: What have I learned? What have I delivered? What perspective can I contribute? Takeaway Leaders carry responsibility. We should not keep emerging talent hidden until it is supposedly perfect. People need opportunities to learn, take controlled risks and build confidence. Our role is to create a runway: provide education, create opportunities for meaningful experience, offer honest feedback and then widen exposure as capability grows. At the same time, these opportunities should not remove their responsibility to demonstrate respect. Inappropriate behaviour should not be tolerated. Declining meetings repeatedly without explanation, using phones while colleagues are speaking, responding dismissively or demanding advancement without effort are not expressions of generational identity. They are professional behaviours that must be addressed. My advice to all ambitious young people: build your life on Education, Experience and Exposure. Protect yourself from Ego, Entitlement and Exposure without substance. Learn before you lead. Deliver before you demand recognition. Build the substance before pursuing the spotlight. Exposure may open the door, but only substance will keep you in the room. The Triple E: The Attractors and Distractors of Success A meeting invitation is declined with no explanation, excuse or apology. It happens again, and then again. Who did it? Different employees from the same generation: Gen Z. During a management meeting, a Gen Z employee remains absorbed in a mobile phone while important decisions are being discussed. In a group conversation, another responds: “Who cares?” while a senior manager explains his department’s achievements. A young employee expects a promotion before demonstrating consistent effort or seeks exposure to senior leadership before developing the substance needed to contribute at that level. These examples are uncomfortable, but they are real. They do not describe every member of Gen Z, nor are such behaviours exclusive to one generation. However, while avoiding generalisations, we should not dismiss or ignore recurring examples, as they may form a pattern or reveal an issue affecting a significant proportion of that generation. They led me to reflect on what sustainable professional growth requires. Over the course of my career, I have developed a theory of development based on the Triple E, viewed from two sides: success attractors (Education, Experience and Exposure) and success distractors (Ego, Entitlement and Exposure without substance). Success Attractors The three success attractors can build capable and credible people. However, if they are applied in the wrong sequence, they can create confidence without competence and visibility without value. Education is the first E. It gives us knowledge, understanding and methods. Education may come through a university, professional qualification, book, mentor or difficult question that forces us to think differently. Its value is not the certificate alone; it is the discipline Eman Deabil writes about how education, experience and exposure support professional growth, while ego, entitlement and visibility without substance can undermine ambition and lasting success. of continuous learning. In a world where information is readily available, the real advantage lies in knowing what to question, what to verify and how to connect ideas and put them into context. The second E is Experience. Experience turns knowledge into wisdom and moves us from theory to practice. It teaches us what textbooks cannot fully explain: how to make decisions with incomplete information, recover from mistakes, work with different personalities and remain composed under pressure. Then comes Exposure. Exposure broadens our perspective and creates opportunities. It introduces us to people, cultures, industries and ideas. It widens our horizons and provides us with different ways of thinking. It can give talented individuals a platform to reach people who can support them. Yet exposure is powerful only when supported by education and experience. Without substance, greater visibility does not create capability; it may have a negative impact on someone. This is why Exposure appears on both sides of the theory: as an attractor and a distractor. Success Distractors The three success distractors are Ego, Entitlement and Exposure without substance. Ego is the enemy of knowledge; it is the mistaken assumption that someone already knows enough. Entitlement is expecting recognition or promotion before demonstrating consistent value. It is an unjustified belief that someone deserves something they have not yet earned. Exposure without substance is the consistent pursuit of attention and visibility without building the foundations needed to support it. Wanting to attend executive meetings, lead a visible initiative or represent an organisation womanthismonth.com | OCTOBER 2026 OPINION 96
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