To celebrate our fifth anniversary, we sought out some of the country’s most prominent entrepreneurs to find out how they found their calling.

Never doubt

By Carlos Hank González / Chairman of the Board of Directors of Banorte

I want to share a story with you that sums up my philosophy: The key is to believe. The scene took place many years ago. It was early in the morning; I was younger, and my team and I were facing the challenge of our lives: to present the new business plan for the financial group I was starting to run to a board of directors made up of old sea dogs with decades of business experience.

The plan was ambitious: it involved tripling profits in three years. We called it the “3×3” program. We had planned it in detail, analyzed it, and were certain it would work… although not everyone on the Board thought so.

When it was my turn to describe the program, I saw the board members exchange skeptical glances. Imagine, a bunch of 30-year-olds with such ambitious goals, facing businesspeople with extensive experience.

We never doubted ourselves. We were sure we could do it. We had all the data, the analysis was solid, but most importantly, we believed in the project and we believed in ourselves.

They questioned the viability of the plan; however, we had conveyed it with such conviction, support, and commitment that they finally approved it.

Three years later, the goal had been exceeded. We did it as a team. At the meeting where we presented the results, there were no more incredulous looks, but rather the demand to continue growing with the same strength.

We believed in it, and we achieved it!

It was with the same conviction that, already at Banorte, Marcos Ramírez and I launched the 20/20 Perfect Vision strategy, with which we proposed to double our profits by 2020 and become the best financial group in Mexico for our customers, investors, and more than 27,000 employees.

And we are achieving it. At the end of 2016, we were already the second largest financial group in Mexico in terms of net income among more than 50 financial institutions, when just two decades ago we were 17th out of 18 banks. This quarter, our share price reached historic highs and we have had eight consecutive quarters of double-digit growth. We continue to have plans to grow and be the best.

I repeat: the beginning of everything is to believe, to trust in ourselves, but also in Mexico and its people.

We are strong Mexicans, we believe in ourselves, we compete and we win against the best in the world. Every day we give our best for this country, and in the face of adversity we unite to move forward together. Mexico is greater than its adversities; that is why we believe in it.

Read: https://forbes.com.mx/por-que-estoy-en-los-negocios-carlos-hank-gonzalez-presidente-de-banorte/