Leadership
This year, more than most, brings the topic of leadership to mind. Of course, not everyone who calls themselves a leader truly is one. But there are certain traits I look up to as I aspire to lead. To be fair, I didn’t airdrop from my big agency CD gigs to running an independent agency overnight. But once I took over as President, I had a lot to learn—and I also realized that the things I held onto were just as important as the things I had to change.
For example, I wasn’t sure what it would be like to lead the account and media teams. I’m sure they could feel how little I knew about their day-to-day work, having never technically walked in their shoes. But the longer I do this, the more I see the parallels. Yes, some of the stresses are different, and the output certainly is. But in the end, people are people (to quote Depeche Mode), and all of us have goals, strengths, weaknesses, and—most of all—feelings.
This means that whether I’m leading art directors, writers, media planners, or account managers, my leadership style can and should stay the same. I’ve always led with my heart (I tear up at practically anything, happy or sad), and the longer I’ve been in leadership, the stronger that instinct has become. I also lead with others. My business partner, Michael McGrath, always has a different (but almost always compatible) perspective. It’s an incredible gift to have a partner you respect, believe in, and trust.
I’ve worked in fear cultures, and they don’t work for me. I was never motivated to follow someone who tried to scare the work out of me, and I certainly don’t expect fear to motivate anyone else.
Here’s a tricky one: ignoring a problem won’t make it go away, no matter how conflict-averse you are. One of the hardest lessons I’ve learned is how much damage it does to the larger group when the behavior or actions of one person force the team to create workarounds or walk on eggshells. While creatives may have the worst reputation for this, it happens everywhere. If you don’t address it sooner rather than later, it not only hurts the team but also erodes their confidence in you as their leader. The same goes for business. When things aren’t all sunny and rosy, people don’t want a reactive manager. They want—and deserve—someone to navigate the situation rather than pointing fingers or freaking out.
Finally, being put in charge doesn’t make people see you as a leader. A leader is someone people want to follow. Someone they trust with their careers, their mortgage, their kid’s college fund. If you demand respect, you’ll never get it. And you don’t deserve it.
No doubt, I’ll learn something new today and again tomorrow. And we’re all about to experience lessons in what we want to do as leaders—and what we don’t. Until then, I’ll do what I think is right. Because in the end, isn’t that what we all deserve?
This article first appeared on Mary’s LinkedIn page
