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We Need More Leaders Who Say “I Don’t Know”

15/11/2022
Advertising Agency
London, UK
176
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Five by Five’s MD Annabel Mackie makes the case for leadership which embraces not knowing all the answers

On a recent trip back to my parents’ house, my mum decided it was finally time for a clear-out. Amidst the dust-encrusted boxes and childhood heirlooms were, tantalisingly, the first ad campaigns I was involved in (along with the original publications in which they were printed). The paper trail went back to 2001, and included ads for a new home range for M&S and a value campaign for Virgin Trains when they ran the West Coast mainline.

Inevitably pausing the busywork of the clear-out, I started to flick through the ads. As I did so, I felt all the stresses and challenges that came with producing these very first campaigns come flooding back. I remembered the stress I had about getting the copy rotation correct for the Virgin Trains campaign. I remembered working with the media agency to ensure the correct reach and frequency in each channel, which boggled my mind at the time (it was a high effort task because it was a new skill). Looking at the M&S homeware ad, I remembered negotiating with the product team to agree to us featuring the very best of their furniture despite it not being available in every store. I remembered worrying about not being experienced enough to negotiate with the head of homeware. And, more than anything else, it reminded me that the most rewarding times in my career were when I’ve been learning. 

Without realising it throughout my career, I’ve always made choices that have enabled me to continue learning; be that moving into digital and social after my early years in more traditional brand advertising, or learning about CRM and loyalty. It’s been a hard-earned journey, but I’ve discovered that I’m at my happiest when learning. As a result, the capacity to continue learning was a brilliant retention tool of my previous agencies - it kept me inspired, interested, and wanting more, leading me to go looking for the next learning opportunity within that agency.

I’m two months into my new role as Managing Director at Five by Five and the learning curve is steep. That’s to be expected in a new role, but it’s been an exhilarating experience as every day presented new challenges - or rather new opportunities to learn. Whilst I’m in this new phase I’m trying to remind myself that I don’t need to have all the answers now, or even in the future. That it’s O.K. to not know, and to figure things out with the help of my fantastic team.  It’s also helpful to remember that when you’re learning you won’t get everything right the first time, and that any ‘fail’ can be reframed as an F.A.I.L. - First Attempt In Learning (one of many pearls of wisdom picked up from my daughters as they go through primary school).  

Discovering my first ads provided a timely look back at those things I once found hard, and so reminded me that what I’m finding hard right now will soon become second nature.  It’s great to be working in a supportive environment where I can ask questions, say I don’t know, and feel safe in the knowledge that the team has my back. This makes me feel free to make bold decisions, be creative, and suggest new innovative approaches to how we operate, which ultimately will help the agency grow and produce our best work.

It’s also made me think of one of my most essential tasks as a new leader of a creative agency. How can I ensure that my team feels the same way? To ensure that they are growing, learning, and innovating in a way that helps them produce their best work?

To be at your most creative, you must feel like you can learn something new each day, be curious in your approach, and share your ideas in a welcoming and safe space. I believe leadership that enables a rich creative environment comes from showing your own curiosity and passion to learn and a bit of vulnerability too.

Being open and sharing what you don’t know as a leader helps show a team that not knowing is ok, and that being curious is actively encouraged. Statements such as ‘I’m not sure, what do you think?’ coupled with ‘how can I help?’ can be very powerful. Creating an environment where people are actively encouraged to say ‘I don’t know, please help me find out’ ensures that learning and a growth mindset is always top of the agenda.  

So I’m going to continue saying precisely that around the office. I’m going to ensure our people have time and space for their own learning and development, as well as inspire them with interesting and surprising talks and guest speakers. After all, when people are learning and growing they’re more likely to stay - and in the current talent climate this is going to be key to success.

So as a leader, perhaps the greatest help I can provide to my team is helping them to lean into the new, the learning opportunities, and encourage more to say ‘let's figure this out together’. 

How am I going to do that? I don’t know yet. But I aim to find out. 

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