Remember to Breath

I recently participated in an Alumni video conferencing event for my Undergrad. I was the guest speaker and over thirty students joined me virtually to ask questions about what it is like in the "real world" and how I made it to where I am today. I personally love these event. I didn't feel like my Undergrad prepared me well enough for my eventual marketing career and I love taking the opportunity to share my knowledge. One of the most frequently asked questions (both during the event and after in the thank-you emails I received) was - what other concentration do you think I should be focusing on that will compliment my marketing concentration? I was a Marketing and Leadership/Consulting major so of course I stressed the importance of taking Leadership as a second option.

At any level, leadership is:

1. Knowing yourself - your strengths and weaknesses and what you need to work on
2. Knowing those around you and understanding your impact on them
3. Making the tough decisions and stepping outside the comfort zone
4. Building rapport and finding common ground with those around you

It is an extremely useful skill to start learning about. I say start because you never fully master it. It is a constant learning process.

It was great to be able to answer the student questions with the above and also regale them with my own story and the current classes I'm taking for my Masters Degree at NYU. My current leadership class has not only reaffirmed what I've learned back in Undergrad and what I've experienced at work so far, but it has also provided me with a deeper dive in my own Interpersonal Leadership styles, the styles of others, the importance of identifying different types of leadership and what is effective in what situation but one class in particular really stuck with me. The class we had on "Crucial Conversations" and Negotiations really reminded me of how I need to better myself in this area. Having difficult conversations is probably one of the hardest things for me to do. I definitely get way too passionate and emotional and I have a hard time remembering to breath, step back, and reset. The book we reference on "Crucial Conversations" by Kerry Patterson was extremely helpful. Five key steps are identified for dialogue:

1. Create mutual intent - create a shared sense of purpose, what do you want to accomplish out of this?
2. Create a safe environment - make sure the conditions of the meeting place make it a safe environment for both parties
3. Speak from the heart - look for the emotional response in both parties
4. Focus on self not other - take a reflective stance 
5. Create mutuality - focus on authenticity, honesty, and respect

CRIB is important to keep in mind too:

1. Commit to the person you are having the conversation with - keep going back to the goal of the conversation
2. Recognize the need - identify the emotional concern blocking the flow of the conversation - what is really bothering you?
3. Invent - broaden the perspective to bring in creative solutions (win-win)
4. Brainstorm - shift to an exploration mode - what if we did this as opposed to this?

Oh yeah. And breath. Try not to get too emotional, Denise.

These are all really great things to keep in mind but its definitely hard when you are in the heat of the moment and all you want to do is get your point across. Now especially, as a manager, I have to have these conversations with my direct reports more and more. I can't be afraid to have them and I need to remember to implement the above.

This class has also taught me about my own personal leadership style (which I've discussed in this blog post) but its also taught me about other types of leadership styles and how important it is to different styles in my team. It's also taught me about the importance of learning how to work with these people - everyone has a different method and likes being taught/criticized/helped in a different manner. It's important to recognize that and not discount it. Knowing this will now better prepare me for the future as I grow in my manager role and hopefully all the way to the C-Suite one day soon.

I know I have a lot more to learn and plenty of growing to do but this class has definitely given me perspective - how to emulate successful leaders and what made them successful to begin with, how to grow as a leader and how to make others in my team shine based on their own styles and needs.

All the best to all the future leaders out there and go take some classes on leadership!!!

-D

Negotiations

Negotiations are a huge part of life - think about it. In almost every situation, we are constantly negotiating and trying to persuade the opposite side to see things our way. The definition of negotiation, according to TheFreeDictionary.com, is "a discussion set up or intended to produce a settlement or agreement." Whether I'm at a Crafts Fair and negotiating the price of a bracelet or at work, negotiating a custom sponsorship integration for my client, there are a few key steps to keep in mind.

1. Evaluate the big picture
2. Determine hidden agendas and the other side's viewpoint
3. Gain buy in to your side of the equation
4. Develop trust between both parties
5. Monitor the process of the negotiation

Just like everything else, the above steps are a guideline and are worth following and remembering. When you are in the heat of the moment, however, some of these check boxes can remain unchecked and you might run the risk of losing the negotiation. 

There are two examples that come to mind when I think of my own negotiations. One was successful and the other not so much. 

Let's start with the successful one - I was negotiating a media sponsorship integration that was cross-platform. The woman I was dealing with was new to the XYZ Company we were trying to make the deal with and she didn't have a very good handle on what their capabilities were. I have a very good understanding of what goes into a TV sponsorship and thus, a Digital extension. The plan I was evaluating was very unfair to my client and had us paying for a ton of units that we would never normally pay. We were also told we would be the only sponsor of this program but their definition of "sponsor" didn't include our logo on the page for the entirety of the campaign. Negotiations were rough. They took over a month and a ton of emails and phone calls back and forth. Conversations grew heated but I was only forceful when I needed to be. Without having known (officially) about the steps above, I realize now that I followed them almost to the letter. I took a look at the big picture and what was important to both of us - ultimately it came down to the fact that both of us wanted a successful partnership. Secondly, I tried to understand where XYZ Company was coming from when they said they had to charge us for placements we normally consider added value or why our logo wasn't on the page. We compromised and included some of these placements as paid and the others were given to us as added value. As for the logo, this is where I had to get forceful and explain the definition of a sponsorship. Once they understood and bought into where I was coming from, this was thrown in for the entirety of the campaign. On many of our phone calls with our legal departments, I took the high road and mediated the conversations. This built trust on both my own legal teams end but also for the XYZ Company. They knew I was trying to find a peaceful resolution and appreciated my frankness and transparency.  Finally, throughout the process I tried to reign us back into the big picture and why we were ultimately having these discussions. It was very successful because in the end, both my client and XYZ Company was happy with the end result and I could breath again. 

The second negotiation that comes to mind that didn't turn out so well was the one I participated in in my class last week. I was part of one of my classmate's council (she was the CEO of a skin care company) and we had to negotiate with another team who represented the island where we mine ash from for the skin care products. The topic was regarding an increased tax we (the company) would have to pay to make up for the damages we made to the island throughout the years of mining. We were on the stance that this tax was too high and were trying to bring it down to a more reasonable number. My team was great and ended up wining but that's besides the point. I personally felt myself get all riled up and I couldn't control my facial emotions or my reaction to certain arguments from the other side. I was so beside myself that I honestly should have kept my mouth shut (a valuable lesson learned) but I almost caused my team to lose! I felt uncomfortable - I didn't know the facts, it was a hypothetical situation and there were a lot of variables that were unknown. I was ready to lash out. I personally didn't follow the steps above even though my team did. I lost site of the big picture and all I saw were hidden agendas from the other team and I wanted to systematically break each and every single one down. Thank God the negotiations were over after 20 minutes. I think I would've said something my team and I hadn't agreed upon which was to pull out of that island immediately if they didn't lower the tax!

Both examples are very different. One is work related which means there's a lot more riding on it - the other was school related which was meant for practice and to teach us a lesson a major deal wasn't riding on it. I think that's pretty significant because in a real life situation, maybe I'm more apt to take it slow and go through the process whereas in class, I want to win and be right and all reason goes out the window. I think another difference is that in the first situation, I knew my facts and I had done my homework. I knew what I should be paying for a sponsorship and I ultimately was able to get what I needed. In the second, I was uncomfortable with all the unknown variables and instead of keeping my mouth shut when I didn't know something, I got a little riled up in the heat of the moment. 

Important to realize though that the above steps are necessary to follow in order to accomplish your goals. A negotiation is about both sides coming to an agreement - not just you getting everything you want and the other side getting nothing. There has to be harmony and there are better ways of getting to that harmony instead of losing yourself in the moment. 

-D

Interpersonal Leadership Results

When I was younger, I used to love taking short quizes that would reveal some fact about myself. They were usually pop-culture related and I would end up finding out what Disney Princess I was most like (I always tried to get Belle) or what Hogwarts House I was a part of (I always skewed my answers to get into Gryffindor). I would post my results on the popular news feed of the year (at that time it was Xanga or MySpace) so that all my friends could see that indeed, I was as brave and courageous as a Gryffindor. Wasn't I cool?

Now that I've evolved past that point (have I though?), I've started taking more "adult" versions of these tests. Ones that have actually been vetted through and teach you more about your personality, your leadership style or you fascination triggers. You may recall that I discussed my Fascination Triggers results in this blog post. My two triggers were prestige and power which were defined me as acute, discerning and detail oriented. I don't settle for average. I'm a combination of ambitious, goal-oriented, social, expressive, and intuitive. Most recently, I took a survey to define my Interpersonal Leadership Styles by the Stratton Consultant Group. The purpose of this survey was to become more self aware of your own strengths and weaknesses but also how to work with other styles of leadership.

There are four types of "buckets" that you can be placed into. Unlike the surveys I used to take when I was younger, the answers you give can't really be skewed towards a certain outcome - plus you aren't really aware of the four types of buckets until the results are revealed which helps to keep you unbiased.

These four buckets are:

1. Persuader - someone who is challenging and spontaneous, people oriented, creative, and has high energy
2. Counselor - someone who is spontaneous and supporting, who leads from behind, takes the back seat sometimes, flexible, and a people person
3. Director - someone who is challenging and disciplined, directive, impactful and structured
4. Analyzer - someone who is supporting and disciplined, loves data, cares about the facts, the process and quality

Before my results were revealed to me, I think I identified the most with the Persuader category and wasn't all that surprised to see that I was indeed put in that part of the grid. The more I read about it though, the more mixed feelings I had about it. Some points were absolutely 100% spot on and others I felt didn't define me as perfectly. I realized that was the challenging part of myself  but I also decided (and whether this is correct to assume or not) not every piece of this description is going to apply 100% and instead, some of these pieces may only be 60% or less but should definitely be something you become aware of so you can learn to adjust accordingly.

Some of the points that were spot on:

1. “enthusiasm”
2. “frequently outgoing”
3. “stimulating, lively and personable”
4. “eager to please others…attach themselves to people they admire and seek recognition from them”
5. “aggressive nature can make them impulsive”
6. "competitive to an unhealthy degree”
7. "overly emotional"

I am definitely the type of person who wears my emotions on the proverbial sleeve. I am extremely outgoing and overly enthusiastic. I would also like to think that I'm personable and lively and I definitely, 100% want to be liked and recognized for my talent. I do get ridiculously competitive - even over little things and can pout if I don't "win." I'm also very impulsive - I make decisions sometimes without analyzing everything. I recently tried to change that piece of me when I actually attempted to research my two options and let the decision sit for a week. That was really a challenge for me but I can see the benefit to it. 

Points that I was unsure of:

1. "lack of follow up"
2. "bored easily"
3. "unreliable"
4. "frequently inflexible"

Not to sound cocky, but I make it a point to always follow up and I don't consider myself unreliable. In fact, I think I'm too reliable and people take advantage of that. I work when I'm on vacation when I don't have to. I don't necessarily mind it but I'm also not exactly thrilled that I have this part in me that constantly wants to please others. I never back down from a project and I see it through to the end.

I did take a closer look at "bored easily" and "frequently inflexible." I've realized that I do actually get bored and I'm never actually satisfied. For example, I strive for the Senior Planner role and when I get it, I'm already thinking about what the next move I have to make. I don't just enjoy the new role I'm in, I'm unsatisfied. Also in terms of being inflexible, I do tend to lean towards my comfort zone and my way of doing things. Even though I adapt to my environment and understand it, I am inconsistent with how I work with certain people. With some I have all the patience in the world and with others I make snap comments. I think these are really important factors to keep in mind and to develop into something better. 

Comparing this to my Fascination Triggers, there is definitely a correlation to my social butterfly ways, my ambition, acuteness, and enthusiasm. Pretty interesting stuff.

Bottom line, it's important to understand the balance between the pros and cons of these results, how to work with the other buckets mentioned above, how to incorporate members from each group within my own team and how to become more self aware of these pros/cons and use them to my best advantage.

-D

PS

Earlier this week, I was told that I actually received the promotion - I am now a Manager of Integrated Investments and I couldn't be more pumped. I'm going to take a lesson from the Interpersonal Leadership Results, take 10 breaths, stop and enjoy and try not to get bored right away!

Learning When to Move On

I had worked incredibly hard throughout undergrad and because I'm first-generation American and my parents have no "connections," I networked every opportunity I got. All that had paid off when I met the man who would eventually become my boss. We hit it off Sophomore year and throughout the years, he would provide me with incredible advice and insight to my various questions. I couldn't have been more lucky when, my Senior year, he called to tell me there was a job opening at his company and within his own department no less. I had an interview if I wanted it and boy did I want it! I jumped on the first bus back home to interview at one of the most enviable places, a mecca for sports and entertainment. The interview went well and a couple of months later, I graduated and started my career within the sales department for the media division of the company. I was beyond excited to get a job straight out of college.

The first year of my career had many ups and downs - I was able to attend any game I wanted, puff up with pride every time I mentioned where I worked (and yes, ashamedly, even gloated at the jealousy I saw in my friends' eyes), and put to use my hard earned degree within the field of marketing and advertising. But I also had to deal with a bi-polar account executive who loved me one minute and would yell at me the next. I was afraid to deal with the issue of the abusive account executive until one day, my mentor turned boss, asked me to come into his office. He had noticed I was less bubbly and more pale as of late and wanted to know what was wrong. He gave me an opportunity to voice my concerns about my current situation. A couple of weeks later, I was transferred to a new set of account executives and even had my desk moved closer to the other side of the office where he and my new executives sat so that I could be completely removed from that toxic situation. I was in heaven and to me, my mentor/boss was a saint for making those changes happen so quickly.

Just slightly over a year into my job, I was promoted to Media Sales Planner. It was the first time this position was in existence and it was my job to figure out what to do since even HR had a hard time defining my new role. I now worked directly with my mentor/boss. Before, we had a mentoring relationship and I was still comfortable speaking to him but now that I was reporting into him, I felt a shift in the relationship. I began treating him more like a boss and began to feel less and less comfortable coming to him with my problems, concerns and ideas. I really couldn't put my finger on it for a very long time why I started feeling this way but I began to notice certain qualities about him that were a definite turn off:

1. Very charming -  to the point where he was coming off fake. This goes along with showing happiness or joy only if it served his purpose. It disgusted me how fake he was towards clients and how he could immediately turn on you the moment their backs were turned. 
2. Manipulative - he would call me into my office and try to gather dirt on the others within our department and tell me it was something he already noticed but wasn't sure if he was just jumping the gun. He wanted me to confirm. I learned very quickly to shut my mouth and evade his probing because I didn't want others to think I was a tattletale. He would also tell me that moving around in this industry was difficult and that I was lucky to have found a job where I did. Getting a new one with my "lack of experience" would be impossible. Obviously I see now that all he wanted to do was keep his best worker within his own grasp. 
3. Entitled - during staff meetings he would obviously run the show since he was the head of the department but he would belittle all new ideas or questions. I noticed myself becoming more and more introverted and afraid to ask questions for fear he would shut me down (like he was doing to everyone else around me). Also, when he would call me into his office (which at this point I was beginning to dread), he would feel like he had the right to talk to me about my life at home (which is by no means terrible at all) - I should move out. My parents were holding me back. Was my boyfriend really the one? Another example that comes to mind was when I had a small bruise on my arm. I had done renovations with my parents and boyfriend on my mother's kitchen and because I'm usually over enthusiastic in situations like that, I had bumped my arm slightly on one of the cabinets. My boss had immediately decided that I was being beaten by my boyfriend and that I should find help. I remember just starting at him on that one, speechless. 
4. No remorse - again, he would belittle the staff around him and he wouldn't feel terrible at all if he made someone cry. 
5. Appear to be all mightier than thou - our conversations would often turn to what I wanted to do with my life and career. He would tell me that I shouldn't make a move unless I spoke to him first about it because he knew a lot of people in the industry and would know what's best for me. He also wanted to start his own internet company on the side and wanted my help with it. He truly believed it would be a huge success but when I asked him pointed questions, he would become defensive and shut me out. 

When looking at the above list - I realized what I had come across. I was dealing with a sociopath. I wasn't sure how severe it was but that intuition I was feeling ever since I was promoted was pointing me in this direction. I started to treat him completely differently and became more formal. He would comment on how I didn't come to him anymore looking for advice and how he felt like I was becoming depressed. This was an intentional move on my part. I began to learn quickly on how to deal with his ever changing moods - one moment he was happy and carefree and the other you had to walk around egg shells with him. Eventually, it got to the point where I could no longer stand going to work every day. It had become tedious and the stress on my emotions was getting to me. At this point I had been working there for 2 and 1/2 years - I was promised one promotion after another by my mentor/boss and none of them ever came to fruition. After being told for the third time to sit tight and the next few months would be better, I decided to interview and to my surprise, got a job offer only two weeks after I started searching. I had been so brainwashed to believe that it wasn't possible that I was so surprised - I was also ill-prepared to provide my resignation. I thought I had at least a month or two to prepare. 

I realized, after I drafted up my resignation letter, that I had turned into a completely different person from who I was in college. I was afraid to ask questions, to speak up, and I lacked the courage to fight for myself. I was too scared to even tell him I was leaving and almost declined my new offer! I hated what I had become and coming to this realization gave me the fire to go to my manager and first tell him. He was my direct report and following policy, I went to him first. I should've known better because that organization was like elementary school - everyone talked behind everyone's back. My manager had gone to my mentor/boss before I had the chance. By the time I got to him, he was furious. He was also furious that I decided to give up everything he had done for me and leave him. I felt like I was breaking up with a boyfriend! It was awkward, humiliating and nauseating but eventually, I got through it and my last two weeks helped confirm that I did the right thing. My mentor/boss gave me the cold shoulder for the rest of my time there and I haven't spoken to him since. In my exit interview with him, I had let him know that I didn't want to part ways like this and didn't want to burn any bridges but if that's what he wanted to do, then it wouldn't be on me. 

Everyone else in the company had a hard time letting me go and couldn't understand why I ultimately had to leave. When I explained the situation, they knew they couldn't offer anything to make me stay. It wasn't the first time they had heard complaints about this person. When I heard that, I was even more annoyed that it was allowed to continue. Didn't they realize who/what they were dealing with??

I'm very happy where I am now - when my new boss asked me a month in how I was doing, I was shocked. I've learned to find my courage, ask questions and generate ideas. I still have a lot more courage to gain but it's already ten times better than it was. The tough lesson I had to learn was take everything with a grain of salt - things aren't always what they seem and if you can't make the situation better, sometimes it's best to throw in the towel and move on. I'm so glad that towel was thrown away but I'm also grateful for the experience - in retrospect, it made me even stronger than before. 

-D

Learning From The Past To Make A Brighter Future

I've had a lot of great examples of what not to do in the work force and just a handful of examples from bosses that I'd wish to emulate. As I mentioned in my last post, I'm up for a supervisor position at my current agency which I'm really excited about. It means a lot more responsibility but above all it means I'll have three people directly reporting into me. I want to make sure that I'm providing them a good example of how a supervisor should be but I'm nervous that I'll somehow let them down. 

Throughout my entire working life from the time I started at the local bakery in my neighborhood to my current position at this agency, I've had more examples than not of selfish, manipulative, abusive, self entitled, bosses. I didn't see these traits at first because these people were really great at hiding them and even after having learned of their ways and telling myself, "Never again, Denise will you fall into that trap," I get surprised all over again. 

I ask myself, how do people like this get hired? How do they keep their positions? What are they doing right and what am I doing wrong since I'm not in their position? Do I have to become more like them? One of my fears of being in this industry is losing who I am at heart and becoming someone who I've detested in the past. I know there is a fine line of continuing to be the sweet, light hearted funny girl and someone who won't get walked all over. 

My most recent experience happened just this year when I switched accounts at work. I thought I had this amazing team for once. We laughed a lot, our personalities all meshed and we got a long really well - we even went to spas together! But what I noticed as the months went by was that I was doing more and more of the work and staying the latest at night. I was the "junior" person on the team and at first I thought that's just how it was supposed to be. It got worse and worse to the point where I would walk by my managers desk and she would be on Facebook or Spotify or even better, texting her friends. Here I had a never ending pile of work on my desk and she had the time and audacity to socialize openly at work - all while sitting right next to the head of our team. I was amazed, frustrated, angry, overworked, and ultimately resentful. There would be days where she would come up to me and act the manager and I wouldn't even listen to her because in my mind, she had no idea what was going on anyway so who was she to tell me what to do? She had lost her seat of authority to me and her power. When we finally hired an assistant who reported into me, I remember her telling me to learn how to push work off on her - that she had perfected the skill. Of course she had perfected the skill - she'd been doing it for months with me! 

It only took a month for my new assistant to realize something was up. 

I knew I had to say something so I brought this up to my boss who eventually took the matter into her own hands and up the ladder to some very important higher ups. I'm glad I said something because otherwise, who knows how long it would've gone on? I was lucky that these higher ups took the situation seriously. I've realized that people like that stay in the positions they are in because they can easily hide the truth - they are charming, can interview really well, their traits of management can be misconstrued for true leadership, and they excel in companies that have so many employees that they easily get overlooked. She 100% took advantage of the situation and coasted for months all while earning the big bucks. Speaking up taught me that at least I won't lose one part of myself - the need to right injustices. 

We've been talking about how a leader needs to become more strategic and less tactical the farther they move up the proverbial food chain. Something that's going to be difficult for me is to let go of the details and focus more on strategy, the overall picture for the client, not just the campaign level. I think my old manager lost sight of this, among other things, and didn't think she needed to do the details anymore. In contrast, on my old account, I had managers that knew how to push off work and distribute it evenly among the planners but also knew what projects they needed to keep and perform. I want to strive to be more like them and less like the other example. I believe that in order to be a good leader, you need to learn when to let go, when to roll up your sleeves and help out and when to be strategic and think big picture. I also believe that these dont happen in stages but rather simultaneously. I know it's going to be a lot and yes, I'm crazy nervous, but I'm also excited to see how I will approach this new chapter.

-D

Knowing Your Limits and Knowing When to Push Through

So last week I discussed the different types of power that help take you to the next level on the corporate ladder. What I'm about to write is very hard for me but I hope it has a cleansing effect. Another important step for a leader is to acknowledge and receive feedback or criticism. This, admittedly, is very hard for me. I feel like I've gotten better over the years and developed a hard shell. But then I get feedback and it's not necessarily what I was hoping for and I'm reminded that this is something I'm still very much dealing with.

A couple of examples come to mind, but most recently during tonight's C-Suite class. We were going over last week's blog post and what one should look and feel like and in re-reading mine, I felt like I should have stepped back and eaten a slice of humble pie. It sounded like I was completely full of myself. At the time, I thought I was just acknowledging what I know to be true about my personality and the way I lead. But in re-reading it, it came off as high handed. Lesson learned.

For me it's difficult to hear when I've done something wrong or how I could have done something better because I always strive to do my best in everything. I think because I am such a perfectionist, I put on these horse blinders and sometimes ignore a basic point - there are other ways of accomplishing a goal, a project, a campaign. I need to remember that in the end, the person giving me feedback, whether they have my best interests at heart or not, is giving me a valuable learning experience to better myself. This is not always easy to remember.

I recently started reading Sheryl Sandberg's Lean In. It's only 232 pages and I only started it on Tuesday but I'm almost done. I'm inspired and amazed by what Sandberg wrote. She may not be a "scholar, a journalist, or a sociologist," as she writes in her introduction, but she uses real life stories and experiences to discuss fundamental issues that women face in the work place environment. One particular chapter struck me to my core - that women have a need to be liked, have a deep seated fear of failing and internalize everything when a negative comment or criticism is thrown their way. What makes Sandberg's book so great is that she too acknowledges that she has these exact same feelings and even though she is successful and the COO of Facebook, she still hasn't overcome this particular problem. I feel like I'm listening to my best friend talk.

This book couldn't have come at a better time. At work, I'm facing a major personal dilemma where I have the opportunity to "lean in," show that I'm a real leader or I can wait and see what happens (which usually means an opportunity will pass by). I'm up for a promotion. However, the way my company is set up, each team is basically funded by a client and not knowing how much the promotion is scoped out for, I'm hesitant to negotiate my new salary. I have the mindset of "Well, I should be lucky I'm being considered for this position." Since I've only been there a year, I also feel as if I'm an impostor to the role since others who are currently in this role have been doing this for much longer and have more industry knowledge. Am I ready to be considered part of this new clique or will I feel out of place?

I've been working up my courage since Tuesday when I started this book to try and overcome this fear. I want to be liked so badly and don't want to be perceived as an opportunist or pushy. My bosses have told me what an asset I am to the team. So what's holding me back from trying to fight for a better raise? Why do I feel like I'm not allowed to? I don't want to wait too long before I formulate my approach because I fear that it will be too late.

I've realized it's getting rejected and receiving a negative response that is 100% holding me back. Acknowledgement is the first step and for me, the second is knowing when to gather enough courage to have the "talk" and when to push through.

As hard as it is to admit, I'm not perfect. I cringe at negative feedback and probably always will. But because I'm aware of it, I hope to turn it into a learning experience. We'll see how that goes.

-D

P.S. Hopefully by next week's blog post, I'll have better news to share and update on my progress!

The All Powerful D

I consider myself to be a pretty strong leader. There is an innate sense in me to take action, to take charge, to organize, to better myself, to inspire others, to listen, to make change - to lead. I've been at it for more than a few years now whether it be during my undergrad years, at work or now attending NYU for my Masters. The beauty is that I've already noticed how much I've grown and evolved in my habits, my style and how I harness the power within me, to become a better leader.

In my new class, the C-Suite Perspective, we're learning about what makes a leader, how does the C-Suite get to where they are, how do they sustain the position, and how have they evolved from their humble beginnings in order to lead an entire organization. First up is power and how the appropriate use of it gets the job done. There are quite a few defined types of power such as positional, referred, expert, and ideological power. I hold the belief that a great leader, one that really can inspire an organization, a class group, or co-workers to achieve goals and visions, holds a combination of these powers.

For myself, I see the following:

1. Expert Power - defined as coming from wisdom or knowledge. Granted I'm only 25 years old and have only been in the industry for about 4 years now, I consider myself to have a strong foundation in what I currently do. Colleagues come to me because they respect my skills as a planner, buyer, and organizer. They know that I can help lead them in the right direction. I'm also pursuing a deeper knowledge in a field that I find fascinating and that fact alone shows those around me that I have a passion for this.
2. Personal Power - I have a very strong sense of self and a positive aura that I try to exude to others. I'm the one smiling in class and in meetings, listening attentively, taking notes, and contributing because I genuinely have an interest.  I pride myself in knowing how to read the room - if the air is full of tension, a well placed joke can magically make it dissipate. Everyone's having a good time? It's because I'm there helping involve everyone in the conversation. 
3. Co-Powering - the idea of working to support others' personal power. Although my experience in the field is only just starting to blossom, I make a conscious effort to support those around me whether they are an assistant/intern or even my manager or boss. I try to see the best in people to help them achieve their goals. I think, regardless of the position I am trying to help, it's not only about listening and giving the outsider POV but also acting as an example. 

You might say - "Wow D, way to be full of yourself." I would reply that I just know myself really well and can't wait to add more to the list with the more experience I get. 

There's a meme I found on Computing Education Blog. It does a pretty good job of showcasing how I see the difference between a boss and a leader:

And with that, I challenge you to think about what makes you all powerful - I'm already well on my way!

-D

Know Before You Go

The Summer semester is coming to a close and there's plenty of information that I've digested throughout the three classes I've taken - that's right, you read correctly. Three classes. Some have said I've had a death wish and am plain crazy, to me, I'm being highly efficient.

What I've noticed is how each compliment the other - my statistics class relates to my competitive strategy course which absolutely gives me insight for my digital marketing course - they all ultimately help me perform my day job better. I love how it works out like that!

Out of my digital marketing class, I think there are five key factors that I would want any of my clients that I work with to know:

1. Understand the medium. There are so many different tools out there to fulfill your business objectives. Read up on the various ways to buy digital media, how native advertising differs from standard banners, how one platform works better than another, etc. Understand how digital is measured - some of it can lead to a direct ROI while other methods sustain a long term growth strategy. Educate yourself on what works for your brand or business so you can at least give your agency a run for their money.
2. Formulate a strategy. With this knowledge comes great power. You need to have an idea of where you want your business or brand to go. Just saying you want to be online because that's where all the cool kids are isn't enough. Yes, its the job of your agencies (media, PR, creative, etc.) to help you forge that path but you need to have an objective - why do you need to build awareness? how will being on Facebook fulfill that objective? are you just saying Facebook because that's where you think you should be?
3. Provide value to the customer. I think a client needs to be open to creating value for the customer. Banners are no longer enough and with a consumer's attention span being that of a gold fish (9 seconds!) we tend to tune out banners, especially since we know where they will appear on a page. You have to be able and willing to forgo the mundane and step into waters that may be a bit murky and uncomfortable. It will yield a higher return in the end. 
4. Generate content. I'm not talking about a Facebook post that updates the consumer on your latest product. I'm talking about valuable information the consumer will specifically go out of their way to come to because it is a benefit to them. Take RedBull as an example always of a company that does it right and pulls you in with their content rather than pushing their brand message out to you.
5. Stay in the know. The landscape is constantly changing. You need to know your consumer well enough to know how their habits are changing. E-mails may have worked in the past but now Twitter may be more popular. Figure out where and how they are consuming information and make it your priority to become an expert in it.

and because I love even numbers:

     6. Don't be afraid. Digital is a scary field because it's constantly changing and evolving but the 

         possibilities are endless. Don't be scared.

This word cloud will only get bigger as the years go by - innovation is a thing of beauty. Embracing it is a necessity. 

-D

The Love Affair WIth A Brand

Have you ever thought of your relationship with a brand that you frequent? Have you ever said to yourself, "Gosh, [insert brand name here] is such an awesome brand. There when I need it, supportive and just plain awesome." You actually probably have. For some of them at least.

A Harvard Business Review article entitled To Keep Your Customers, Keep it Simple explains that all the fluffy stuff marketers do to engage with consumers is a waste of time and what consumers ultimately want is simplicity, ease of use, and a clearly defined benefit. I absolutely agree with this but I don't think this doesn't mean a brand can't establish a relationship with their customers if they adhere to that methodology.

First off, the customer journey has increasingly become more like this:

With the age of digital, consumers have a thousand more avenues to traverse - way more chances to research things and to get insights on.

What customers really want is a clearly defined path that will ultimately lead them to a purchase. I agree that complicating that path makes it hard for the user to get to that end goal. What a brand should do, according to the above article, is the following:

1. Aid navigation - minimize the number of sources the consumer can get information from (at least from the branded side). Consumers will still research and check out review sites but at least they will be constantly directed, by the brand, to the brand site (via search tactics, banner ads, etc.)
2. Build trust - make sure the consumer is able to trust in the information they've gathered about said brand. Typically users trust other users which is why most go to the reviews sections on website (i.e. Amazon). If a brand can make it so that they have brand ambassadors that focus on advice on certain products rather than touting all the specs of the product, a user is more likely to trust that information. For example, the article talks about Disney and how their mom panel aids other moms who are looking for advice on Disney trips.
3. Make it easier to weigh options - offer side by side comparisons - goes along with the first bullet. If a brand puts all the information in one place, half the research is done and streamlined, eliminating another step in the purchase decision process

As I mentioned, I do think that a brand can still build a personality and create a relationship with a consumer by keeping the above in mind (and they also need to remember to evolve with the times lest they follow the path of HMV!). By the very nature of doing the above, a consumer will be more grateful towards the brand, generate positive emotions and therefore establish their own private relationship with the brand. 

Personally, I've been grateful towards brands that make it easy for me to decide (dare I say I may even have a love affair with some?). Once they've hooked me, then they can do all the fluffy stuff they want because now I'm loyal and more likely to advocate the brand to others.

What are your thoughts?

-D

You Can Still Dunk in the Dark

I'm a huge fan of the Victorian time period. I love everything about it - the gowns, the jewelry, the traditions, chivalry and the pure romance of it all. When I read novels that are set in that time period, there's usually a heroine or a heroine's friend/sister who is involved in a scandal. We are told that their scandal will be forgotten once the next poor girl falls into a different trap and then that will become the talk of the town. The reality of it all was, those stories weren't forgotten quickly and new stories didn't replace it right away. News didn't travel fast and you could guarantee that the old ladies meeting for tea down the street were going to be talking about it like it was yesterday. 

Luckily, in our day and age, we are lucky if a scandal lasts a month or two - something is bound to replace it if not sooner. I am literally in awe of how fast news is made in our world today. In the blink of an eye, a whole subject matter can be reported on, discussed , and debated about to death. And the next day - it's old news until the next topic.

Brands can no longer ignore the virility of news today and either they can jump on the bandwagon or get lost in the crowd. This phenomenon that all brands are slowly starting to get a hang of is called newsjacking. Coined by David Meerman Scott, it's when a brand reacts to a current event in real time in order to create buzz about themselves and deliver on one of their main KPIs (whether you've defined that to be awareness or sales, etc.)

An amazing example of this being used by a brand was Oreo during the 2013 Super Bowl. After Beyonce's killer performance, the stadium suffered a massive power outage that actually took up a significant amount of time. To fill the air time, CBS ran a bunch of commercials as bonus. The event alone was highly anticipated and had millions of eyes on-air but it also had millions of eyes on second screen experiences such as online, mobile or tablet devices. Oreo took full advantage of this and instantly posted a response to the growing anxiety of football fans everywhere:

How incredible is that? Not only did they have amazing commercials on-air but their presence online was on point and just as clever. Within minutes, the image received over 19K likes, over a 1K comments and over 6K shares. 

Oreo does it YET AGAIN with the a more recent story line that I've been equally obsessing about it (ladies and gentlemen we are now coming full circle to my Victorian Era mention above) - the royal birth! Boy George was born on July 22nd to the real-life fairy tale couple, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. Oreo's reaction:

Well played Oreo. Well played. Not as viral as the Super Bowl but still highly effective garnering almost a thousand retweets total. 743 of them on the same day! 

I definitely think that brands can no longer afford to sit in the wings on the metaphorical world stage. They need to take action and interact with consumers. For brands like Oreo that are already doing this, they already have a leg up on the competition and it's almost becoming like tradition now - what will Oreo do next?

-D

Digi Data Overload

I've been working late hours ever since I decided to become a Digital Planner. I love what I do. Digital is cool - it's constantly evolving and exciting and I definitely prefer it to planning TV. It's also a lot more complicated, frustrating and completely overwhelming.

Of all days to work late, it had to be on a Friday, on the hottest day of the year (so far), and on my mom's birthday. Sitting in the office when that's all going on because you have to analyze some data and work on media plans - a person can get pretty emotional. I eventually got home and stopped by to hang with mom for a bit when she point blank asked me..."Why are you so busy?"

..."Why am I so busy?" I started and then stopped. How do I explain to my parents, who aren't super tech savvy, why digital is so much more involved than any other media channel out there? The long and short of it is, digital is creepy - we know everything about everyone - whether the user has dropped off in mid-action, if they've purchased something, how much they purchased, and ultimately how much ROI that means for the client. You can't really do that with TV or print or radio. And that is why I have to stay late because that sort of information doesn't just appear out of thin air (okay maybe it lives in the cloud but that's just semantics).

I recently read two articles on big data and how it gives users what they want, before the even know it. Having been in the industry for a few years now, I've become a big fan of big data even though sometimes it makes me feel uncomfortable - uncomfortable because it can be intimidating just how much there is to work with. I personally feel that when I present to the client, I don't want to tell them I think it might be a good idea. I want to present to the client that based on x, y, z I KNOW it's a great idea and will help them achieve their ultimate goals. I love having back up information and its even better when I have facts based on cross-platform results that will ultimately help choose our strategy for the next planning cycle. I would feel naked if I didn't have data to support my recommendation.

Big data is basically data that is being collected and expanded over time. Marketers are (and should actively be) able to tap into this data to make key decisions on strategy. Something to note about big data is that I believe it can only be as good as the people who analyze it. If you are only using a data scientist to tell you what they think and you aren't able to contribute or take key learnings out, you are missing the boat. There's an argument in the Netflix article linked above that predicting whether a program will do well or not based on 30 million "plays" a day takes the creativity out of the show and starts making all shows look and feel the same. I personally feel like Netflix is doing it right - they used data to make a decision on whether a show may be popular based on director/actors involved but are leaving the creative producers free reign on story line. It turns out its working. People are hooked as Netflix KNEW they would be.

So what if maybe 99% of the data you collect is "useless" - that 1% that helps you make a key decision that could potentially differentiate you from your competitors - in my book that's #winning. Even if it overwhelms me and makes me stay late.

-D

Tying the Knot Across Platforms

Weddings are big, big bucks and it's probably one of the few industries that is still going strong. Sure, maybe brides are being a little bit smarter about how and where they spend their money - maybe it's fewer flowers or ruthlessly selecting only three bridesmaids - bottom line, what woman, or man for that matter, doesn't want to feel special on their very important day?

That being said, the wedding planning process, from what I've seen from some of my friends, and dreamed about for my very own wedding (one day!), can be very hectic and have a ton of moving parts. You need to have resources at the touch of your fingertips and woe betide the site with the poor user experience across multiple platforms!

It is good practice to implement responsive design - the same experience across multiple screens (i.e. web, tablet, mobile, etc.). This enhances the user experiences and yes, limits the amount of bride-zillas in the world.

A property that really does a great job of this is The Knot. The Knot is a one-stop wedding planning solution  featuring the latest trends, money saving techniques, you name it! And the best part is that the experience you get on the website is the same across both your mobile and tablet devices. Not only does the property conform to the device you are using (responsive design) but the login you use for the website is the same across the other platforms so you are able to access your checklist, budgeter, favorites, picks, guest list and vendors and never feel like you HAVE to have to your tablet on you or be near your computer. This makes wedding planning a lot more simple and convenient.

Take a look at the website itself:

It's got a pretty clean design, very easy to navigate and draws the user in immediately with top picks (Our Favorites) from a trusted source. The soft white background and the soft colors immediately put you in a wedding planning mindset (i.e. the white dress, the something blue, etc.) You've got an easy menu on the left side to get your planning started and on the top right, you can see whats trending, almost as if this website is your best friend, nay your maid of honor, helping you out with every step of the wedding planning process. At the top of the site is another menu that takes you to the hot ticket items - vendors, dresses, tools, photos and honeymoons. It even has a section for the bride-to-be to gain inspiration from real wedding stories that users submit. Talk about chock full of useful information and content that keeps the user in mind the minute they land on the site.

If you go to this very same website on your mobile or tablet device this is what you'll see:

Mobile Experience

Tablet Experience

The experience is consistent across the board and optimizes based on the device you are using. 

What's more, The Knot also has an app called My Wedding Planner which looks like this:

Mobile App

Tablet App

Again the experience is consistent for the user.

Finally, when I was on my tablet playing with the experience of the website, not the app, I got the following images:

Tablet App Download CTA

Beta App Download CTA

Here, The Knot's responsive design has detected that I'm using my iPad to view the website. They are asking if I'd like to download the accompanying wedding planner app shown above. The second image is asking me if I want to be a part of a beta of new apps that The Knot will be releasing shortly. Because I'm wedding obsessed, of course I signed up.

The one thing I would say about the Tablet App Download CTA was that I had already downloaded the app so I was a little annoyed when I saw that pop up. That tells me that The Knot doesn't have an API feed telling them whether a user already has the app downloaded. It's a minor annoyance but if it continues to happen every time, it could actually become a bigger problem.

Overall, however, The Knot is a great example of how to tying the knot all together across multiple platforms and not only providing the user a streamline experience but one that is full of extremely useful content thus making them a trusted source. 

-D

Hitting The Wall

Want to ride your bike in the park? Oh, sorry, that will be $5. Want to ride your bike in the park for more than two hours? That will be another $5.

Ridiculous right? Silly to pay for something that was once free - makes you want to boycott parks all together and just ride on the streets instead.

Why throw this analogy out at you, you might be wondering. Well there's been a trend in the digital world where newspapers are allowing readers a certain number of articles for free but once that quota has been reached, prompt them to pay for a subscription. This trend is called the Pay Wall. 

The image above basically explains it all. Most readers who expect this digital content to be free end up getting stopped by this wall that wont let them pass. Here's my problem with pay walls:

1. Users may be confused that what was previously free content (in the case of the NY Times) is now fee-based content
2. Users may be angered that they can't finish reading an interesting article because they've reached their max viewing time
3. Most users will not subscribe because they are casual readers only
4. The user-experience is different for everyone depending on what source they use (i.e. if they have a mobile device vs a tablet, the price could be different; if a user comes in through Google or Facebook, their viewing quota may differ)
5. Users who have a certain perception of a publisher might think "Who do you think you are, the Wall Street Journal?" That's because WSJ has always been a high end, subscription based newspaper so in the mind of the consumer, digital versions would naturally follow suit. 

Sure, your loyal consumers will probably want a subscription because they've been with you for x number of years or are already a print subscriber but the majority of these readers are casual and if they can't consume on the nytimes.com, they will Google it and find it somewhere else. For free.

A solution that I've seen and actually think is pretty awesome is Ad Wall. This concept is similar to the Pay Wall but the key difference is, the publisher is asking the reader simply to watch an ad instead and then they can continue to read the publisher's content. It's a win for the client and a win for the reader. AND the publisher gets more ad dollars. Best yet, if the user has an opportunity to choose between two ads to watch, it'll make them feel as if they had a choice in the matter, and it wont be such a drag to have to sit through. Just look at Hulu - I'd sit through five commercials just to watch my fave show. Wouldn't you? Oh wait, you probably are already!

Stop hitting your head against the wall. You'll leave a scuff mark.

-D

Just Pull the Trigger!!!

I've come across a very real problem as I've made my way through the "real world."

I participate in mentoring for my undergrad university and I also interview a ton in my current position. A trend I've been noticing lately is that I cannot tell one candidate from the other. Most of my interviews/mentoring sessions end up like this:

I try as hard as I can to bring forth some interesting nugget of information - I ask questions, I look for visual cues, or I sit patiently and wait for a well thought out question to spring forth until I basically end up hearing myself talk to awkwardly fill in the silent moments.

Remember that saying, "Dress to Impress?" Well, ladies and gents, it's no longer looking the part that is expected of you now a days. It's being able to clearly communicate what makes you so awesome and why I want to fight to hire you for my company and have you part of my team.

I recently watched Sally Hogshead's TEDx talk on How to Fascinate. Besides the actual content of the video, please note how open her face is when she talks, the personality she oozes with every word and the way she gesticulates with her hands and moves around the stage:



Pretty...fascinating...right? Sally engages the viewer almost right from the beginning and you are basically sitting on the edge of your seat with excitement wanting to know, YES, how can I too be fascinating? At least I was.

As part of this little exercise, I was able to take her Fascination Test which is about 28 questions long. Each question is designed to figure out what triggers, as she calls them, define your archetype - your bread and butter - your brand.

Her seven triggers are:

1. Power
2. Passion
3. Mystique
4. Prestige
5. Alarm
6. Vice
7. Trust

By taking the test, you learn about your primary and secondary triggers that are the very definition of you.  I have found out that my primary trigger is PRESTIGE and my secondary is PASSION. What does that mean? It means that I'm acute, discerning and detail oriented. I don't settle for average. I'm a combination of ambitious, goal-oriented, social, expressive, and intuitive. Pretty spot on I would say. I fall in with the likes of Ralph Lauren, Oprah Winfrey, JK Rowling, and Lady Diana. Not too shabby.

How can I use this knowledge to create my own brand and to fascinate others? For one, just simply recognizing these triggers is a huge step. It's something I exuded anyway whether I knew it or not but now that I have a knowledge of what this truly is defined as, I already have that much more confidence in myself. For another, I can use my PRESTIGE trigger to get more people at work to recognize and respect my talent by having them share in my own visions. With my PASSION trigger, simply showcasing my personality and my flair draws people in and captivates my audience. This is how I can bring value to my team.

This test reaffirmed what I already knew about myself. It definitely defined it better for me and gave me more direction on how I can use these skills to my advantage and things to look out for (i.e. I tend to be over emotional so toning it down a bit on occasion may not be such a bad thing). Circling back to my earlier comments, I really think each student should take this test their final year of college, before they go out into the real world and interview for jobs. It would provide them with more direction and give them ways to position their own brand. I remember one of the worst things about finishing college was this big gaping hole at the end of it all and I wasn't sure where I would land, if ever. I wish someone had made me take this test so I at least had some paths I could choose from.

I'm one step closer to Branding D and I can't wait for what's in store once I start consciously pulling these triggers more and more.

-D

Verbifying Google

Not many brands can say they are actually a verb. What do you say when someone asks you how you researched something? I bet you say "I googled it." Did you just nod your head? I thought so.

Google has been verbified. It's so deeply ingrained in our culture to the point where it's now actually part of our dictionary. Why did we do this? What has Google done that makes it so special that it can stand along side other brands such as Photoshop, Rollerblades, and Facebook who have also become verbs?

Consider this video:

Cute right? Get's me every single time. Tears in my eyes, goosebumps on my arms. Even now as I re-watch the video to refresh my memory, I start to bawl like a little child.

Google's strategy is phenomenal - provide a service that has multiple extensions that are all extremely useful and if they were taken away the next day, the general populace would probably lose their mind. To top it off, create commercials that showcase the use of the internet not by explaining how the products work but by showing a real life human being (a dad in this case) using all the products Google has to offer to write to his daughter and catalog his memories of her. Scrap booking? Why do that when you can do it ten times better by utilizing the internet to make it happen.

The web truly is what you make of it.

Google does a great job of striking the emotional cord in the consumer. They released similar videos called "Coffee" and "Jess Time" that have a very similar affect on my emotions. They have humanized the brand and for that brief moment, I think to myself, "Yes! I'm going to do this very same thing when I have my own kid one day!" And to be honest, I probably will, thanks to Google. What parent wouldn't want to?

Google may have lost the tech junkies on this one with not enough tech jargon. It doesn't go into the true power of Google and the algorithms that have made it what it is today. But then again it didn't really need to, now did it? The products that Google has created can stand on their own virtual legs.

Besides, we know that the techies are going to still use Google and probably use some forum instead to find out info on all the latest and greatest. They wont need a commercial to tell them. They'll just go google it.

-D

Gaming Woes

I'm all about gaming - casual gaming, heavy user gaming - I think it's all great. It's so easy to get swept up into a story line or something as simple as Candy Crush (by King.com) where you connect similar pieces to move forward in levels.

The latest news to hit the stands has been about Zynga - a gaming publisher that recently let go over 500 employees and announcing the closure of both their NY and LA studios in order to save major bucks. This is HUGE news. Zynga is known for a number of popular casual gaming experiences most notably Farmville.

Hey look, that looks just like me and my farm!!

Zynga is an example of a company that basically had it all and had a competitive market share within the casual gaming experience (this category can be accredited to Nintendo) but lost it rather quickly due to some poor acquisition choices (such as OMGPOP! which, guess what, they also just announced to shutting down). Zynga didn't keep up with the times and produce enough content that interested the end users - people like me! Games like Farmville have a short life span - they take a little while to become popular, have a huge spike in popularity and then fizzle and die once we become bored with tending to our crops. Companies like King.com, I feel, do it the right way where they first beta test a game on their own website. If it receives acclaim and starts to gain traction, they roll it out to Facebook and eventually a mobile application. This is a pretty successful business strategy and why Candy Crush and Bubble Witch Saga are now such popular games and have had a longer life span (does anyone even remember Draw Something?...didn't think so.) 

Branding D

A phoenix, rising from the ashes, this blog has been reborn! The original is but a distant memory. With a new look, a new title and a much needed profile update, I am happy to announce that this, my second foray into the blogging world, has commenced. You might be scratching your head and asking "But Dee, you tried once before! You had about 5 entertaining posts but then you let it fizzle out and die. Why start up again?" 

For my Digital Marketing class this semester (by the way, I started Grad school in the Fall of 2012 at NYU) we are required to write a blog in order to experience the phenomenon of the digital age first hand and to be honest, I hope it forces me to get back into a routine. I've worked in the industry for about 4 years now and have studied marketing all throughout undergrad and am now pursuing my Masters in the subject matter. What I find so fascinating about the whole thing is that it is a field that is constantly evolving which makes it exciting. Hopefully having to post for class will encourage me to continue this after the fact and I can focus on Branding D (that's me!)

Stay tuned for some insightful reading to come and remember, things aren't always what they seem:

-D