Three countries, ten years and five thoughts

Hello, my name is Kajal and I’m a planner. Youngish, painfully enthusiastic , consumed by passion and the desire to be – better, smarter, wiser. Being part of something worthwhile, helping create something we can be proud of.

But despite all that happy energy, I’ve been finding it increasingly difficult to remain as optimistic. Perhaps this comes from being where I am and having an opinion, perhaps from seeing how things work in the industry.

So three countries and a decade later, here are five things I’ve learnt. (I’d do ten but Anant gave me a very strict word count I’m trying to stick to)

I can’t think of a very good reason for you to read this, except that we’re all in this together and if you ask me nicely, I’ll buy you a coffee in exchange for your views sometime…

1. Always work with people you like: As a wise Lion said to me ‘It’s not about you, it’s about who you work with. Do you want to spend each day hanging out with them?’ This isn’t about being best friends with your boss, but enjoying an exchange, feeling good about the people you’re working with. I’ve turned down ‘amazing jobs’ because I didn’t like the person I’d be working for. And that means I’ve always had amazing bosses –brilliant, demanding difficult people who have pushed me further than I thought I’d go. Some might say that I have a propensity to collect mentors, but really – they serve as a blueprint for what I could be, with a huge, big dash of originality. The magpie could strike gold

2. Don’t believe your own hype: Just because someone else thinks you’re good enough doesn’t mean you are. Those swollen egos can’t be good for the heart - I get really mad when I see some incredibly smart, but not so lovely senior people treating their own teams badly. How does that help anyone? I’m hoping there is more glory in making a real difference to brands than just making it to the cover of Brand Equity. If you are being torn down rather than built up - I love that success is the greatest revenge. Prove them wrong if they tell you otherwise.

3. Think 2020, the world ahead: I know we all have the conversations over drinks where we all complain about the state of things. TV, media neutral, big idea, monopolies blah blah blah. Despite all of that, things are good. We can make this industry whatever we want it to be. Of course I want that Effie [and I’m writing my fourth case study of the day ] but I also want to be part of making things better. There are agencies with their own schools (Josy is incredibly passionate about this one, a major success at David, reborn at BBDO!), McCann China is setting up a university program and here in Asia – a bunch of indie agencies are keen to set up the APG Asia division. At M&C Saatchi, we have film nights, open mic sessions and every now and then, meetings with the most interesting folk – anthropologists, architects, prostitutes, gambling addicts – we learn from all of them. As I get closer to a place which necessitates creating change, I work with a lot of the smarter, young kids. Making better presentations, writing better briefs, thinking outside of advertising solutions – the thing is, we all want to make money and be more popular. The way I look at it, unless we take responsibility for turning things around – it won’t happen. It’s not about annual retreats, it’s about working for it Every Single Day. The Gandhi card – Become the change you want to see.

 

4. Let’s keep asking those stupid questions: seriously, this one is so underrated. Break those strict codes of authority and remember we have as much right to question someone else’s beliefs and theories as they do ours. Instead of blaming bad bosses and uninspiring agency cultures, let’s find a way to make it happen. We can be ANYTHING we want to be! I once had a boss [Hello, Ogre!] who kept a client waiting while he explained to me exactly why planes can’t stay still – finer points of Bernoulli’s theorem.

5. Share your Thoughts: Even if people question it, hate it, praise it, rip it apart. I write all the time, I send missiles to editors in 3 countries; I have a million stupid ideas a week. And now and then I’m sent nasty emails about it. It’s still good – I’m happy to share my thoughts instead of blindly praising ideas I don’t believe in.

PS: Let’s do away with those complicated titles on the business card. ‘Global/ regional/ national resource’ means nothing – that’s for things like oil, gas and coal – stuff that actually matters.

Kajal Vatsa is liberating brands at Sunshine/ M&C Saatchi Asia. Follow her at http://twitter.com/Kajal81