I think nowadays you have to be a polymath in this business, wearing so many hats. The landscape has changed completely, you can never be too confident, because it's always in flux. I entered the industry before the internet became big, so print media was huge in those days. Then the internet came, and all of a sudden ad agencies started hiring programmers. So an industry that was always dominated by right-brain creatives, suddenly couldn't go any further without the help of left-brain "geeks". Then 3D entered the arena, which is a very difficult skill to master. You either do it all day every day, or you'll never master that skill. The same goes for the video production guys, who have spent years at film school to hone their skills. As with copywriters, it takes time to become good. The photographers, who also spent years at art school. The PR component, totally opposite to advertising, all about wooing and wining and dining journalists! Smooth operators... and the birth of "advertorials", an ad disguised as an article, which carries more credibility in the mind of the consumer, because they don't know they're looking at an ad. And I can go on and on, there are so many specialisation fields in advertising that no one person can master them all, it's impossible. That's Jack of all trades.... master of none. I thoroughly believe in specialisation, someone who sticks to something, becomes a master at it. It's like an orchestra coming together. So your skill set is always just one little puzzle piece in a very large puzzle. The art director would be the conductor of this orchestra, chasing after people, encouraging them, berating them, and so on. Trust becomes crucial, trusting others to do what they say they can do.
If I just think of my own new company, we have to rely on a number of companies we hired. One company for the SEO, who does that all day every day. They even have two people sitting inside Google notifying them of all the algorithm changes, and new roll outs. Then we have the web developers, different company, using Magento as an e-commerce platform, again, difficult skill to master. And the list goes on. You can't do everything yourself, because you simply can't master all these specialisation fields.
So I wouldn't say I'm over confident, because e-commerce is something I've never done before. There are just too many variables, every day we think of something we haven't thought of before, and the list just grows. Money is flowing out and nothing is coming in before the launch. I always joke and say "we have great cash flow, it's all flowing out!" :-) With a little humour and a lot of faith, it'll all come together. But it's precisely that which makes it fun, the new territory. You just keep reinventing yourself. I've read quite a few case studies by now, and for everyone there was a first time. What made that first time happen, is courage. A willingness to take the first step, without guarantees. So courage to me, is most important! I also have a business mentor this time around, because I'm an artsy-fartsy, and I hate "business". I just wanna do the fun stuff, the creative work, but unfortunately there's lots of admin. So he keeps on saying "do the right things in the right order!" Lol! But it's slowly but surely taking shape, which is fulfilling, and I get to wear a t-shirt, shorts and flip-flops every day. Hie-hie-hie...
I guess it just goes to show again, that we're all different and unique. As Carl Jung said "the shoe that fits one person pinches another; there is no recipe for living that suits all cases." Confidence to me is overrated, I haven't pulled off any of my feats in the industry because of confidence. I wouldn't have experienced stress if I was confident, and I lay awake many nights back in the day wondering how we're gonna pull something off. I was micro-managing in those days, which led to my own burnout. Mico-managing is all about not trusting others. Today I'm very different, quite relaxed, and I trust others. Trust the infinity and the variety of the Creator.
If I just think of my own new company, we have to rely on a number of companies we hired. One company for the SEO, who does that all day every day. They even have two people sitting inside Google notifying them of all the algorithm changes, and new roll outs. Then we have the web developers, different company, using Magento as an e-commerce platform, again, difficult skill to master. And the list goes on. You can't do everything yourself, because you simply can't master all these specialisation fields.
So I wouldn't say I'm over confident, because e-commerce is something I've never done before. There are just too many variables, every day we think of something we haven't thought of before, and the list just grows. Money is flowing out and nothing is coming in before the launch. I always joke and say "we have great cash flow, it's all flowing out!" :-) With a little humour and a lot of faith, it'll all come together. But it's precisely that which makes it fun, the new territory. You just keep reinventing yourself. I've read quite a few case studies by now, and for everyone there was a first time. What made that first time happen, is courage. A willingness to take the first step, without guarantees. So courage to me, is most important! I also have a business mentor this time around, because I'm an artsy-fartsy, and I hate "business". I just wanna do the fun stuff, the creative work, but unfortunately there's lots of admin. So he keeps on saying "do the right things in the right order!" Lol! But it's slowly but surely taking shape, which is fulfilling, and I get to wear a t-shirt, shorts and flip-flops every day. Hie-hie-hie...
I guess it just goes to show again, that we're all different and unique. As Carl Jung said "the shoe that fits one person pinches another; there is no recipe for living that suits all cases." Confidence to me is overrated, I haven't pulled off any of my feats in the industry because of confidence. I wouldn't have experienced stress if I was confident, and I lay awake many nights back in the day wondering how we're gonna pull something off. I was micro-managing in those days, which led to my own burnout. Mico-managing is all about not trusting others. Today I'm very different, quite relaxed, and I trust others. Trust the infinity and the variety of the Creator.