Leadership, creativity and me

I’m a manager of two, overseeing a team of four; a woman of 31 and a human being with a silly and slightly eccentric personality. Sometimes, (and I’m pleased to say, not in my current role) it’s felt like there’s an expectation that these things should be mutually exclusive. As I’ve settled into my new job (6 months in, settled and enjoying it), I’ve been pondering my feelings about being a leader, a communicator, and just myself, and how best to make them all fit together.

Hate the game, not the player

There’s an assumption (from some) that, as a manager, you have to be sensible, that you can no longer join in the ‘bants’ and that it’s probably no longer appropriate behaviour to drip jam from your donut down yourself and point it out to everyone with a self-deprecating smile (guilty!).

I made myself a promise recently that I will stop beating myself up for being myself. Yes I say silly things, I can be a wally, I can overthink things, over-engineer and worry too much about my impact on others; but these things are inherently Hilary. I’ve been told (in the past) that, because of these qualities, I need to learn to ‘play the game’ better. I need to learn which face to present to which people, and to be more political about the alliances I make publicly.

I say codswallop.

If my outputs, attitude and work ethic aren’t enough to demonstrate my value, I’m probably in the wrong role/team/organisation. Finding the right role is about so much more than salary and commuting distance – it’s about finding a place where I fit. And on the whole I’ve been lucky – I’ve found various groups of lovably eccentric rogues who embrace my weirdness wholeheartedly, and this includes my current bunch of funny, creative and kooky individuals.

I absolutely accept that it’s necessary to switch communications styles with different people – sometimes you need to carefully frame your request or news to persuade the recipient to come to your desired conclusion. However, I don’t and simply won’t accept that this should come at the expense of your personality. I hope that I’m the same slightly nutty individual I was as a 21 year old admin support, just with a bit more life experience. Sure, I’m a bit more careful with my words in a Board meeting than my team meeting, but I’m still me.

Communications is creative

My chosen career path is a creative one. Even as I ascend the metaphorical ladder and find myself undertaking more strategic work than creative, I still get to think of catchy taglines, eye-catching campaigns and to offer my opinion on design ideas and outputs.

In order to maintain this creativity, and not lose it amongst the wealth of reports and papers I now find myself writing, I need to retain my personality. Being silly, thinking slightly differently and letting my mind wander are all imperative to excellent communications work. And that’s why I’ll never become a corporate zombie, and I’ll never encourage my team to do the same. I want them to be a bit cheeky, to take the mick and to feel ‘allowed’ to suggest slightly odd ideas to promote our services. If I shoehorn them into a suited and booted corporate box, they won’t be the people we hired. We’re fortunate in that the social enterprise in which we work shares my mindset, and encourages innovation; so we’re allowed to be who we are.

Find your puzzle piece

I often think about what I’d say to a room of 18 year olds considering their future career paths and I’ve come up with the following. Some are clichéd and some are life lessons learned. I hope that just one inspires someone:

• It’s OK if you don’t desperately yearn to ‘be’ something. I fell into my career and it turns out I love it, and I’m good at it. But it emerged from just taking an admin job I liked the sound of, and letting my skills grow.
• Always be yourself. There’s a certain element of curbing behaviour at work (pounding Prosecco at your desk is generally frowned upon, for example). But if you find yourself numb and a little bit ‘grey’ in the personality spectrum of life, you’re in the wrong place. There is somewhere out there with a you-shaped gap – go find it.
• Being a leader doesn’t mean being a parent. When you reach management level, there’s an element of parental behaviour that it’s easy to slip into. Try instead to view your role as a critical friend and never forget that these people are your equals. You’re not superior simply by virtue of a change in job title and a different salary. Even if the issue at hand is a serious one, remember that both of you are human, and don’t forget to listen, and support.
• Have fun. I hope you make it to the top of your game (if you want to – see my next point). When you do, don’t ever forget why you started. Even in the midst of reporting, budget setting, and strategic planning, you can still have fun by reigniting your passion for your subject, sector and/or role.

• Follow your own path. It’s a cheesy one, but there’s a certain pressure (particularly on women) that confuses ambition with getting to the top. Ambition is ‘a strong desire to do or achieve something’ – no-one but you can decide what that ‘something’ is. It doesn’t have to be reaching CEO level, it could simply be finding a job you love, and being good at it. It could be being a great mum, or it could be exploring the world and falling in love. Don’t let someone put your ambition in a convenient box – if you want to be the best snake wrangler in all of Australia, your ambition is as valid as the next Prime Minister’s.