What’s kept you dedicated to this industry?
The people I’ve encountered in this industry are generally amazing. I find myself surrounded by wonderful, broken geniuses who want to make great work.
Why is mentorship so important in advertising?
There will never not be value in talking with someone who has seen it before and survived.
How can the advertising industry be less ageist and more inclusive?
We already have the answers to make the industry more inclusive. Ours is not a problem of knowledge. It is a problem of action.
What advice would you give your younger self?
Maybe talk less, sometimes.
Sum up your leadership style in five words.
Let people do their jobs.
Who has inspired and influenced you most to get where you are today?
My parents, in very different ways, gave me tools that are very effective in advertising, even though neither of them had anything to do with this industry. My mother taught me the value of patience, and my father taught me the value of impatience, and that tension has influenced me a lot. I think about that balance every day.
What are you most passionate about changing in the ad industry?
I want us to be less performative. Let’s do the work we need to do to make a change in consumer behavior or society at large, and only then build a beautiful story to talk about it.
What’s one quality all creatives should have?
Dissatisfaction.
How would your team describe you if we took them out for drinks?
They would make fun of me a lot, but after the third or fourth beer, they would call me a shit-umbrella and mean it as a compliment.
Where are you going to display your 40 Over 40 trophy?
I will probably let my kids decide that.
