April 2015

Go Back2Go Forward

A few years ago, I realized I had started a company without having a full understanding of the best systems to put in place. As the firm grew, things were done in ways that seemed to make the most sense. The business expanded, new clients joined the portfolio, and employees were hired. With the success of the company, comes a concern of becoming stuck in our ways. Companies that live by an "it's the way we've always done it" mentality often find themselves way behind the times.

You hear "it's the way we've always done it" a lot with established companies, but even fledgling creative organizations can slip into that routine.

There I was, a relatively new business owner, with the sudden realization there may be better ways to do certain things. Not sure how to break that pattern, I decided to make a phone call.

To Mid-Michigan4The Answer

Almost 25 years ago, I did business with an ad man in Saginaw, Michigan who always seemed to have it together. (He'd bristle at me writing that.) He was cordial to me; kind really - and in many ways he took me under his wing and spoke some powerful things into my life - both personally and professionally. We stayed in touch through the past few decades though we hadn't seen each other in person. Sam Britton answered hard questions and let me bounce my situations and crazy ideas off of him. I continued learning.

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About eight months ago, we formalized an arrangement with Sam since he had retired from the advertising game. Basically, we've hired Sam to give us honest feedback. He ends up being sort of a quality control step in our creative process. He's also one of the most talented writers I know and has a fine attention to detail.

We had a missing step and an old friend, who's a trusted advisor and a gifted man, was there to fill a hole in our organization. Helpful resources are often in plain sight - sometimes they can come from days gone by.