Creative Directions: Mastering the Transition from Talent to Leader

by Jason Sperling

Overview

More and more makers, designers, writers, and artists are in demand as we enter the Age of Creatives. By understanding the new strategies and mindset required to succeed, you can manage other creatives successfully.

For creators, getting that promotion to management is exciting but can also be scary. The skills that made them so successful may not translate to the skill required to be a great manager, and this gets even more complicated when managing other creatives who often don’t thrive under traditional management procedures.

Creative Directions is a management masterclass in which you attend lectures and seminars as you learn from some of the best in the business, including directors Ava DuVernay (When They See Us) and Joe Russo (Avengers: Endgame); two-time Academy Award-winning editor Angus Wall (The Social Network); executive producers from hit TV shows like The Simpsons and GLOW; and creative directors and leaders at businesses like Amazon, Apple, Disney, TikTok, and more.

In Creative Directions, you will:

• Receive essential guidance on how to master the delicate balance required to successfully lead a creative team.
• Learn from star creative leaders in the entertainment industry on essential lessons they learned on their path to success.
• Gain insights on how to balance mastering the new skills you need as a leader with finding the time and energy to focus on the creative work you love.

All of these lessons are provided in an easily accessible format so that you can open the book to any page and find an actionable, inspirational insight or strategy.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781400222896
Publisher:	HarperCollins Leadership
Publication date:	06/01/2021
Pages:	320
Sales rank:	1,086,825
Product dimensions:	8.10(w) x 10.00(h) x 0.90(d)

About the Author

Jason Sperling serves as Global Executive Creative Director for Facebook Reality Labs. For over two decades, he has been developing iconic, award-winning advertising for clients that include Apple, Honda, Pixar, TikTok, Amazon, and UNICEF. His Apple “Get a Mac” campaign was declared Campaign of the Decade by Adweek and was one of Ad Age’s Top Campaigns of the century. In 2015 he was selected as one of the Top 30 Creative Directors in the country. His first book on breakthrough marketing, Look at Me When I’m Talking to You: Building Brand Attraction in an Age of Brand Aversion, was released on Instagram (@lookatmebook) and was launched a page a day for over 160 days.

Table of Contents

Contributors ix

Introduction xiii

Section 1 Managing People 3

Trade the spotlight for flashlights 7

Don't manage departments. Manage people 13

Remember the feeling 19

The delicate task of killing babies 25

Mirrors help reduce blind spots 31

Be a strong advocate for people & their projects 35

Set realistic expectations for your team (even if you have impossible expectations for yourself) 39

Make failure an option 43

The burden of bad news 49

If you have a bull in a china shop, move the china 55

Make more yous 59

Don't make anyone feel like a yellow Starburst 63

Make their struggle your struggle 67

Give a hundred. Expect ten in return 71

Don't take departures personally 75

Section 2 Being a Leader 81

In battle, always start with the bluntest weapon 85

Greatness necessitates compromise. (Sometimes.) 89

Align your spine 95

Learn to deputize 99

Only apes throw their poop at people 103

Sometimes you need to be a benevolent dictator 107

Opposition attracts m

Bring out the human in people 115

Act your title 119

High-paid prima donnas make perfect targets 125

Your job description is just a starting point 129

There's nothing wrong with being a lifelong maker 133

Section 3 Managing Clients and Higher-Ups 139

Straddle the line between partner and prodder 143

Put your client's and company's concerns above your own. And have the ability to discern which are more important 147

Be mindful of the person above the person above 151

Don't rise so high that you lose sight of the people below you 155

Everyone at the table deserves respect (even if it's not apparent why yet) 161

Put a ring on it 165

Aspire to be a client whisperer 169

Don't treat insights or ideas like buried treasure 173

Section 4 The Work 179

Great work still matters, but for different reasons 183

A POV is IMP 187

Fingerprints can leave smudges 193

Maintain a culture of consistency 201

Less pushing, more pulling 205

Falling on too many swords kills credibility 209

Take risks but mitigate disasters 213

Awards should be the fortuitous result of smart work, not the goal 219

Work rarely sells itself 225

Keep making things if making things makes you happy 229

Section 5 The Career 235

When it comes to your job, be selfless. When it comes to your career, be selfish 239

Keep working on you v.2 243

Avoid burning a bridge you don't intend to walk across 247

A higher salary only makes you happy on payday 251

Go away and stay away 255

We all need a "fuck it" bucket 261

Try to establish a work-you balance 267

When 1 first took a leadership position, I wish I would have 273

Index 275

About the Author 283

About the Illustrator 283