Ahead of our AMG ‘7 Minute Mentor’ speed learning session in Melbourne on May 17, McCann Melbourne media director Jane Walshe shares her career high, her own advice to herself, and what she looks for in a team member.
TCC: Why advertising as a career?
JW: It seemed exciting.
TCC: If you hadn’t pursued this as a career, what else would you have done?
JW: I wanted to be an embedded war journalist (not joking). Christiane Amanpour was/is my idol.
TCC: Name three skills or qualities you think you need to stay at the top of your game?
JW: Attention to detail, patience, adaptability.
TCC: What’s the best part of your job?
JW: The variation and unpredictability in the day to day.
TCC: What’s the worst part of your job?
JW: Projects that never seem to go away, client requests that never seem to be solved no matter how much work goes in to please them. We call them zombies.
TCC: What’s your most embarrassing career moment?
JW: Getting drunk at an upfront and talking about dumb stuff to Chris Brown, Bondi Vet.
TCC: What’s your career high?
JW: Being asked to talk on stage about something impromptu at a client conference with 30 minutes notice and 400 client stakeholders in the room. Nailed it (with a half a Valium to help calm me down).
TCC: What do you look for in a team member?
JW: Someone who ‘gets it’, can see the big picture, is hungry to learn, is really smart, not ego-driven, has careful attention to detail and can multi-task. (Am I asking for much?)
TCC: If you could step back in time and offer yourself just one piece of advice as you started your career, what would it be?
JW: When dealing with suppliers/media reps/anyone you need something from quite regularly in order to perform your role….. you get more with honey than with vinegar.
Jane Walsh is one of our ‘7 Minute Mentors’ at our AMG speed mentoring event in Melbourne on May 17.