The Musings Of An Opinionated Sod [Help Me Grow!]

For me, it’s more than professional … it’s personal.

A sense of responsibility to help whoever comes on board discover who they can become, rather than just do the job that needs to be done.

Part of this is because – as I’ve written many times – I believe my role is to ensure than when they leave [as all people eventually do] they go to a job they never thought they could get.

Where they’re hired for who they are, not just what they do.
For what they’ve made, rather than just what they know.
For how they see the world, not just for how they do their job.

And how do I do that?

By helping create the conditions and the opportunities for them to be great.

That’s it.

My attitude is that the talent is already inside of them – otherwise they wouldn’t be hired in the first place – and my job is to help them see it, believe it and do things with it.

That said, talent is only half the equation … the other is character.

Who they are.
How they act.
How they interact.

As I’ve also written before, I believe in having a gang rather than a department.

A team full of different experiences, mindsets, backgrounds and ideas … but united through their values, standards and love of the work.

Because of that, it is important that anyone who joins has the character to add to the identity of the team rather than just duplicate it.

Or said another way: they need to be someone people enjoy being in a room with, even when we’re discussing, debating and arguing.

Which we do, a lot.

I suppose this is why I feel such a genuine sense of gratitude when someone agrees to be part of our team.

For me, it’s a big demonstration of faith in me/us and I don’t take lightly … which is why the only thing that beats it is when someone agrees to join me for a second time – even though I then worry about their sanity.

What is this all about?

Well, it’s a very convoluted way to write about Martin Bassot.

Back in 2017, I worked with Martin at R/GA London.

In fact, he was the very first person there to tell me to “fuck off”.

I should point out he didn’t say it aggressively, more a response to some cheeky-shit thing I probably did/said, but the moment he said it, I was in ‘HR appropriate’ love.

I know that makes me sound slightly unhinged, but it meant he was comfortable enough with me that we could debate freely and never let it get personal … and that’s a big thing for me.

But it only got better … because over the following months, I got to see someone with real talent and character … someone who could make a real difference to the ideas and craft, which is why I was both proud and sad when he told me he was off to join my ‘other family’, W+K London.

Zoom forward a few years and I’m in New Zealand at Colenso and rang him up.

“Hey …” I said, “… you know how you talked about always wanting to live overseas, how about coming to NZ?”

There was a pause before he replied, “I was thinking somewhere more like Amsterdam”

But he still came.

Uprooted his – and his partners life – to come to the other side of the World.

For me.

Well, not FOR me, but also not excluding me.

And he has been brilliant. Even better than I knew he would be … and I knew he’d be great.

He developed into a really great number 2 for me … helping lead some really great work, develop some really great people in the team and help achieve some really great results for the clients we work with.

I use the past tense because after 2½ years, he is going home. Again.

I was tempted to use the same post I wrote about him last time he left me, but he deserves more than that. Probably. At a push.

In all seriousness – and without wishing to sound an old, old bastard – I am very proud of him.

What he’s done.
How he’s done it.
And most importantly, who he is.

He’s left an indelible mark on the team, the agency and the work.

And in the time he’s been here, we’ve hopefully done the same for him because he leaves with memories, experience, fans, work, Cannes Grand Prix’s, LBB Immortal Awards and Agency of the Year titles and a lot of empty crisp packets.

And I mean, A LOT of empty crisp packets.

So all in all, it’s not a bad set of achievements for little over two years.

Back when I pitched the idea of NZ to him, I said “Come for an adventure and go back better and more experienced than you’d be if you stayed in London”.

I think it’s fair to say we both did what we hoped and promised each other.

And while I’m obviously sad he’s going, I’m very excited about his next adventure.

The agency who has hired him – and there were many who wanted to – are very lucky, but they’re also very smart … because they saw him for who he is today rather than who he was 2+ years ago. What that means is they not only took the time to properly understand who he is and what he can – and wants – to do, they shaped the role to enable it rather than just hire him and then ask him to fit in with what they have.

For someone who will always deeply care about Martin, it makes me very happy that is the environment he’s heading into.

Doesn’t mean it will be easy.
Doesn’t mean he won’t have to work fucking hard.
But it does mean he’s been set up to win not just to fit in.

I suppose the best compliment I can give Martin is this.

Despite working together twice before, I really hope I get to work with him again.

Even if next time, it’s far more likely I’ll be working for him rather than the other way around.

But even then it would be a pleasure.

So thank you Martin, for everything.

At the end of the day, the best thing you can hope you can do in a job is make a difference and you did that and some. [Though I must admit, one of the things I’ll remember most about your time here is the lunch we had in some weird Chinese restaurant in the middle of Canada, as we listened to Forest beat Palace in the last minute. That and Colenzob-do, of course]

So know you’re going to be missed, respected and always adored.

And with that, it just leaves me to say, fuck off Martin.

Said with love. Always and forever.

[There’s no more posts for over a week, not just because I need to get over Martin’s departure, but it’s a holiday and then I’m off to China … so see you in a week and please pray with me that Martin’s plane home gets delayed for about 12 more months, haha.]