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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tI Can\u2019t Recommend This Business Anymore\u2026The Holding Companies Won\u2019t Allow Me to Lead\u2026There Are No Advertising Heroes These Days\u2026I\u2019m Really Hoping NOT to Get Promoted\u2026\xa0These are just some of the brow-raising things that I\u2019ve been hearing lately.\xa0Some of which I\u2019m hearing for the very first time.\xa0Perhaps each of these are a signal that creativity & management are indeed in the middle of a great upheaval.\xa0The again, when isn\u2019t it?\xa0Welcome to Episode 51 of Navigating the Fustercluck\u2014a podcast full of snackable insights to help you navigate the evolving world of creativity & marketing.\xa0My name is Wegs, like eggs with a W, joining you from Deaf Mule Studios in Dallas, where we\u2019re exploring all the talk out there.\xa0\xa0As we move past our first 50 episodes, thanks again for helping our launch year be such a success. We truly appreciate it. And hope that you\u2019ll keep enjoying and sharing Navigating the Fustercluck.\xa0OK, let\u2019s get back to the buzz all about creativity & management\u2026\xa0\xa0\xa0I Can\u2019t Recommend This Business Anymore\xa0\xa0This is one of the saddest things I\u2019ve ever heard.\xa0And I\u2019m hearing it more & more.\xa0From grizzled vets to those who should be the next group of leaders and cheerleaders for the business.\xa0People are down. They feel forlorn. (Sad sounding word, isn\u2019t it?)\xa0Some feel that in their pursuit for economic efficiencies, clients haven\u2019t noticed or don\u2019t care about the struggle of agency people to maintain some degree of work/life balance.\xa0They feel that their companies barely care more than their clients.\xa0\xa0It\u2019s been going on so long this way that people are finally exhausted. Losing faith and optimism in their industry. And their leaders. So much so that many no longer want to see anyone else suffer the same fate. They\u2019re actually mentoring younger people to get out while they can.\xa0All I can say is that the rank-and-file need some hope.\xa0\xa0Leaders, you still owe your team 3 basic things:\xa0A vision to march behindInput to the visionThe tools & environment to fulfill the vision\xa0And you owe them this whether or not those above you in the org chart aren\u2019t supplying the same to you.\xa0No wonder I\u2019m also hearing people say\u2026\xa0\xa0* I\u2019m Really Hoping NOT to Get Promoted\xa0\xa0It\u2019s not that people aren\u2019t ambitious, it\u2019s just that leadership isn\u2019t always worth aspiring to. Why?\xa0\xa0People are looking for safe-havens. A balance between making money and free-time. And they\u2019re afraid to be at such a level where they\u2019ll be exposed when layoffs come. You can actually become the victim of your own success. Seeking security over new challenges. Especially when cuts are being made by accountants at the home office who have never met you.\xa0Some of these problems are perceived to come from the same source-\xa0holding companies.\xa0\xa0I even have C-suite leaders, including CEO\u2019s saying\u2026\xa0\xa0* The Holding Companies Won\u2019t Allow Me to Lead\xa0\xa0According to them, they have to manage to the numbers. Keep the status quo. Unable to investment spend in tools or people unless a current client requests it.\xa0No risk. No gain. Just the same agency offering from before. Incremental improvements over dynamic change. At the same time, these leaders seem a whole lot safer than those they serve. The average stay of an agency CEO stay is pretty stable it seems, just as long as they don\u2019t try too hard to innovate. That may be one reason why people are saying\u2026\xa0\xa0* There Are No Advertising Heroes Anymore\xa0\xa0Was Alex Bogusky the last advertising hero? Because he\u2019s gone now. Again.David Droga may have held that mantle, but that\u2019s before many dubbed him a sell-out when he sold to Accenture. (The jury is still out on that one.)\xa0So who else? Dan Weiden is basically out of the picture. Jeff Goodby? Perhaps.\xa0Anyway, on the more personal level, with so many vets opting out voluntarily or forcibly, are we left with many potential heroes? Or is the idea of heroes old and trite? A thing of the past.