CHAPTER 4

HOW TO WORK IN A TEAM

FINDING THE RIGHT PARTNER

It was Bill Bernbach (founder of DDB) who first put art directors together with copywriters, in the late 1950s, to make a two-person creative unit—a “team.” It had never been done before, and it worked really well. Gradually everyone copied it. Most advertising agency creative departments in the world are now made up of teams.

In some countries, you can’t even get a job unless you’re part of a team. Colleges put their students into teams before they graduate, and agencies won’t even see your portfolio unless you’re part of a team.

(The US is a notable exception to this rule. In the US you can get hired to work in an ad agency whether you’re a single, a team, or a kick-boxing troupe, as long as you’re good.)

Most people find their partner at college. Good reason to go to college. On most courses, you have the opportunity to work with a wide variety of people. On the course I took, there were 30 of us, of whom 15 were art directors. I got to work with all 15 of them. That was great, because you get an idea of what kind of partnership suits you.

Finding a partner isn’t as daunting as it sounds. Like any other relationship in life, chemistry is crucial. You know quickly whether it’s going to fly. When I first met my partner, we didn’t stop talking for a fortnight. We were gabbling away, talking about advertising, talking about strategies, each trying to impress, perhaps, but for sure we got on like a magnet and a fridge.

But if you do leave college without a partner, it’s no disaster. Many headhunters carry lists of “singletons,” which they’ll let you have without charge. You should also work your contacts—you will have made a few industry contacts by this point—and let everyone from your course know. In fact, tell everyone you know…even the people who aren’t in advertising. They may know someone who is. Look under every stone. Someone will turn up.

Having a partner is an uncommon thing in the world of work. But it’s great. You’ve always got someone to talk to at parties. You have someone to bounce ideas around with. And as someone without a partner told me the other day, it stops the voices.

My partner and I have been together, at the time of writing, for 12 years. Most of them miserable of course, but nevertheless, it’s lasted.

It’s often said that a creative partnership is like a marriage. And it is. Except you’ll probably see more of your partner than you will of your spouse. And you don’t have sex with them. Or you shouldn’t, anyway.

So you have to make sure it’s the right person.

DOES IT FEEL RIGHT?

Trust your instincts. Don’t “talk yourself into” a partnership. If it doesn’t feel right, it isn’t. If you’ve been single for a while, you may be tempted to take a partner just because you need a partner. As with the romantic kind of partner (yes, this metaphor never runs dry) it just isn’t the right thing to do.

Similarly, don’t team up with someone just because they’re already in a job or a placement. The instant leg-up could turn into a long-term nightmare if you’re not compatible. And don’t assume that just because someone is already in a job or has more experience than you then they “must be good.” They may not be. Make sure you judge the person, not their situation—the situation will change, the person won’t.

As with all relationships, don’t leap straight in. If possible, work together for a trial week or two, and see how it goes (agree that upfront; it’s more professional).

And don’t be embarrassed to check them out. Google them. Talk to people who know them. What’s their reputation? Were they being carried by their previous partner? Are they a psycho?

DIFFERENT BUT NOT THAT DIFFERENT

The conventional view of a well-suited team is that it’s two people who get on well, have a similar view of advertising, and share the same goals.

However, you must, must, must find someone who thinks a bit different to you. There’s no point having two people in the room who think the same way. If that’s the case, why have two?

The classic example of a well-balanced team has one person who thinks visually and another who is more verbal (the art director/copywriter combination). But it doesn’t have to be split that way. It used to be said that a great comedy-writing duo comprised one writer and one pacer. Some creative teams seem to have a “front-man” and a “quiet one,” which may correspond to “one thinker and one talker.” But it doesn’t matter. Just as long as your temperaments, psyches, or spheres of reference are somehow different.

On the other hand, you must find somebody you have quite a bit in common with. If you are a 36-year-old male from Manchester, and your partner is a 21-year-old female from Moscow, then you are going to have big problems. You are going to say “We could art direct it in the style of the Clangers” and she is going to say “What is this Clangers?”

It helps if you find them a bit funny. Whether you laugh with them or at them doesn’t matter. As long as there’s some humor there.

Find someone who has the same level of commitment. In other words, if you want to work Christmas Day, find someone else who wants to work Christmas Day. And if you are laid-back, find a partner who is equally so. A mismatch here and you’re in trouble. The most successful British team of the 1990s was Tom Carty and Walter Campbell. The story of how they partnered up is illuminating: they were constantly running into each other in their creative department’s kitchen, making coffee at 10.30pm. Everyone else had gone home. Including their respective partners.

Look for someone you find interesting. You are going to have to sit opposite them for upward of nine hours a day. You are going to have to take airplanes with them, sit in edit suites and soulless conference rooms with them. Pick someone who says something interesting now and again.

Oh, and you’ve got to rate their work.

WORKING WELL WITH YOUR PARTNER

The basics are the same as any human interaction. You need to listen to each other, respect each other’s point of view, and not expect the other to be perfect. After all, you’re not.

Agree between you exactly what the brief is about before you start writing ads. There’s nothing more frustrating than your partner spending two hours drawing pictures of snakes having slightly misheard that vital briefing on snails.

If they write a nice headline, or come up with a good visual, tell them. Sounds obvious I know, but we’re all praise-whores in this business, aren’t we? Your partner is no exception.

Constantly be sharing information with your partner. It’s amazing how often a crucial conversation takes place while one of you is in the toilet. Make sure you tell them as soon as they get back.

Be aware of each other’s strengths and weaknesses. If your partner hates presenting work, don’t make him. If you’re no good at speling, get your partner to check your copy.

There will be times when you carry him, and times when he carries you. Don’t worry about this. It is normal. Only if you have been carrying him for a period longer than about six months do you need to have “a chat.”

Have regular conversations about “what we want to achieve this year” and “where do we see our careers heading.” The boat will go better when you’re both rowing in the same direction.

In general, you should only present ideas that both of you like. It’s the easiest way to narrow down your pile. But if he is desperate to present an idea that you absolutely hate, let him. My partner and I call it “playing a joker.” The main reason to do it is that it avoids an argument, which, because it can’t be resolved, will waste time and could get heated. Also, you don’t want him to feel his creativity is being stifled. The resentment could block him up for half a day. So, even though every fiber of your being is telling you that his idea is an embarrassment, let it go forward. What’s the worst that can happen? If the idea doesn’t get bought, you can tell him “I told you so.” If the idea does get bought and is brilliant, you will share the credit. You can’t lose.

HOW TO DISAGREE NICELY

Yes, this is what it’s like for everyone. Don’t worry about it.

Most of our job consists of discussing ideas. And because this activity is entirely subjective—there’s no Excel spreadsheet that can determine whether an idea is right or not—and because (as previously discussed) 99 percent of all ideas will be rejected, and because (as previously discussed) the two people in the room do not think the same way about everything—it’s inevitable there will be disagreement.

And if you feel passionately about an advert—you’re in the wrong business if you don’t—there will be times when those disagreements become arguments. I know of one creative who, in the heat of a row, stabbed his partner in the leg with a scalpel. That’s probably going too far.

Nevertheless, it’s not good working practice to suppress debate. Let disagreements be aired, else one partner can be left with resentment. It’s OK to argue. A creative partnership is one long argument!

And how you handle that continuous process of debate will determine how successful you are as a team.

SAYING YES NOT NO

The best technique for discussing ideas is the one that is sometimes announced at the beginning of brainstorming sessions. (Hateful word, brainstorming.) The moderator normally begins these sessions by instructing participants not to use the word “no,” but instead to be exclusively positive, because it’s too early in the process to rule anything out—at this stage they are just looking for potential, and every idea has potential. That last part is nonsense of course. However, the deeper utility of the principle is that people hate being told “no.” It may cause them to become angry, withdrawn, or unco-operative. This can even apply to someone you’ve worked with for years, if they happen to be in a bad mood that day. So I recommend applying the (hateful word) brainstorming principle to your own daily routine.

The simplest way to operate is that instead of saying “no,” you simply say “yes” in an unconvinced tone of voice. Sounds basic, but it really works. You will avoid hours and hours of arguments. As I’ve said, I have nothing against arguments. But they should come from genuine disagreement about the work, not from one-upmanship or bruised ego.

You should never disagree with anything your partner says in a meeting, even if it could get them carried away by the men in white coats. You’ve got to be a united team, otherwise account handlers, directors, or whoever you’re dealing with, will decide that this team doesn’t know what it’s doing, and will simply make the decisions themselves. You don’t want that to happen. So any disagreements you may have, sort out behind closed doors.

In general, avoid long debates. Time is your only resource. By all means tell your partner that an idea has already been done, is illegal, or is off-brief, but don’t spend 20 minutes trying to kill it while he tries to defend it. That’s a waste. Just move on, and use those 20 minutes to have a better idea instead.

Here are some other discussion techniques that may help prevent rows:

IT’S A KIND OF MARRIAGE

Don’t go to bed on an argument. Always listen to your partner’s point of view. Remember their birthday. And don’t look at other art directors in the street.

Just as there are many types of successful marriages, there are many different types of successful creative partnerships. So don’t worry if other teams seem to do things differently to you, like work longer or shorter hours than you do, have more or fewer arguments, socialize with each other outside work or don’t, drink or don’t drink at lunchtime. All that matters is if your relationship works for you.

In the end, the proof of a good partnership is the ideas that come out of it.

RELATIONSHIP PROBLEMS

When things aren’t going well, and you’re feeling frustrated, it’s a natural tendency to blame your partner. Well, you’re hardly going to blame yourself, are you?

But in my experience, teams that are getting great work out are rarely unhappy. Most teams that are unhappy are teams who are not currently producing good work. In other words, what you may think is a relationship problem may be some other kind of problem. Perhaps the agency isn’t doing well. You’re not working on good accounts. Or you’ve just had bad luck.

Don’t be too quick to blame your partner, since your problems may be the problems of you both, not just his. Also, never forget that if you are feeling frustrated, the most likely cause is not any inadequacy of your partner’s, but the fact that you work in a frustrating job. A job where you spend the whole day making wonderful creations that other people stomp on. The best strategem for dealing with that is to go to the gym, chill out with a movie, pour yourself another glass of whatever you can find in the fridge, have a good old bitch to your wife/girlfriend/boyfriend. That’s what they’re there for.

A common complaint is people feeling they’re “carrying” their partner. Beware. We all think our own ideas are great. If you feel strongly that you are carrying a passenger, make sure you do an objective check on that. Go through all the ideas that you and your partner have had approved by creative directors in the last two years (not client-approved; too many random factors go into that), and see if you really are laying more eggs than he is. Remember to adjust for role differences. In other words, if your partner is the art director, and spends a lot of time on shoots or in the studio, then he can’t be expected to come up with as many ideas as you. If your partner is the copywriter, he should be coming up with more than you do.

If there’s a problem, talk about it. Not at the time, when you’re angry, because that will only lead to bloodshed, but later—when you can both be reasonable. If talking becomes hard, use some other channel. One creative team that I know is incapable of discussing any “relationship issues” face-to-face, but they have an understanding that they can text each other about them. A CD of my acquaintance recommends you have a monthly lunch with your partner, and get hammered together. That way, any issues are sure to come out, rather than fester.

Over the course of your career, you will inevitably come to a point at least once—probably more than once—when you want to make a change. Sometimes it will happen naturally, without you doing anything. If you’re not getting on well, it may be because you have different goals, and his different goals may take him in a different direction career-wise, or to a different city or country. You could try doing nothing for a few months, and see if that happens of its own accord.

Only break up with your partner as a last resort. Remember, you will be dumping the devil you know.

BREAKING UP

If you’re not doing good work together, not enjoying each other’s company, not talking, constantly feeling frustrated with them, let down by them, or contemptuous of them…then it’s time to break up.

There are as many horror stories surrounding the dumping of a partner as there are around the dumping of a girl- or boyfriend.

One copywriter went on holiday, and when he got back, he found someone else sitting in his chair.

I could tell the story of the time I got dumped. My art director went on a road-trip around the US, and simply never called me when he got back. Good holiday was it, Al?

I’ve dumped once and been the dumpee once. So I have experience of both sides of the fence.

The first point to make is a practical one. If you want to break up with your partner, it’s down to you to go and get another job. They get to stay. You don’t. That’s just the way it is. (Again, the analogy is with a marriage. If you are the one who wants to leave the marriage, then it is you who must leave the marital home.)

At least have the courage and decency to tell them in person. However, you shouldn’t tell them that you want to break up until you have a concrete offer to go somewhere else. Don’t pointlessly destabilize the team by saying you’re breaking up, and then not doing anything about it. In other words, it’s better to find another partner before you break up with your current one. That may sound mercenary, but the purpose of it is to avoid limbo and uncertainty, which aren’t good for either of you.

And most of all, if you are certain that the relationship has run its course, then don’t be afraid of anything.

Don’t be afraid of what the future may hold. If you are good at your job, you will be fine.

Don’t be afraid of having to look for a new partner. It can be done. Thousands have done it.

(On the other hand, don’t be afraid of going through hard and difficult conversations with your current partner. You may be able to fix things. Thousands have done this too.)

Just don’t do nothing.