The key to building resilience? Humility

I was recently asked what resilience means to me and how to build it. This is the theme of The Agency Collective's ‘Future Proofing Your Agency’ conference in April. I’m on one of the panels so to avoid any risk of floundering about on stage, I best get some thoughts down in writing.

Let’s start with the fairly obvious stuff.

I was an agency business developer for 14 years, witnessing the good, the bad and the ugly side of sales. In fact, I was responsible for my fair share of the latter, making a whole load of cringeworthy mistakes during those years.

Over time, I built resilience by consciously deciding not to dwell on those mistakes but, instead, learn from them.

The wins, whilst welcome, were short-lived highs. There was always another opportunity that needed attention, so I had no option but to quickly move on. The losses, whilst frustrating, were equally short-lived. Because, over time, I learned not to dwell on those either. Resilience came from accepting things were often outside of my control and not taking the knockbacks personally. This is particularly relevant to the current climate, where dither, delay and indecision have been prevalent themes in recent months.

And of course, resilience is also about physical and mental wellbeing. You’ll find it easier to roll with the punches if you look after yourself, which is not something I always did in my 20s and 30s; there was far too much fun to be had in the bars and nightclubs of Brighton and London. But as I’ve got older, I’m much more mindful of what goes inside my belly and mind.

For example, I realised a couple of years ago, Twitter turned me into a raging idiot (as can be the case with even the most mild-mannered of human beings). So whilst I still have a profile, I haven’t engaged with the platform for as long as I can remember, particularly since Musk got his mitts on it. My mental well-being is all the better for it (less rage, more love).

So, in summary, learning from your mistakes, accepting you can’t control everything, not taking things too personally and looking after yourself – all good stuff when it comes to building resilience, right?

But, as I’ve thought about it further, I've realised the true source of my resilience is…

…humility (and its close companion, perspective).

Let me explain.

If you’re reading this, you probably run or work for an agency. If that’s the case – and apologies if this offends you – your job isn’t that important.

Ouch.

It might even, in the words of anthropologist David Graeber, be a ‘bullsh*t’ job.

Ouch again!

Now, before you click away in disgust, remember, this is about perspective so bear with me.

There are exceptions, of course, but most agencies work with commercial enterprises. So, irrespective of the services you offer or how you deliver them, your agency exists to help those enterprises sell more stuff. That’s it.

My job is even more ridiculous when I think about it - it involves helping an agency win more (or better) clients, so, in turn, the agency can then help those clients sell even MORE stuff.

Maybe I don’t quite fit neatly into the categories of bullsh*t job described by David Graeber - flunkies, goons, duct tapers, box tickers or taskmasters – but, let’s face it, I’m certainly not all that important.

And neither are you.

We’re not doctors, nurses, teachers or even bin men - without these jobs, the fabric of society would soon start to unravel (you might argue, here in the UK, it already has). This is why it’s a travesty these jobs are not better rewarded, considering their vital contribution to a properly functioning society.

This is not to say you, your agency (and the marketing industry as a whole) have no value. Far from it, especially economically. But if an ad campaign flunks or another agency bites the dust, is the world any worse off, as a result? Compared to say, a drastic shortage in nurses or teachers?

The point I’m trying to make is: we shouldn’t take this industry of ours too seriously.

And, in turn, you shouldn’t take your job too seriously either.

Because at the end of the day, we do marketing. Not open-heart surgery.

I don’t say this to diminish your achievements - running a business or working in sales, for example, is tough. It requires commitment, perseverance and, of course, resilience. But if you want to build more resilience, start by being a bit more humble about our place in the world.

Every so often, take the time to scroll through your LinkedIn feed and chuckle at how ludicrous – and indeed delicate – this whole ecosystem is, relying on the existence of media behemoths and third-party platforms, which we have no control or influence over.

Smirk at the zany job titles we give ourselves (many that didn’t exist even five years ago).

Marvel at the effort we all put in to get a few more followers and likes.

It’s all taken very seriously. But it’s not that serious, really. Is it?

Perhaps this outlook comes with age. I certainly couldn’t imagine my 25-year-old self writing these words.

But as you get older, you start to see things differently. More years on the clock means more perspective.

And this is where humility comes from with resilience following close behind (in my case anyway).

Thus, it becomes easier to accept you’re not going to win every deal.

You’re not going to smash it with every client.

You’re not going to keep every member of staff happy.

And if it all went to sh*t tomorrow, you’d be absolutely fine.

That’s what resilience means to me.

What about you?