Headlines Fade. Integrity Doesn’t.

As I drive to appointments I’m listening to the story of newspaper baroness Katherine Graham at the moment, in her memoir ‘Personal History’.

The story is based around a family that acquires the Washington Post Newspaper. It follows their progress through the 1940s and 50s.

Katherine‘s husband Phil, who ends up running the paper in the 1950’s believed that newspapers had a dilemma – with two important yet conflicting roles.

‘A newspaper must be a successful commercial enterprise in order to survive yet the publisher must realise that he has obligations which transcends any commercial interest’

This struck me as remarkably close to what we have to do.

Let’s swap some words out…

An agency must be a successful commercial enterprise in order to survive yet must realise that it has obligations which transcends any commercial interest. 

What a job description.

I wrote last week standing up and accepting a mantle of leadership.

Doing the right thing is the face of opposing commercial interests is one of the challenges we face, where once more we need to think like a leader and keep always in mind the bigger picture and the bigger goal.

We are part of a much disdained industry where a few make it difficult for the many. But every day I see people across the industry putting the interests of clients first, knowing that by doing this, the commercial interests will be met at some stage. And maybe more importantly – doing so because it’s the right thing to do.

Keep up the good work and keep showing up. A lot of us have been through a really challenging period where making money has been tough.

Let today’s message be an encouragement to once more dig deep, continue to do the right thing, the results will follow.