Gift of the Gabberer: Tara Ford
Interview by Delia Liang.
I think I have trypophobia - a fear of clusters of small holes or bumps. What are you scared of?
I’m okay with holes and bumps. I’m also okay with spiders which is lucky living in Sydney.
I am the designated spider catcher in my house.
Not so good with rats though.
What about in the industry?
A moment of fear that springs to mind is when I was uprooting the whole family to move from Melbourne to Sydney for my job. My partner said to me, “Well, we don’t have to do it. We can just stay where we are and not make any changes.” Needless to say that bolstered my courage. The thought of doing nothing was far worse than the unknown.
So, I guess the thought of stagnating in this industry, and my career, has always filled me with fear.
Are you challenging this fear? How?
I have always pushed out of my comfort zone in my career.
Generally, to have longevity and success I think you have to lean into things you’re a bit scared of. You can’t go around it, you have to go through it. If you don’t like presenting. Do more presenting. If you don’t like confrontation, don’t put off the hard conversations. And so on.
Chances are the thing you’re a little fearful of will come up again and again and people will see if you’re avoiding something. So, you may as well conquer it head on.
Sometimes it also helps to think to yourself ‘What’s the worst thing that can happen?’ That usually puts things into perspective. (Death is rarely involved). There will be bad meetings. There will be bad decisions. Own it. Learn and move on. Guaranteed you will think (worry) about it more than anyone else does.
Junior Tara: What were you most scared of?
Not having a kick-ass idea every single time.
But it was an excited, charged anticipation rather than a crippling terror. (Clearly because I haven’t imploded).
What’s something you’ve had to get used to as CCO?
The creative part is not the hard bit. The people part is often surprising and ever evolving. It requires hard-edged nerves of steel and generous empathy, often in equal measure. And, you can’t indulge a fear of people not liking you. It’s not possible to please all the people all of the time and in the end, it will compromise the work.
Do you think clients are scared of taking ‘risks’?
I think lots of people are risk-adverse.
Doing something boring and expected that no one looks at is of course a much more ‘risky’ thing to do with your marketing budget than something fresh and exciting that some people love and some people don’t.
How do you make sure your team stays motivated and continues to constantly evolve?
Not with fear! The best people are pretty self-motivated. Talent is nothing without ambition. It’s important to make sure it’s recognised and rewarded. And it’s good to give people the belief that opportunities can become reality.
What do you think this industry is most afraid of?
Becoming irrelevant, outdated, overtaken, misunderstood, undervalued.
But really, there is nothing like what we do. The buzzwords can change, the delivery method, structure and the wrapping, but there is no substitute for creativity and the impact it can have on business.
Is fear a friend or an enemy of creativity and why?
Many of us think best when our subconscious is at play and we are relaxed. When we feel playful, explorative and open to possibility.
Fear puts you in survival mode. It consumes, constricts and eats away at your thoughts. It doesn’t open the mind, or make your feel expansive, relaxed and optimistic. So, there’s a clue.
If anything, it’s best to be fearless with your work.
When things are new it can feel scary. It doesn’t mean it’s wrong, quite the opposite in fact.
It often means you’re on to something amazing.
