So, my 15 year career to date has taken me through:

- 3 major US cities (Boston, New York, and Phoenix)

- 3 apartments (a shared condo, a ‘closet’ in Chelsea, and ‘tenement’ in Mass.)

- 2 houses (1 with 1.25 acres of yardwork every weekend, and 1 with the amount of grass equal to a large welcome mat that we pay someone $50 a month to landscape!)

- half a dozen or so companies that covered the trilogy of advertising and graphic design:agency, freelance, and in-house…

Now, over this past decade-and-a-half, I’ve learned three important things:

1. Dad’s in their mid-30′s can’t always hang with the agency lifestyle. (Seriously, the Gimlet’s don’t go down as fast as they used to.)

2. I NEVER get a tax refund for any year I did freelance work for more than 6 months. (I was told there would be no math.)

3. I’m in it to win it when it comes to running an in-house Creative Department. (and you can’t do it alone.)

I’m VERY lucky and fortunate to have such an amazing and talented bunch of individuals working on our billion-dollar brand, but it isn’t always about luck. As a leader you need to keep the train on the tracks at ALL times. Here’s how I do it:

First, It’s about setting the right tone. You need to put your Creative-minded staff and your Business-driven superiors before yourself and your ego, while making sure that you’re getting your team to play at the level they achieve to be. You need to get your staff to the next level. Otherwise, you’re not doing your job as a manager.

How? By listening and taking appropriate action based on their needs. Bi-weekly 1-on-1′s are key, and it’s their time to talk, and for your to shut up for the most part. Just listen. Simple.

Second, when your whole job function resides in the middle-tier between the work that is directed from above and the needs requested from your staff members, you need to treat both realms 100% equally to be successful. At all times.

How? Organization. Prioritization. & Streamlined communication. (OPS for short.)

Lastly, take the high road and you will win every time. (Even when giving or soliciting feedback – which you need to do during those 1-on-1′s.)

How? Keep a cool head no mater what. (Someone once told me “It’s not how you act or react when seas are calm, it’s how you handle yourself in a storm.”)

Think of the popular resturant on a Saturday night, and you’re the cook. If the front of house is organized, and they are communicating with the back of house, you’re in it to win it. Every night.

So, in the interest of full disclosure, my goal today is to share with you some of my basic principles of what’s worked for me through trial and error.

None of this is really original. These ingredients have been used before. However, like any good recipe, the success of the dish comes from how those ingredients are combined and in the consistency in which it’s prepared/managed and presented/delivered.

It just works.

Which is what keeps people coming back night after night for more, or what gets them up each morning after morning for work. It’s that fire in the belly that you just can’t teach – but you can stoke.

Now, I don’t have all the answers and I’m learning more each day – it the only way we grow.

That’s where you come in.

For those of you who have either worked, or currently work at an In-House Creative Department, please share your experiences of what’s worked (or even what hasn’t) in your experience.

(Regardless of the level you are at…)

How do you lead, mentor, push, challenge, concept, collaborate, partner, etc.?

Please share your comments below, and let’s all be in it to WIN it.