Ogilvy on Leaders

If you are associated with marketing and advertising, you should read The Unpublished David Ogilvy. Actually, read it even if you aren’t.

David Ogilvy is widely-considered the father of advertising. He founded advertising, marketing, and PR agency Ogilvy & Mather in 1948, and his legendary campaigns include Dove, Guinness, Hathaway, and Rolls Royce, Schweppes. In 1962, Time Magazine called him “the most sought-after wizard in today’s advertising industry.”

That’s not all. He likely was the inspiration from “Mad Men” Don Draper.

Ogilvy loved making lists and the book has many of them. One of my favorite lists is the qualities he looked for in a leader:

  • High standards of personal ethics
  • Big people, without pettiness
  • Guts under pressure, resilience in defeat
  • Brilliant brains — not safe plodders
  • A capacity for hard work and midnight oil
  • Charisma — charm and persuasiveness
  • A streak of unorthodoxy — creative innovators
  • The courage to make tough decisions
  • Inspiring enthusiasts — with trust and gusto
  • A sense of humor

These qualities are appropriate for all leaders, not just those in the creative industry. I hope I live up to these standards.

 

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3 Responses to Ogilvy on Leaders

  1. Gaurav Jaiswal June 19, 2016 at 12:51 pm #

    A very good list for all of us to be mindful of! Thanks for sharing Jonathan.

  2. Peter Meyer June 19, 2016 at 7:27 pm #

    Jonathan, very nice! Thank you!

  3. Sunil August 3, 2016 at 7:39 am #

    Very Nice

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