Strands of Genius: Switching Off The TV, Ideas and Inspiration, Not a Tourist... Tourist

Guest curated by Lisa Batty, Head of Comms planning & Strategy, GBM at TikTok

Dec 07, 2023

:: A BIT MORE ABOUT GUEST CURATOR, LISA BATTY ::

LOCATION: London

I first got into media after graduating from university in Manchester with a degree in modern languages. In my final year I had no clue what I’d do after graduating (translator? Spy? Foreign diplomat? Nah!) then two girls from Saatchi and Saatchi came in to talk about careers in advertising. As it was the mid 90s and pre internet I had NO IDEA about the ad industry but after listening to them I became obsessed with getting a job in an agency - it sounds so much fun, so glamorous and so creative (I’d love to know where those girls are now). After moving to London I worked as a comms planner in various agencies for 15 years. After this I switched to the media owner side taking a strategy role at IPC magazines, later to become Time Inc. After a two year spell running my own marketing consultancy I landed my current role at TikTok in April 2020 and have been riding that rocket ship ever since!

I still remain as obsessed by our industry as ever, the passion and creativity, the people and work are end unless stream of inspiration for me.

I’ve recently been doing a fair bit of mentoring which I’m loving - I’m super keen on sharing my knowledge with those from outside of London who like me, back in the day, had never heard of the kind of jobs available in our world. Shout out to Jed Hallam and his ‘Common People’ collective which he set up to bring more diverse and working class voices into the industry which we desperately need. No one understands the real challenges of mass market audiences like a kid from Scunthorpe!

I remember Faris's first day in media! He rocked up to OMD IN A SUIT! as a grad trainee. We worked together for years before he became a digital ninja over at Naked but we've stayed in touch as he's a legend. And Rosie is fabulous - I can't think of a lovelier couple. I've followed Genius Steals since the beginning, I remember having to look up loads of the fancy words Faris used and often would reply telling him to stop showing off.....

Editor’s Note (Faris): My parents insisted I wear that suit! I also think I was late because I left my wallet at home. From inauspicious acorns… Batty was my first boss in advertising. She taught me how to do competitive media runs and how media powerpoint was different from the consulting powerpoint I had learned previously. She took me to my first media lunch (and many others) and I think my first pitch. She is hilarious and never let me take myself too seriously or use sesquipedalian words. She’s a legend in London media and one day she will make good on that lunch at Groucho with Rosie and I. Thanks so much for a wonderful edition Batty and see you soon.

:: THE LINKS ::

SWITCHING OFF THE TV

I wrote this about 'the importance of being idle' if you want to be a great strategist. I was hearing so much about people suffering from burn out, from working 12 hour days (I myself used to do this) so I started reading about effective working styles and I realised that the old 9-5 model doesn’t work for everyone, also working long, long hours doesn’t produce great work, especially if you are in a strategy role. You need time to think, to feel, to do other things and to learn from stuff outside of the project you’re working on. As I’ve gotten older I’ve found out all of the hacks and ways of working smarter not harder - and after discussing with some top notch big name strategists I realised they felt the same so I wanted to share this thinking with others who might be feeling guilty about taking a lunch break, or even having ’thinking time’. IMHO going for a drink with someone interesting and having a deep and meaningful conversation is as useful as three hours at your desk. (LinkedIn)

IDEAS AND INSPIRATION

I’ve recently joined the APG (late to the party I know) and have become obsessed with the wealth of inspiring case studies, option pieces and white papers on there. Sarah Newman who runs the APG recently gave me a book of all of their winning effectiveness studies which I’m devouring. There are so many talented members there that it’s my goal to either a) have an opinion piece published on their site or b) host an event with them. I think the latter is more likely - watch this space - it’s a minefield of great thinking. (APG)

NOT A TOURIST…TOURIST

I love Messy Nessy Chic. Nothing to do with advertising, but beautifully curated, impeccably researched stories, travel, historical accounts and stunning images of Paris then and now. It is a bit left field, I was introduced to Messy Nessy Chic by my former colleague Lucy Cox who is a magpie for all things curious, vintage, unusual or downright bonkers. Everything about the site is immaculately created, super inspiring and incredibly unique. She also has a book ‘How not to be a tourist in Paris’ which is insanely beautiful. It’s a great place to dip in to when you want to down tools and go off down a rabbit hole of history or just be entertained for half an hour. I cannot recommend it enough. (Messy Nessy Chic)

Looking for more from Lisa Batty? Coming Friday, look for an interview from her in your inbox!

:: AND NOW… SOME FAST FAVORITES ::

:: Game :: Trivial Pursuits: I'm VERY competitive and love a pub quiz too. i'm not fun to be on a team with though as i take it very seriously.

:: City :: London of course.

:: Book :: The Catcher in the Rye, JD Salinger. It’s the one book I’ve read countless times. I'm hopelessly in love with Holden Caulfield.

:: Podcast :: Telling Everyone Everything by Katherine Ryan

:: Album :: George Best The Wedding Present

:: NEW BOOKS ::

I've been 'writing' a novelty book with my friend Dan Cresta, founder of Nurture. It’s called 'Never make eye contact whilst eating a banana and other useless advice you never knew you needed' . We've crowd sourced the 'advice' and just need to get the illustrations done. Any advice from your readers would be gratefully received and can still be included.

Thanks for listening to me! Do feel free to hook up with me on Linked in or follow my TikTok @battylala

- Lisa

Strands of Genius is currently read by more than 15,000 subscribers. Support us by sponsoring an issue, encouraging friends or colleagues to subscribe.

It's called Genius Steals because we believe ideas are new combinations and that nothing can come from nothing. But copying is lazy. We believe the best way to innovate is to look at the best of that which came before and combine those elements into new solutions.

Co-Founders Faris & Rosie are award-winning strategists and creative directors, writers, consultants and public speakers who have been living on the road/runway since March 2013, working with companies all over the world. Our Director of Operations is nomadic like us, our accounting team is based out of Washington, our company is registered in Tennessee, and our collaborators are all over the world. Being nomadic allows us to go wherever clients need us to be, and to be inspired by the world in between.

Hit reply and let’s talk about how we might be able to work together :)

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