Known as one of the advertising industry’s most imaginative and progressive leaders, Jo Muse, founder of Muse Communications, has led the first and only independent multicultural ad agency in the U.S. to national prominence. Over the last 25 years, Muse has produced award-winning work for clients such as American Honda Motor Co., Inc., Nike, Wells Fargo and the White House.  As Chief Creative Officer, Muse has received international and domestic commendations for the agency’s creative work. He has been recognized as “Best Creative Director in the West” by Adweek and was selected a “Top 20 Advertising Leader of Southern California” by The Los Angeles Business Journal.  

​Check out some of his tips for how YOU can create a successful business career of your own….and stay on top! 

There’s much I can be proud of in celebrating my company’s 25 years of success in the advertising industry.  But, allow me to share with you just a few lessons I have found particularly valuable that I didn’t learn in school.  Hopefully, they will assist you in your business endeavors.

There’s a Capital 'S' in Service

Being in a service business means taking the time to provide your clients with the best in just about everything you do.  Your solutions should reflect not only your best thinking, but also your best presentation.  Strive to ensure that all they see is perceived as the very best.  They will love you for it.

People Don’t Work For Money

I know that sounds like it’s something you could be sued over, but once you have handled compensation, then you must offer them a great work environment. Praise them when they’ve done something good, it provides them with a sense of being part of a team that is respected and appreciated.

Although they work for you, if you do it right, they will feel you are working for them.

Ideas Don’t Care Who Their Parents Are

Even though ideas still have a mysterious bearing in our business, the truth about all concepts is that they can come from anywhere.  Not just the people you pay to think about ideas.  And sometimes the best ones come from the least expected sources.

Relationships Are Everything

Treat people the way you want to be treated. Represent your company in a way that spreads something called “goodwill” – that’s a precious commodity.  It is the quality that causes people to recommend you to others. It’s not only your work that matters it’s how you treat everyone you work with.

Live in The Question, Not the Answer

Frequently problems come up that demand your attention.  Too often we may feel compelled to fix something fast.  But, there are plenty of times a quick fix is not the answer.  It’s the question that must be thought of for a considerable amount of time. Sometimes years…  For example, “What will it take to do our best work?”  Or, “How do we become a business that clients are attracted to?”  This kind of philosophical attitude may seem a little “touchy/feely,” but I promise you that what’s revealed when you take on this kind of analysis will prove amazing.  Once you learn how to work with a powerful question in mind, the quality of the insights that come from the work you do are equally powerful.

Not that these five things are the only lessons I have learned in business, or that my academic training didn’t help prepare me for 30-odd years of working in my chosen profession.  Or that there are plenty of things I have yet to learn in business that keeps me working on behalf of our loyal clients.  But for sure, these are some of the choice insights I can share with you without going into prolonged detail.  Above all, make sure your work is something you love to do.  Because ultimately, it’s your passion that will get you out of bed on those mornings where you might otherwise prefer to stay.