Ten words of wisdom from Bill Cooper to his younger self
So, they say the traditional gift for the tenth anniversary is tin and that to me seems a trifle anticlimactic. Pliable and eminently practical. But the upside is that many a good beverage has been enthusiastically hoisted in tin over the years and we intend to continue that tradition as we toast our tenth.
This year marks ten years since we opened the doors of TTG Canada. Of course, the idea was in motion for a year or two beforehand, but there were roles in the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games to fulfill before the dreams could be put to a business license.
The learning and journey since then have been rich, rewarding, exhausting and nerve-wracking. In fact, if I could send my May 2010 self a letter with some advice, it might contain something along the lines of the following:
Dear Bill,
I understand you are considering establishing a new company that would work in the areas of sponsorship, marketing strategy and brand narrative. Entrepreneurship is a bold next move, but I’m glad you’re giving it serious consideration.
Having travelled the road you are about the embark on, I wanted to send along some advice I think will help you make smarter, better, faster decisions along the way. There are many I can think of, but I wanted to highlight ten in the hopes they help you avoid ending up ten years from now simply feeling like you are kicking a tin can down the road.
Do it. Be a part of building something from the ground up.
This is going to be hugely fulfilling, but it is going to come in the shape of seemingly endless exhaustion.
Be brave, be frightened and hit repeat.
Balancing revenue growth with perfectly synchronized expenditure patterns is crazy hard and elusive, but you need to relentlessly pursue it.
You will be standing on the shoulders of others – colleagues, family and clients alike, so tread lightly.
Author, nurture and live by a set of company values that resonate with you and your team and look to them when the light gets dim. No matter what.
Sunny days will be sunnier (and on those days you’ll know why) and rainy days will be rainier (and on those days you’ll be asking why).
Make promises you can keep – and keep them.
Harness moments. They can galvanize, motivate and inspire.
Don’t forget to celebrate and revel in having fun!
“Shhh . . . listen, do you hear that? That input you are hearing is the prelude to betterment”.
I wish you well on the venture, sincerely hope the insight helps along the way and look forward to hearing the updates along the way.
Be safe,
Bill + 10
We are hugely grateful for the partners, clients and peers who have opened their doors to us since June 2010 and we are very much looking forward to harnessing more moments for the next ten.
In the meantime, let’s stay safe and collectively roll up our sleeves as we find our way to the other side as a stronger community made better by collaboration and learning.
Raising a tinny for ten and couldn’t be prouder to be sharing the toast with the TTG team.
