My Biggest Lesson: Daniel Wade

Daniel Wade is co-founder of EveryFriday, where he leads the commercial ambitions of the agency, driving new business and onboarding new clients. He ensures a focus on understanding client’s business, their business strategy and their overarching objectives.

There are so many pieces of wisdom across the years, but one that has always stuck with me is to hire people that are better than you (or that have the potential to be better). 

Make sure people are always snapping at your heels – it will drive you forward. If you think they’re going to take your role, then you either let it happen or push on and become better yourself.

I first learned this insight in the year 2000. I’d just moved from my first agency to another agency to work on the Virgin Atlantic account. I was an account executive, still trying to figure out what the role of account management actually meant and the value it brought to both the agency and client. I was super excited (and very grateful) to be working on such an amazing brand such as Virgin Atlantic.

My boss at the time, who was client services director, gave the advice of always hiring better. She said you should never feel threatened, that it was the people around you that were key in both the development of your career, but also in delivering great work. I was working with the most amazing team - a really intelligent, strategic, creative and passionate bunch. People who actually gave a shit about the work, the craft, the client service and delivery. The bar was constantly pushed and we had a lot of fun doing it as well. 

At the time, I was relatively young and new to the agency world, and it was refreshing to hear such positive advice. I think we’ve all felt insecure or threatened in our roles by other people, and to harness this in a positive way, was such a refreshing thought. 

It immediately struck a chord and changed my outlook. The drive to find brilliant people and not settle for mediocrity has stayed with me, from building client services teams in several agencies to starting an agency from scratch. 

It also translates into the work delivered to clients. You should always ask for better. Each piece of work should be better than the last and it’s our job in the agency landscape, from whatever discipline, to strive for better, to strive for the best. 

Throughout my career I’ve revisited this piece of advice time and again. It’s timeless, a truism and hard to argue against. At the same time, it can be the easy option to settle for something that isn’t quite the best, not quite the 110% it should be, but is comfortable and safe. 

Over the years I’ve made a point of sharing this advice with others – Always Hire Better. But more so, the advice has broadened for me. Don’t settle for second best, don’t settle for mediocrity - always ask, could this be better? If you challenge yourself and others around you, you can only go one way - and that is up.