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Any Tableau SEs able to share some insights?
Booz Allen Hamilton rescinded my offer because my current firm will not waive the non-compete clause in our employee agreement. It was allegedly a capability hire, and not tied to a particular project.
I work one level above entry level, and really shouldn’t even have such a restrictive non-compete.
I’ve already resigned, and would prefer to be unemployed rather than continue working here.
• MPH, Secret clearance, 3 YOE in govt consulting (Military Health), Deloitte Alum
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Anomaly LA anyone know who to reach out to?
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I am the same way and work on the account side. Building your confidence takes time. Learn as much as you can about the company, competitors and your client. This will help you to have something to talk about. If you enjoy the ad industry, I would stick with it
I’m 15 years into my career and not being comfortable in a client facing setting has held me back. That said, I’m still here, but the creative discipline has more leeway. You have to find the right company and sometimes the right client. Perhaps try client-side.
Don't be intimidated by your clients. They're rarely marketing geniuses (there aren't that many rockstars). They're often really insecure in their roles and desperately need you to validate them, patiently explain things to them (so they can explain them to their boss), give them ammunition to make decisions, and tell them what they should do. They often actually want to like you and really want to trust you. Be friends with them. Assume they see you as an equal. Remember, they desperately need your help.
Agree with @ms1. I struggled at first because I hated talking on the phone and didn't like interacting with clients. Over time, I found that the anxiety and fear really stemmed from lack of experience. The more that I learned, the easier it became. What helped me in the earlier days was prepping for meetings and calls by doing an outline of everything that I wanted to say in bullet points (almost like a script). I still prep for meetings, but typically just with the high-level outline. The more practice you get, the better you get, and the easier it becomes. Good luck!
Thank you! I feel like I should be more comfortable talking with clients after working in the industry for a year. My boss thinks so as well and told me to think about if this industry is right for me. Now I’m doubting myself
If you love it, stick with it, but try to find ways to get more comfortable. I mentioned notes, but you can also do mock calls with people to build confidence. Your boss should work with you more if it's something that you're willing and want to work on. So shame on them for not being more supportive.
It’s okay to be shy. You just need practice. The reality is, in any corporate environment, you’re going to have to interact with people at some point. On a practical note, if your kind of shy prevents you from doing a job, you might want to talk to a professional. Therapy is a wonderful, low-key, private way to help you address the issues underlying your shyness.
Another person saying: don’t be so hard on yourself. I suffer from extreme anxiety and have learned ways to flourish in my client facing role. Client communications are about 70% of my day, so perhaps not as much as Account, but still substantial.
My number one is: always know your client and project inside out. I speak with confidence when I am well informed. So if that means carving out an hour every day to review things like strategy, briefs, etc...DO IT. You’ll feel so much more prepared.
Also, this may sound lame, but I do practice any call that I’m leading. I can already feel myself becoming more confident in leading calls and needing that practice less and less
And my final tip is: back pocket some conversation starters. I’m always ready with a “did you do anything fun this weekend?” Or like March Madness just ended so I asked all my clients which game broke their brackets. It’s easy to break the ice. Remember if your clients have kids (or dogs...I’m not joking) and ask about them.
Now if you love agency life but aren’t so into account, you might consider project management. It’s much less client facing, especially entry level, but you’re still contributing to the work. It would be an easy transition.
OP, tbh it sounds like talking to clients is something you’d rather avoid than improve upon, and that’s ok! Account is heavily people-facing, and there’s a reason why some say they would never want to be in our shoes. There’s opportunity elsewhere in advertising that might be more fulfilling for you.
I am fairly shy/awkward and hate talking to clients. However it does get easier with age/experience. What was most anxiety inducing was not being completely sure if I was saying the right thing or being comfortable in my role. Now I am still shy but know what I’m talking about so am able to push past it easier. Force yourself to talk to people and maybe buddy up with someone at your level to work on presentation skills together. One of my old agencies even had internal classes to work on public speaking which was really helpful so you should also look into things like that.
Also when I know I’m going to be in a situation where I’m going to have to make small talk I try coming up with 2-3 topics in advance. An interesting industry related article, something about the neighborhood we are in or a question about it if you are in the clients’ area. It kind of makes me feel like a robot pretending to be a human but it does work.
Depends on your skills? Organization? Maybe look for project management roles in house at a large corporation. Or take a marketing coordinator role, but you’ll take a big pay cut probably. In any job you’ll eventually need to talk to and interface with people though, so consider finding ways to work through the shyness if you like advertising. (I say this as an introvert myself)
Try PM? Chose this over acct because I can’t stand working with clients