Lead Yourself First Before Leading Others

It's easier to lead people when you've done their job yourself.

In my initial years as a product marketer at vFairs, I didn't have the luxury of a team to delegate things to.

I had to create my own SEM campaigns, hack tons of html, write blogs, do mundane data entry, write mailers, load email sequences, put up social posts, push PR & so on.

It was like running a kitchen with 10 pans on the oven.

But, looking back, it was worth it.

Because if you know how it all works under the hood then:

A. You become a more effective mentor as you can offer actionable advice to your team. It makes you relatable.

B. You can quickly call out bluffs when someone tries to hand-wave over why something can't be done in a certain amount of time.

C. You're able to hire the right people for the job because you know what it takes to execute it.

So, if you're currently knee-deep in product or marketing ops, don't fight it. Rather, embrace it.

That experience will give you the necessary edge to drive teams forward in the future.