Piotr Jakubowski – Mind over Marketing

The Crossroads Competition was a great success in proving to the community that there is great talent being fostered at Drake University. It also allowed me to learn a few valuable lessons.

1. Be very organized

Deadlines, deadlines, deadlines.
Make sure there is a system in place to keep track of things

2. Leaders must cooperate

When working with other people, there is a certain level of give and take.
Negotiations are particularly important, moreso when the final result is to have both parties come out winners.

3. Sometimes leaders must wing it

Cooperation is important, but sometimes executive decisions must be made on the spot. More often than not, a leader will have time to confer with others before making a decision. There may be, however, that one call during which a decision must be made as soon as possible. A leader is there because he knows (or should know) what he is doing, and is ready and capable to make an intelligent decision on behalf of others, and ready to take the responsibility and consequences of it. This is where the decision is made with a strong gut feeling and belief that it is the best one.

I ran into this last one quite often over the course of the competition, and I really liked it. Conferring with others is a great way to provide a well-rounded perspective, but sometimes what a group needs is that one shot into the dark. Who knows, maybe you’ll hit something and maybe you won’t. That’s the risk a progressive leader should be willing to take.

This marketing competition was a shot into the dark. It was a risk for which I was willing to compromise my reputation and credibility because I believed in it. With a few glitches here and there it worked, and it will be held again next year.

Let me tell you, hitting that target in the dark is pretty damn sweet.