How to empower people to solve problems.

A knock on the door, then you hear, “hey, do you have a minute?” Those six words are often a journey into the unknown when said in a Creative Director’s office. The conversation that ensues could be anything. I said it, occasionally, to the Executive Creative Director I worked for. Usually, I was seeking advice on how to handle an internal agency “situation” all in the interest of doing better work. I’d explain, in great detail, the “he said/she said” play-by-play of exactly what happened. Often, he’d reply with, “you think you have problems? Let me tell you about the crap I’m going through.” He would then proceed to tell me some horrendous story of colossal wrong-doing and deceit. I would empathize and sometimes give him some ideas on how to handle the situation. Out of compassion for someone who had far worse problems than I had, I often figured out a way to solve my own problem.  I always walked out of that office empowered and feeling better than when I walked in.