A journey through the annals of legendary rap and hip hop quotes, translated into a play-by-play marketing agency survival guide. Divided into the three stages of life any agency vet experiences...

1. HIP HOP’S GUIDE TO MARKETING AGENCY LIFE

2. DOWNLOAD
THIS DECK.
@BossDJay

3. Dallas McLaughlin
Director of Paid Media
@BossDJay
/in/dallasmclaughlin
dallas@dallasmclaughlin.com

4. WTF IS THIS?
A journey through the annals of legendary rap and hip hop
quotes, translated into a play-by-play marketing agency
survival guide.
Divided into the three stages of life any agency vet
experiences...

5. 1.
2.
3.
GETTING A JOB
KEEPING THE JOB
GROWING YOUR CAREER

6. GETTING
A JOB

7. “Trust your own
judgement, live with it
and love it.”
Translation: Assess your personal skills and attributes
- Nas

8. Assess your personal skills & attributes
When just getting started, perform an audit of yourself. Figure out what unique
skills and abilities you can offer to an organization while you practice your craft.
Think about:
● Identify your personal qualities
○ Patience, humor, initiative and flexibility
● Identify your skills developed through study
○ What tactical knowledge do you have?
● What skills have you developed in a work environment
○ This could be your time management skills, organization and communication skills
● Skills developed outside of work
○ Trainings, hobbies, interests, organizations you’ve joined
Pro tip: Google “Eulerian Destiny”

9. “I'm not a businessman,
I’m a business, man.”
Translation: Invest in your own experience
- Jay-Z

10. Invest in your own experience
Agencies can be tough to get started in, especially when you have limited first-
hand experience. However, self-starters can get a head start.
Try to:
● Apply for internships at local agencies
● Seek out paid freelance projects on gig sites
● Contribute to publications as a guest writer
● Do spec work for brands to earn attention

11. “Life without knowledge
is death in disguise.”
Translation: Obtain marketing qualifications
- Talib Kweli

12. Obtain (free) marketing qualifications
While not a major factor for hiring managers, still important from a practical skill
building point of view.
A few basic ones:
● Hubspot Inbound
● Hubspot Content Marketing
● Google Ad Academy
○ Google Ads
○ Google Analytics
● Facebook Ad certification

13. “I’ve been doin’ me, and
I’m a staple in my city,
you can never ruin me.”
Translation: Understand the main players in your market
- Drake

14. Understand the main players in your market
Monitoring the local marketing landscape will help you spot job opportunities
with high growth brands and agencies before the masses.
As thought starters:
● What local marquee brands exist?
● Who’s hiring up a marketing team?
● What agencies are consistently growing?
● What businesses are being acquired?
● What new startups are opening?
● Who’s looking for local office space?

15. “Be more concerned with
your character than
your reputation.”
Translation: Find your culture fit
- Jay Z

16. Find your culture fit
Culture eats salary for breakfast. Being able to understand what is important to
you (it changes over time) is key to finding a place you enjoy working.
Ask yourself:
● What’s important to you as an employee?
● How important is pay?
● How important is skill level?
● How important is office decor?
● How important is flexibility in hours?
● How important is work/life?
Pro tip: There will be trade offs

17. “Bow in the presence of
greatness.”
Translation: Introduce yourself to key people
- Kanye West

18. Introduce yourself to key people
If I’ve learned anything, being kind to and making friends with as many people at
all levels of various businesses pays off over time.
Research:
● What 10 people in your market do you want to meet?
○ Consistently reach out to these people with a value add of sorts
● What networks can you join?
● What events can you volunteer at?
● What value can you provide?
Pro tip: Ask your network for warm intros

19. 1. Getting A Job: Recap
● Audit yourself
● Earn qualifications
● Earn actual experience
● Research the local market
● Find your culture fit
● Meet as many (of the right) people as you can

20. KEEPING
THE JOB

21. “Damn right I like the
life I live.”
Translation: Be genuinely enthusiastic
- Biggie Smalls

22. Be genuinely enthusiastic
People who are easy and fun to work with tend to have much longer lifespans at
their agencies. People who suck to work with, suck.
Basic characteristics:
● Have a good attitude
● Show gratitude
● Acknowledge the people around you
● Have empathy
● Have a fixed mind vs. growth mind
○ Meaning, be willing to learn from all around you

23. “I never sleep ‘cuz sleep
is the cousin of death.”
Translation: Commit to the process
- Nas

24. Commit to the process
While work life balance should always be priority #1, the more time you can
commit early on to accelerating your personal learning, the sooner you can break
ahead of those around you.
Keep in mind:
● Get used to very long days and nights
● Identify key learning resources - people, websites, groups
● Ignore the idea of being the top 1%
○ You’ll never be the best at what you do, but blending
complimentary skills will make you invaluable
● Learn 80% of as many subjects as possible
○ The last 20% requires obsession and isn’t worth it

25. “Even the genius asks
his questions.”
Translation: Ask a lot of questions
- Tupac

26. Ask a lot of questions
There is a clear correlation between professional growth and people who are
good at asking questions. Knowing what to ask, when and how is key.
Be aware of:
● Recognize when you need help
● Identify roadblocks early and often
● Raise the flag early when you spot problems
● Ask questions to those above you
● Ask questions to those in lower positions than you
● Be clear in your questioning
○ What solution are you searching for?

27. “If you’re scared to take
chances, you’ll never
have the answers.”
Translation: Challenge the status quo
- Nas

28. Challenge the status quo
Most agencies are operating on flawed processes. Be willing to acknowledge the
flaws and present new solutions.
Understand:
● There’s always a better way
● 50% of what you know is wrong
○ But which 50%?
● Process is designed to be broken
● Present new solutions
○ Don’t just point out problems
● Bet on yourself
○ You’re remembered for the rules you break

29. “Kept breaking promises you
said you would keep, so you
can leave a message at the
beep.”
Translation: Take responsibility and follow up
- Mac Miller

30. Take responsibility and follow up
It’s a cultural legacy for employees to wait to be called on. Assigned a task to
complete or problem to solve. The secret is to pick yourself. Raise your hand.
It’s as basic as:
● Volunteer for the hard tasks, the difficult conversations
● Take ownership over your projects
● Set expectations
○ Manage around those internally & externally
● Get ahead of all conversations
○ If someone is asking where it is, you’re late
● Deliver on time, always

31. 2. Keeping The Job: Recap
● Have a good attitude
● Commit to the process of learning
● Ask a lot of questions
● Challenge the status quo
● Raise your hand & take responsibility

32. GROWING
YOUR
CAREER

33. “I’ve done a lot of work
to get where I’m at, but
I have to keep working.”
Translation: Have a craftsman mindset
- Wiz Khalifa

34. Have a craftsman mindset
The craftsman is never satisfied. Neither should you be. In a task driven, time-
suffocated setting, you can’t possibly produce your best work. It’s easy to settle.
Don’t.
Three things to try:
● Grow strategically
○ Outside of tactics, what larger business goals can you support?
● Grow width of offerings
○ What variety of work can your skills adapt to?
● Grow depth of offerings
○ As you widen offerings, select a few to hone

35. “You gotta be able to
smile through the
bullshit.”
Translation: Find your zen
- Tupac

36. Find your zen
Working in an agency is hard. It’s rewarding. But, it’s not for everyone. Accepting a
few truths as religion can help you cope.
Be willing to accept:
● It’s going to be hard - it never gets easier
● There will be tears
● You will have to accept critical feedback
● You will have to give critical feedback
● Know when not to take it personal
● Know when to step away
Pro tip: Ego is the enemy

37. “If you admire someone,
you should go ahead
and tell them.”
Translation: Find your inspiration
- Kanye West

38. Find your inspiration
We’re all creative people full of inspiration. But don’t become the fish in the
fishbowl who can’t the see water surrounding him. Actively seek inspiration.
Religiously...
● Identify and watch local mentors
● Identify and watch national mentors
● Follow in-market brands
● Follow out-of-market brands
● Develop hobbies unrelated to work
Pro tip 1: Look for high achieving individuals
Pro tip 2: Read: Timothy Gallwey
The Inner Game of Tennis

39. “Why do we try so hard
to fit in, when we were
born to stand out?”
Translation: Build your personal brand
- Machine Gun Kelly

40. Build your personal brand
You are your own brand, not your employers. Like any brand - clients, coworkers
and future employers will look for your brand equity, differentiators and yes,
reviews.
You will repeat after me:
● You’re a professional. Act like it.
○ Yeah, delete those regretful pictures from college
● Know who you are
● Double down on the things you can
● Respect where you can’t
● Develop your own assets

41. “My whole thing is to
inspire, to better
people.”
Translation: Grow as a leader
- Kendrick Lamar

42. Grow as a leader
Agencies can always find skillful talented individuals to execute work. And they
are extremely important. The value lies in the rarity of becoming an effective
leader.
A few simple tips:
● Praise in public
● Feedback in private
● Always “we” when the team wins
● Always “I” when the team loses
○ Take blame. Give credit.
● Pull uphill, push downhill
Pro tip 1: Simon Sinek - Leaders Eat Last
Pro tip 2: Jocko Willink - Extreme Ownership

43. 3. Growing Your Career: Recap
● Have a craftsman mindset
● Brave the storm
● Get inspired
● Focus on your presentation
● Be a leader

44. Thank you!
@BossDJay
/in/dallasmclaughlin
dallas@dallasmclaughlin.com