“Now it feels like there's so much more room to be multi-hyphenate.” 

Sadira E. Furlow, Chief of Global Brand and Communications at Tony’s Chocolonely, is sharing with Visha Kudhail the importance of trying new things and embracing a squiggly career path. In the latest episode of the Behind the Face of Success podcast Furlow lifted the lid on her own career journey.

“The reality of life is that you look back and there are many paths,” she explained, adding: “It’s not straight and you keep trying things to find your thing or your things. I think that's so freeing.” 

At a time of economic and emotional uncertainty, this progress-over-perfection approach will be music to the ears of many a stressed-out marketing leader.

Carving your own path

Furlow has worked on some of the most exciting brands in the world. She shares with Kudhill that from a young age, she had visions of a colourful life. Be it travelling the world, being a professional student, creating magazines or even going into medicine. She explains: “I’ve always been a curious person.” Like many of the industry’s brightest leaders, she fell into a career in marketing. 

Furlow’s parents grew up during the Civil Rights movement and instilled in her the values of ‘resilience’ and ‘using your voice’. A sign in her childhood home read: ‘What is popular is not always right. What is right is not always popular.’ The importance of walking her own path and being herself was cemented into her from a young age.

Playing Softball, Furlow’s position as a catcher taught her valuable lessons in strategy. The position is one with a unique vantage point. Looking outward towards the field meant organising her team and getting people in the right positions, underlining the importance of trust. “There is still an earning of trust,” says Furlow. It is a responsibility she takes seriously.

Chicago to Amsterdam 

Travel is an integral part of Furlow’s career and identity. As she explains moving her life from Chicago to New York for work; “gave me wind in my sales to keep raising my hand and take on more interesting roles.”. Her work has since taken her to Dallas, LA and now Tony’s in Amsterdam. A route which was all down to that ‘very big first yes.’

“Transition forces you to learn more about yourself and sit with it,” adds Furlow. Being alone in a new place or country takes resilience. She shares that in those moves she learnt a lot about herself, sharing: “In the discomfort I had radical growth”. 

A sentiment which resonated with Marketing Leader and Behind the Face of Success host, Visha Kudhail. She shared: ‘It takes bravery to embrace your own company’ and ‘be comfortable with yourself’.

“Being yourself sounds like an easy thing but is actually one of the hardest things,” explains Furlow. Yet she maintains that having trust in your own experiences is what makes a great leader. Only when you are self-assured in your experiences and what you bring to the table can you really help others. She urges people to be confident that: “There is a reason you were hired to do a certain job.” She believes that diversity in thought is good for business and companies must empower employees to be themselves and ‘protect their magic.’

Protecting the value of creativity 

Furlow candidly remarks on grappling with thoughts on leaving the marketing industry during a sabbatical before joining Tony’s Chocolonely. “It’s a daily grind of justifying the value that you bring and the work that you're doing,” she shares. The nature of marketing being visible to consumers means that everybody, including Furlow’s next-door neighbour, has an opinion. Scepticism can be a thief of joy.

The pair stress that every marketer will feel this at some point in their career. “It’s about marketing the marketing,” says Kudhaill. One of Furlow’s biggest learnings moving from agency to client side was realising the level of internal sell-in required as a brand leader. Stakeholder management and bringing people along for the journey is an important skill in itself and gets the most creative projects out of the blocks. 

Battling burnout

Proving the value of creativity isn’t always easy. Furlow and Kudhail stress that it takes work to tell the stories they want to tell as marketers. A challenge which is much easier to do when working with brands you are personally aligned with. 

"I am so grateful and joyful and happy to be at Tony’s Chocolonely,” says Furlow. After her sabbatical Furlow took stock and realised that despite her incredible experience she had paid the price in burnout. Finding an opportunity with a brand that aligns so closely with her values gave her the energy and inspiration she needed. Instead of building life around work she now looks to build work around how she wants to live.

The pair champion the importance of having an identity that isn’t based solely on what you accomplish at work. Rest, relaxation and restoration can make more room for success. Understanding what you need from your life, as well as your career, and finding the tools to protect yourself and others creates a more sustainable push for creativity. In the words of Furlow an approach which is about: “More thriving, less surviving.” An ethos which builds not just brilliant brands, but happy and inspirational marketing leaders. 

Creativebrief is proud to support the Behind The Face of Success podcast as media partner, alongside production partner The River Group.