I started my career as a copywriter, and I learned a key part of my value to any client or any employer was not just the way I shaped words or filled a block with text – it was to advocate for the customer. Take their viewpoint. To this end, being an ‘order taker’ was not going to help me create great copy. Or great marketing. I had to get underneath any requests or feedback I received from a client, to understand what they were really getting at, and hypothesize how the audience might react. So I love this lesson from my latest guest – ‘Figure out the problem.’ A lesson she learned in her first job as an advertising account executive, and still uses to this day as a brand-side marketing leader. To hear how she learned that lesson, along with many more lesson-filled stories from her career journey, I spoke with Lynn McClouchic, Director of Brand, Marketing and Business Development, CannonDesign (https://www.cannondesign.com/). CannonDesign is the eight biggest architecture firm in the country, according to Architectural Record, and is the #2 most innovative design firm in North America according to Fast Company. McClouchic oversees a team of 60 creative writers, graphic designers, digital marketers, business developers, strategists, videographers, and photographers.  Stories (with lessons) about what she made in marketing Some lessons from McClouchic that emerged in our discussion: Obstacles are opportunities to make things happenIt’s about why vs. why notDon’t stay in your laneFigure out the problemSupport is everything Dismissing an idea makes it more powerfulRelated content discussed in this episode Get proactive about using AI in your marketing. Begin your free trial to the AI Guild at MECLABS.com/AI (MECLABS is the parent organization of MarketingSherpa). Product Management & Marketing: Surround yourself with the right people (podcast episode #38) (https://www.marketingsherpa.com/article/interview/product) Healthcare IT Marketing: Branding a new service line within Stericycle, getting ONC certification, finding your joy, & more (https://www.marketingsherpa.com/article/interview/healthcare) Get more episodes This article is distributed through the MarketingSherpa email newsletter (https://www.marketingsherpa.com/newsletters). Sign up for free if you’d like to get more episodes like this one. For more insights, check out... This podcast is not about marketing – it is about the marketer. It draws its inspiration from the Flint McGlaughlin quote, “The key to transformative marketing is a transformed marketer” from the Become a Marketer-Philosopher: Create and optimize high-converting webpages (https://meclabs.com/course/) free digital marketing course. Apply to be a guest If you would like to apply to be a guest on How I Made It In Marketing, here is the podcast guest application – https://www.marketingsherpa.com/page/podcast-guest-application