Renee Szostak

I attribute my success to a very intense work ethic. I tend to deliver on what is expected on the client side, but also be the type of person that I would want to work with and be a colleague of, which helps create synergy. I think my ability to stay very calm under pressure is really important. When things are moving a million miles a minute, I don't freak out or think something is an unsolvable problem. I'm very resourceful and have the mindset that all problems have a solution and we can figure them out. I think just having that mindset has really helped me grow and continue to ascend in my career.

The best career advice I've received is to always take a deep breath, take a step back, and not be reactive when issues potentially arise. It's important to have that overarching sky view of what the landscape is and what we're really trying to solve, rather than doing something in a very reactive way, because that's how issues can occur. Thinking more long-term and bigger picture is really important. I've also learned to try to be the kind of person that you want to work for or with collaboratively, making safe spaces and making people feel comfortable to share ideas. Otherwise, people can be too afraid to speak up and you end up having less input, which isn't as productive. Having a diverse set of people contributing to a problem makes the idea usually stronger. Creating that really inclusive, welcoming, safe environment for people to contribute and be part of the process is crucial. The more invested everyone feels, the more excited they are about the outcome and the more they want to do a good job, so it really behooves everyone to make sure everyone feels like they do have a stake in what we're doing.

I would say try to lean in and be one of the people that does raise their hand when new opportunities arise. If there are professional development things that you want to work on, workshops, or other things that can help you grow, don't be afraid to ask for those opportunities. I've been delighted throughout my career at how open employers have been to giving me those opportunities when you do ask for them. They're not always presented to you, but often an employer is excited to see you're excited about growing professionally. Don't hesitate to be the one to say there's this really amazing conference coming up and I think it's going to be beneficial for me and the team, and ask if the company can cover it. Generally, I found that the answer is yes, which is something I think a lot of people don't take advantage of. Try to be involved in the space and don't become so laser-focused in the one area that you're necessarily working in. Try to look at other people in the space. I try to pay attention to what's happening in marketing more widely, not just entertainment, because there's often inspiration that can come from all different verticals outside of what you're doing, which can be even more valuable because it could inspire something for you to do in your own space that isn't really being done yet. Try not to become too tunnel vision in whatever your vertical is, but make sure you're paying attention to the larger industry that you're in.

The biggest challenge in my field is that it's very fast-paced. I'm always trying to be aware of what are the latest iterations in the entertainment marketing space, what are the updates with the platforms, what's happening in the creator economy, and being very familiar with the properties and IPs themselves of everything we're working on. It can be a lot for anyone to take in. It's just a lot of information to stay on top of, including storylines and characters, how fans are reacting to things, what they want to see more of, or what they're not as open to. It's a constant thing that we're trying to stay on top of and make sure that we are the experts in this field and really aware of what's happening in the space. We need to be very on and integrated into the marketing world to know what's interesting or what's maybe overdone.

I would say integrity in what you're doing, being accountable, and being someone that others can rely on are most important to me. Coming through and not expecting other people to pick up your slack, or being someone who isn't contributing more than the bare minimum, is really important. This goes into being the kind of colleague you want to work with yourself. I've definitely had the experience of both sides, people that are always the ones to volunteer and jump in and be willing to do more than what is called of them, and people that aren't necessarily as willing to do that. When you're really in a pinch and you're asking people for help and getting crickets, that obviously doesn't feel great. Being a person that is ready to jump in and be a helpful colleague is important, because you just never know when you're going to be in that same position and need that kind of support.