15 Principles of Creative Leadership (That I Learned from My Dog)

Meet Simon. We found him at a local rescue shelter and, like any dog I’ve ever had, he immediately enriched our lives. At the shelter, Simon was presented to us as “a very emotionally unstable little guy.” He feared all strangers, was untrusting, didn’t like loud sounds or loud voices, and was generally skittish. All that said, his fuzzy little sweet face was irresistible. After a few treats and soft, nurturing voices, he cautiously walked out of his pen and into our hearts. We can’t imagine life without him. (Cue sappy music.)

I have been a dog owner for the bulk of my life. As a child, our family had a mellow Cockapoo named Tabby, who was uber-obedient from day one. She learned all her commands quickly and would do anything or go anywhere we told her. In my teen years, I had Dobermans—Gallagher and Nicodemus—both police trained. Each had attack words, halt words, could do numerous tricks, and would sit drooling with a piece of meat on their nose until they were told it was okay to eat it… a skill I tested many, many times.

Simon, to say the least, is the polar opposite of those dogs. Nope, Simon marches to the beat of his own drum. After thousands of dollars of training, incessant practicing, and a gross ton of training treats, it was clear he wasn’t trained in any way as a puppy… and had no intention of being so now. Warts and all, he’s still one of the best dogs I've ever owned.

As any pet owner will tell you, one of the best parts of having a dog (or cat, for that matter) is simply watching them and wondering what on earth they’re thinking. Do they have thoughts beyond “Food time!” and “Where do you think you're going?”-type instincts? With mine in particular, after many hours of studying his behavior (used loosely), I realized that a lot of his idiosyncrasies apply to an office environment. Weird as it sounds, Simon provides me with several philosophies that apply to the workplace and that I use every day.

1. Come out of the gate hot

Simon is an early riser, mostly because I am and always have been an early riser. Like me, he wants to get his highest priority items—in his case, a walk and food—checked off before the rest of the family rises. After a mad burst of energy in the wee hours, he throttles back for the rest of the day.

I think there’s no better feeling than arriving to work an hour or so earlier than everyone else. I’ve forever contended that you can get 8 hours of actual work done in that small window before the staff lumbers in. As Simon will attest, if he could speak, the rest of your day is cream cheese.

2. Trust is earned

My little guy takes nobody at face value. It takes time to earn his trust. But once you do, he’s as sweet and loyal as they come. Give your team a reason to trust you beyond telling them they should. Demonstrate. Lead by example. Earn their trust (see number 11), and they’ll respond with loyalty.

3. Rules Are For Suckers

Telling Simon to sit or stay is like telling a cat to wear sneakers. It could eventually happen, but there will be a fight involved. Asking him to get off the couch or stay out of the bathroom is met with equal parts defiance and self-gratification. His apathy toward even the most basic rules is actually pretty impressive.

The old adage “rules are made to be broken” applies to many companies and tenfold in a creative environment. Encourage your team to understand the rules, then leap outside that box and do it their way. Yes, there are corporate guidelines for behavior and protocol that must be followed. Still, genuinely creative people need the freedom to do things their way to feel alive. One last thought: Name one successful person who got that way by following the rules.

4. Be yourself

To steal a line from a great movie, “I can’t stand save-asses, and I won’t abide kiss-asses.” Simon refuses to bend. He’s unapologetic about it and walks with a confident little strut that screams, “Take me as I am, pal.” I’m a big believer in always staying true to myself and pulling out the truth from others. Smooching butt will get you nowhere in the long run. Plus, it makes me feel oogie.

5. Look forward to seeing people

Once you’ve earned his trust, Simon will trumpet your arrival with hoots, tail wagging at a fevered pace, from the moment he senses your presence. Even if you’re a block away. It’s so pure and straightforward and unconscious. I should be so lucky as to feel that way all the time.

Surround yourself with colleagues you are actually happy to see every day. If you dread running into this person or that, either you or they probably shouldn’t be there. A genuine joy at seeing your team members will rub off and pay off. I promise.

6. There’s no such thing as a working lunch

Lunch is serious business. Don’t talk to me or touch me while I do it. I will growl and burr up the hair on the back of my neck, and there’s a good chance I’ll nip at you… just like Simon. But one thing is for sure: I’m not really listening to a word you’re saying... just like Simon. Working lunches are uncomfortable, non-productive, and even sometimes embarrassing. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. And by the way, your team hates them too.

7. Shouting serves no purpose

In moments of anger, I sometimes raise my voice to Simon. His background is wrought with bad experiences, so he immediately retreats to his “discipline crate” for a time-out… and I immediately feel horrible. But, moreover, in no way, shape, or form is my damaged little rescue learning anything from my outburst. He’s instinctively shutting down and retreating, which is exactly what happens at the office.

Conflict in the workplace can be productive in certain situations and can raise the standard of outcomes. But it’s rarely done well. Yes, we’re all human (except Simon… though the jury is out), and we all lose control here and there. But learning comes from conversation, never from conflict. Save the drama for your momma.

8. Music makes anything better

Although he doesn’t like loud noises or loud voices, Simon loves music. Loves it. He lays at my feet and sleeps when I play music while I work. Whenever I pick up my guitar and play, he sits and stares at me and wags his tail wildly. I’ve always found that many work stresses and distractions can be allayed simply by immersing yourself in music for a bit. I recently toured a friend’s office space and was shocked by the silence. A creative shop in which you could hear a mouse pass gas. No conversation I can somewhat understand. But no music playing anywhere? Baffling.

Listen to music at work, share music with your coworkers, and start conversations that lead to a better understanding of one another. Music connects people and magically makes everything right with the world.

9. Never trust a man in a hat

This one may be particular to me, and most of you probably won’t agree, but I stand by…

Simon is particularly agitated by any man wearing a hat. Clearly, a hat-wearing man was a source of stress before we met him. So we’re cautious about steering him clear of those encounters when we can.

Whenever I’ve ever met a man wearing a hat in the workplace, I instantly wonder, “Who is this guy trying to be?” And the fancier the hat, the more my left eyebrow goes up. Simon is right on the money with this one.

10. Be crazy for no reason whatsoever

All pet owners are familiar with a phenomenon known as the zoomies. It’s when your pet—seemingly for no reason—tears off, running around in circles at full speed, with small stops to annihilate one of his toys before continuing. After Simon zooms, the look of contentment on his face is precious. Once the panting stops, his body is entirely relaxed for hours afterward.

As I’ve mentioned in many posts, I try to have a great time at work. I like to surround myself with team members who share my desire to liven up the party.

Every once in a while, let loose for no reason. Play harmless pranks on coworkers. Have a dance-off in the conference room. Throw a spontaneous party to celebrate Wednesday. But keep your plans secret. Leave ’em wondering, for better or worse, “Oh dear God, what does he/she have planned today?”

11. Have your team’s back

In one of my favorite Simon stories: A young coyote wandered directly into my dining room through an open patio door one summer afternoon. Though it was out of eyeshot, my demure, restive pooch sensed a problem. Before I knew it, he bolted after the intruder like he was shot from a Howitzer. This reaction is from a dog who has scared himself by seeing his reflection in a mirror.

After frantically calling for him and subsequently getting in my car to search for him, Simon returned home about 30 minutes later—exhausted, wide-eyed, and shaking violently. Once I confirmed he was okay, it struck me that he was willing to risk his safety to protect us. I’d chalk it up to an instinctive response to a wild animal. Still, even if someone reaches their hand out too quickly toward my kids, Simon The Great Protector will growl and lunge. Mr. Tough Guy at all of 20 pounds.

You will constantly be confronted with cross-organizational finger-pointing in the corporate world. It’s inevitable. And it’s the number one way insecure people (A) feebly attempt to demonstrate their infallibility and (B) relegate work to others without ever having to take on any themselves. It’s your job as a team manager always to get the facts straight and apply proper techniques to rectify the situation fairly and calmly. But in my experience, nothing binds a team together like having their backs. Yep, they could be at fault, but I make a concerted effort to never, ever publicly take sides against my own team. We’ll sort it out in private. But for now, I will chase the coyote for you.

12. A little snack makes all the difference.

‘Nuff said.

13. When you’re happy and you know it, wag your tail.

Dogs have no way of keeping their feelings to themselves. The second Simon feels even the tiniest inkling of joy, his curly little tail unfurls and starts swinging. Sometimes, he’ll even wag his tail while he’s dreaming. It brings me enormous pleasure.

Most people in an office environment have no problem expressing — either through words or demeanor — their displeasure with certain aspects of their job. I have found if I expend equal amounts of energy in projecting happy feelings, it spreads like warm margarine. When things are going well, when you’re pleased with someone’s performance, when you’ve conquered a major challenge as a team, don’t be afraid to wag your tail. It’ll bring others the same enormous pleasure.

14. Never get too comfortable

One of Simon’s most chuckle-worthy traits is his inability to stay in one place for more than 5 minutes at a time. If he naps during the day, he will change locations 6 times in 30 minutes. At night, we can hear the constant tick, tick, tick of his nails as he explores the house for his next bed. It makes me smile every time.

In any company, the act of getting comfortable is dangerously overrated. But especially in creative companies. The moment you start to get comfortable, your work starts to look that way. Make no mistake. There’s a difference between being comfortable and getting comfortable: the former is physiological, and the latter is a state of mind. I always try to instill the importance of pushing beyond the comfort zone.

As any top creative will tell you, when you present ideas to a client, and everyone at the table is smiling, you didn’t push far enough. I’ll go as far as saying you didn’t do your job. The only work—creative or otherwise—that ever moves the needle or gets remembered is that which is initially feared by at least a few of the bigwigs in the room. I equate comfort with complacency. And complacency is a death knell to any company’s long-term goals.

15. There’s a possibility for fun around every corner. Maybe even treats.

Simon is what some people call a “Velcro dog.” Whatever room I’m in, he will follow me there. I’d be irked by this behavior if it weren’t for one tiny detail—he always brings a toy with him. He loooooooves to chase, fetch, and wrestle, and he assumes any time I’m in a new room, there’s a chance fun will ensue. He’s usually right.

Let’s face it: work can sometimes be a drag. But I like to think that there’s always room for a bit of fun. As I’ve said, what I do for a living is not life or death. It’s moving words put to moving pictures. So, there’s no reason to take the whole thing so seriously.

There are opportunities all day, every day, to instill a little fun. If you play your cards right, you might even hit the office kitchen at the very moment the leftover pastries from the budget meeting hit the counter. Look for chances to brighten the day. Take a few minutes to put that file folder down and pick up a toy instead. Office morale is one of the most important—and least nurtured—aspects of building or maintaining a successful company. Happy employees are productive employees. Chase a ball at least once a day.

Well, Simon needs a walk. I know this because he’s on my lap, 2 inches from my face, intentionally blocking my computer screen. Maybe we’ll discuss religion while we’re out there.