Sparking Creative Genius: The Art of Light-Hearted Leadership with Shannon Mulligan
Dec 03, 2023Season 1Episode 6
Jen Kelly
Have you ever been inspired by a leader who tapped into your creativity and innovation, leaving you feeling empowered and motivated? In this episode, you’ll be inspired by Shannon Mulligan, founder of The Freelance Squad. Join us as Shannon shares how she incorporates humour into business, strengthening connections with freelancers and clients, and reshaping how ideas are sparked.
Key Takeaways:
A new model for collaboration and innovating: Immerse yourself in the 'hive mind' of freelance design, and grasp its impact on creativity and competition.
Staying Authentic and Joyful: Learn effective strategies for maintaining authenticity and discovering joy in your professional journey
Navigating Entrepreneurial Challenges: Master strategies to handle the responsibilities and challenges of entrepreneurship, including imposter syndrome, while staying true to your vision.
Whether you're an entrepreneur, freelancer, designer, or simply in search of creativity amidst the hustle - this episode is not to be missed. Tune in, get inspired, and remember to subscribe for more insightful content.
Have you ever been inspired by a leader who tapped into your creativity and innovation, leaving you feeling empowered and motivated? In this episode, you’ll be inspired by Shannon Mulligan, founder of The Freelance Squad. Join us as Shannon shares how she incorporates humour into business, strengthening connections with freelancers and clients, and reshaping how ideas are sparked.
Key Takeaways:
A new model for collaboration and innovating: Immerse yourself in the 'hive mind' of freelance design, and grasp its impact on creativity and competition.
Staying Authentic and Joyful: Learn effective strategies for maintaining authenticity and discovering joy in your professional journey
Navigating Entrepreneurial Challenges: Master strategies to handle the responsibilities and challenges of entrepreneurship, including imposter syndrome, while staying true to your vision.
Whether you're an entrepreneur, freelancer, designer, or simply in search of creativity amidst the hustle - this episode is not to be missed. Tune in, get inspired, and remember to subscribe for more insightful content.
On the Grit and Grace podcast. We shine the spotlight on the stories behind the leader. What are great leaders doing to foster creativity within their teams.
Shannon:
Bringing in a bit of joy makes people more excited, and that's what I want to cultivate around me.
Jen:
Joining us today is Shannon Mulligan, founder of the Freelance Squad. In this episode, we explore harnessing creativity during high-pressure, busy times. Shannon also shares insight on her innovative model for how freelancers and companies access creative genius through what she calls the hive mind. Tune in for a thought-provoking discussion on how we can all tap into our joy amidst the hustle. Shannon, thank you so much for being here with us.
Shannon:
Yeah, thank you for taking something that seems safe, like an audio podcast. We're like no, we're going to film you too, so you also have to worry about what you look like, you look so beautiful.
Jen:
You look awesome, so I am so excited to dive into this topic. When I think creativity, leadership, comedy, it seemed like an unusual combination to me. However, you are the expert in all of this, and so I'm really curious how has comedy influenced your entrepreneurial journey?
Shannon:
You know, coming from a background where I did, you know, comedy lessons and made it a big part of my life, socially and for volunteer work as well. It's just such a nice way, I think, to bring a little bit more joy into everything, and particularly right now when you have, you know, the world is falling apart and we are like trying to patch it up as it's crumbling around us. We need that levity in everything, because I don't think many of us want to be working Like I love my job and I love what I do, but if I could just sit and read books and eat expensive cheese all day, I would pick that, yes. So, you know, bringing in a bit of joy and this bit of lightness into what we're doing makes people more excited and want to do it more, and that's really what I want to. You know, like cultivate around me.
Jen:
Well, let's just talk a little bit about your business. So the Freelance Squad and specifically kind of how you got here.
Shannon:
As you know, I was laid off during the early wave of COVID. Yes, I was six months pregnant at the time. All the daycares were shut down, my toddler was at home and I was like, what do I do? I can't look for a new job and I felt at odds. I didn't like not having a job that I could go back to and I was so stressed with everything and I was really fortunate that another connection brought me some freelance copy work, and freelancing was something I'd always wanted to try, but I was never going to quit a full-time role to give it a shot.
Shannon:
And as I was doing this work, I had people coming to me and saying like, oh, you know, we love this email copy. Do you know somebody who could do the design on this? Or do you know somebody who also builds websites? I was like I do know those people and you know, if you think about like the Malcolm Gladwell connector thing that has always really resonated with me where you know, I know somebody who can make a will for you, I know somebody who can give you tap dancing lessons and I want to build up those people, yeah. And then the freelancers that I was talking to were sharing that they love what they do. They were really good at it, but they hated those cold calls, they hated reaching out on LinkedIn and I actually really like those things and so putting it together is like I'll just do that part for you and that was really fun, but I told myself I would do it once my kids were both in school, which they are not yet.
Shannon:
Okay so a premature leap. Yes, it just turned around and all of a sudden I was just doing it and it just kind of started to grow on its own and evolve. But I never set out with the intention of wanting to be an entrepreneur, wanting to be a leader, wanting to have a business, and I think in some ways that has helped me In what ways do you think it's helped you, though?
Shannon:
I think that I don't have this intention of this is going to be I'm going to grow this until it's a $3 billion business or I'm going to work on this until I can sell it. That's not my goal. My goal is to make enough money so that I can do the things I want to with my family and so that I can help other freelancers do the things that they want to do with their lives. I work with a lot of moms, a lot of parents, a lot of people who you know live with their parents and they're looking to make that first down payment or save up enough for rent, and I really like creating those communities and empowering those people to be able to do the things they want to do. And like that's it for me.
Jen:
How many freelancers are a part of the freelance squad today?
Shannon:
There are probably a core group about 10 people who we work with, I would say, almost full time. We probably do about 70% of their hours total freelance, and then there are another 20 people that we go to and it's probably half that, and then there are maybe another 20 people that if we have worked with here and there for different projects.
Jen:
And how are companies thinking about sourcing freelance versus doing things in-house? And you know how's the world changing a little bit around all of this. It's twofold.
Shannon:
When layoffs happen, we get people reaching out to us who want a freelance.
Shannon:
Sometimes that's even that's other freelancers who are working with them or its employees.
Shannon:
Sometimes our own clients have been laid off and then have joined us as freelancers, which to me is really special that they liked working with us that much. So there's this influx of new talent that we get to work with, which is great because that's part of our business, and then it also opens this interesting gap for businesses, because they still have work they need to get done. They just don't have the head count anymore, and that, I think, is the perfect opportunity for what we do, where we're not coming in and you know saying, oh, I'm solely a copywriter and that's what you need now, because they don't, they need the six marketing people they just laid off, they need design and copy and an email person and somebody who's going to update the website, and so that's kind of the beauty of what we can do, where we can come in and just pulse people in and out to do those specific things and then either keep working with you or just say, like great, you're up to speed here.
Jen:
Well how do you guys stay ahead of the curve, especially in today's landscape with technology, ai? How do you guys stay inspired?
Shannon:
So this is one of the cool things that I didn't plan for but have discovered along the way and want to see more of, because freelancing is so isolating.
Shannon:
It's a lot of work.
Shannon:
To make sure that you are going to the conferences, you are listening to the podcast, reading the blogs about these new tools yeah, because your balance between you have to find new clients, you have to do the work you already have, somehow find a way to promote yourself, and then there's this consistent learning you want to do and that's very hard to maintain Because we have this community of freelancers.
Shannon:
You can kind of take a break from any one of those things at any given time. We just had three designers one who lives in Hamilton, one who lives in North York, one who lives in the States all from the freelance squad, didn't know each other before. They all got together for a conference in Toronto a couple of weekends ago and we're sharing the information that they learned there and we get to bring that back to the freelance squad and again do more of this knowledge sharing, so that it's like a hive mind but you're still an independent freelancer, and so that's been really neat to see people bringing these pieces and new technologies or new fonts that they really like, new software programs that are really time saving and just collectively benefit from it when you have the hive mind.
Jen:
They're actually not looking at it through the prism of their business one business problem, and so perhaps you can see a bigger spectrum of innovation.
Shannon:
Yeah, and there's been so many neat little things with it.
Shannon:
So if you hire a copywriter, for example, and maybe they're struggling or you're not seeing eye to eye or you just don't like their work, you're kind of stuck and you either have to go find somebody else or keep working with them at it.
Shannon:
But because we have this hive mind and our goal is more the end product versus who's working at it, you can take this and I've done this as a copywriter with our other writers and then like guys, I just I'm stuck on this headline, can you just help me spin up a few different options for this one? And then you'll get inspired and then you'll deliver that and the client gets a much better product at the end of the day. And they don't they don't care who's putting that together, yeah, they just want still that person-to-person contact and the best end result possible. And that's been really nice, minus this competitive atmosphere of you. Know well, I don't want to let another copywriter in because then they're gonna take over my client or take over my work. That just doesn't exist and it's been such a beautiful little piece of creating this that I didn't expect when.
Jen:
I started it. I think it's a whole different model on how to solve creativity in an innovative way. I've been thinking a lot about where leadership needs to go with creativity, just because I think the speed of iteration that we have to all move into is moving into a whole new level and I don't think we're gonna have the luxury of I have writer's block. We're not gonna be in that, it's so true.
Shannon:
We're not gonna be there anymore, right? This is why fractional CMOs are exploding right now. And you're right, it's that level of iteration and you can't. Just no brand can rest on their laurels anymore, yeah, and just keep putting out what they're putting out, and companies no longer want to see that. They don't want to see like great, we made the same targets as last year, good job everybody. They want to see 2x, 3x, year over year or month over month, and at some point, that's not sustainable, the way that you're doing it, and it's a problem that needs to be fixed.
Jen:
Yeah, how do you see this kind of influx and tipping point where people are just gonna get hit with so much more content but it's not necessarily high quality content how do you invent, how do you create, how do you take risks? And I really think that's the paradigm that great leaders, great companies, great brand voices might have to go into, versus back to the we can't rest on our laurels, or yeah, just because this thing is more efficient doesn't mean we don't have to go to our next level.
Shannon:
AI hasn't always been there, but I mean, I use a thesaurus constantly. Yeah, I use a rhyming dictionary in my work. Ai is not so different from those pieces. It's just a start to get you there. And then you have to push through and you open up and you find those creative moments. And maybe for some people that's taking a walk or doing a workout or like watching TV and zoning out for a little bit. Yeah, you still have to find ways to be creative on your own and that is still work, and I think that's where it's. You have to give yourself the space for that and if you are on a 2x, 3x every year, you don't have that moment to allow space for creativity to happen, because you can't push it. It's not going to be as good.
Jen:
Well, when you kind of work with a lot of these brands and companies through the lens of leadership, what are great leaders doing to foster creativity within their teams and pull everyone up to kind of that level of thinking and innovation?
Shannon:
I will say, without a doubt, it is the way that they treat people Okay, and it's the motivation and positive reinforcement. And I don't want to say constructive criticism because I feel like that's such a common term and like it's not even that positive, like positive criticism maybe, but I know that I do my best when people tell me what they love and then they're like I'd love to see these parts improved, how can we make these work here? And that's when I'm like oh, just you watch, I will wow you. And I want to be that kind of motivator to pull out that creativity and inspire people to want to create that better work for themselves.
Shannon:
And I have certain clients who work one way and certain clients who work another way and for me, the ease that freelancers work on those projects who wants to put their hand up to work on those projects, and the speed, the efficiency, like everything, is so much more improved when there is this layer of positivity around it and it makes it faster and cheaper and better. Yeah, I have freelancers who send me a headline of a project I'm not even working on and they're like get a load of this. And those are my favorite moments because they're so proud of what they do. Yeah, and we know that people are going to love them and the result is better. I love them and the result is better that secret that you just gave for leaders?
Jen:
I actually was have been listening a lot to Rick Rubin these days talk about how to do this with artists, and it's actually the same model. So the beginning, which is I really love these parts, right.
Jen:
Whether you're talking about the business copy or the artist song. Now let's look at these. He says these lyrics it's less personal on totally what somebody did and you hone in on the work and you're like, but how could we, you know, tinker, experiment, innovate, and you focus the energy there in a positive way and then that becomes the way that it then goes to the next level.
Shannon:
It's the we that you used in that phrase to where it's not. You need to make this better. It's how a question? How can we make these parts better? Because anything creative is intrinsically personal. It's these little beautiful nuggets from your own brain that you are so excited to share with people, and if you have somebody who doesn't love them, they're not always going to do it's really hard not to take that personally, and so that we approach that phrasing in it as a question is there such small changes that can produce such dramatic results?
Jen:
in business, in art, no matter what it is. Where do you think teams? What are they doing? Well, to create safety and trust amongst that kind of forum so that people can do it over and over again, because it is quite a vulnerable experience.
Shannon:
Like we all have this the greatest CEOs in the world. Not everything has been a home run, and to hear those moments of like well, I really have this one is like oh, I have the freedom to now do that too.
Jen:
So Brennan Brown does it best right when she just talks about vulnerability so openly and honestly, and then that allows us all to kind of rush in and be our authentic selves and whatever we're doing, whether we're the CEO or whether we're, you know, on the marketing design team or otherwise podcast or now twists and turns along the way.
Jen:
Shannon, I guess the one question I have just thinking about teams a little bit more here. I've been thinking a lot about this kind of concept like the moment it clicks. You know, and you kind of working through that problem, you're looking at something complicated and then all of a sudden, whether it's a marketing campaign or product innovation, great teams talk about like this moment it clicks. Do you have any insight on, like, what goes into that? Like what do you see happen on that front?
Shannon:
You know we talk about going with our gut on this and I am such a gut person and that's the light bulb moment is because you know when it works, you feel so good about it. It's that full body excitement. It's kind of like we got it.
Jen:
It's like we got it moment everybody has that you can see it in every person's face or the slack emojis that they're using, I think everything that we're talking about I kind of think about it sums up in like a you need a community that you can do it with others. 100 seems to be a bit of the secret sauce here. Be, you need an environment where you can literally fail vulnerability and you know your back. And also you need a communication style that you feel safe in right now. How people give feedback, how people deliver feedback, the mood, the temperature, all that leaders need to be mindful of. And then I really love this model of how we innovate and solve differently in a new kind of. It's kind of like this iterative cycle that that moves faster because you're able to riff like a band with other people.
Shannon:
That you're talking about a freelance squad, it's like.
Jen:
It's like a band that's riffs off each other versus one person creating the music jazz baby yeah, for some reason I'm into music and creativity and comedy with you. This has been an amazing conversation. I have been riveted by your insight. I could talk to you all day. Well, listen, if people want to find more about the freelance squad, where do they go?
Shannon:
We have our new website launching, which is created by some of the freelancers on our team, so it's just the freelance squad calm, very complicated. Yeah, that's the best place to find us and I think on there. You know, you'll get the contact there, but you'll also get such a feel for who we are and the values that are important to us, because we wrote them right on the page. So, yeah, that's the best way to find us.
Jen:
Okay, well, thank you so much for coming on the podcast. It's been such a treat to have you want. Thank you so much for having me. Thank you for joining us. Don't forget to follow us on Instagram and LinkedIn, where we transform the wisdom from our podcast into practical tips, tools and takeaways for your leadership journey. Find us at gritgracepodcast. See you next week.