Episode 301 / Christine Maguire / Tripadvisor / Global Vice President, Commercial Business
The Power of Stillness
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Through a very varied and accomplished career, Christine Maguire has learnt one of the most important lessons for being a better marketer and a happier human: the power of stillness.
Christine picked stillness as her shiny new object for how it allows her to stop, think, reflect, and refocus. Stillness is clarity and rest is productive - these are her mantras, which she tries to communicate and instil into her team at Tripadvisor, too.
She’s also shared the importance of empathy, understanding mindsets, and the fact that we need to realise that we’re always marketing.
Tune into the podcast to hear more data driven marketing tips and how to find better clarity of mind.
Transcript
The following gives you a good idea of what was said, but it’s not 100% accurate.
Christine Maguire 0:00
Understanding mindsets is a really important piece of telling narratives and talking to people to make sure that you can lead with empathy, that you can lead with really the things that ultimately they can control.
Speaker 0:18
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Tom Ollerton 0:51
Hello and welcome to the shiny new object podcast. My name is Tom Ollerton. I'm the founder of the creative effectiveness ad tech platform Automated Creative. This is a weekly podcast about the future of data driven marketing. And it's Cannes week everybody. It's very exciting. And I am in a beautiful apartment. I think you call this just an apartment. I would call this beautiful luxury apartment. Doesn't quite look like my apartment. I'll tell you that. And we are being hosted by the wonderful Creative X so thank you guys for hosting us again. Two years running, I must have behaved myself, but that's where we are. But who I'm with is very, very exciting indeed. I'm here with Christine Maguire, who is global vice president commercial business at TripAdvisor. Christine, welcome to Cannes and for anyone who doesn't know who you are and what you do, could you give us a bit of background?
Christine Maguire 1:40
I absolutely can. Thanks for having me. So I run the commercial business globally at TripAdvisor. For those of you that don't know, TripAdvisor, it's obviously known as a global review platform, but beyond that, we really give travellers guidance and inspiration, planning advice, right through to booking and getting in destination and the experience like we're having here at Cannes this beautiful location. I run the commercial teams, which effectively means enterprise brand partnerships, SMB, so all the local businesses you see here, we work with across France and all the other countries. And then I run strategic partnerships, so bigger sort of licencing and syndicated partnerships.
Tom Ollerton 2:25
Well, it's a very fancy job, so I've got very high expectations of your content today. But what did you do before that? What were your kind of roles in the run up to that gig?
Christine Maguire 2:33
Yeah, I've had an interesting background. I came actually from a finance background. I am an Irish American lady, first generation. My parents were from Ireland, and, you know, came from very blue collar backgrounds. And my mom was a nurse. My dad was in construction. So I'm the only one that actually took the delve into corporate America. And I started in finance. Worked for a construction management company called Skanska. Two accounts, one was IBM and another was United Nations. And then I realised construction probably isn't a fit for me, so I went into media, and I started at Vevo in the very early days of launching on YouTube and spinning off from Universal Music Group, and then Conde Nast. So then I went to publishing, which was a very interesting time to be there, when print was was evolving and changing and digital needed to be transformed in a big way. And then in 2019 I joined Trip Advisor, and I went to the travel side, which has been incredibly rewarding in so many ways, but also turbulent, if you think about the depths of a low and in the pandemic and everybody being grounded and not travelling.
Tom Ollerton 3:47
You should, you should do a book on changing industries. You probably, probably the most diverse...
Christine Maguire 3:53
The through line is marketing, media, advertising, but many different industries.
Tom Ollerton 3:58
So you've done lots of different things. But what has been that work screw up where you were completely red faced, and you're like, I can't believe I've done that, but actually, in retrospect, you're really glad that it happened.
Christine Maguire 4:12
You actually frame that really well. It's not just red faced, you know, spotty chest, really. I wasn't a public speaker. I came from finance. I was more sort of in the background, and I started a job, I won't say which one, and my boss really believed in me, but two weeks in, wanted to put me in front of 500 people where I had no business contacts, no relationships. And I said, Yes. I mean, I think that was probably one of my key learnings, is you really have to be ready for those moments. And I totally tanked. It was the most embarrassing 25 minutes standing up there in my life. And I think post that I had two decisions, two paths. One was, I'm never going to do that again or two, I'm never going to show up like that again, and I'm going to grow from that. And thankfully, you know, 12-13, years, I have evolved significantly, and I find it comfortable to speak and be in front of 500 people, whether it's organisations or public. But it was a moment for me of real self reflection and saying, is this what I want to do? Do I want to get really uncomfortable, to grow and continue to be in front of people? Get comfortable with my words, get comfortable with my self belief. So that was probably the moment for me in the inflection point that really, you know, changed the course of sort of where I went, how I thought about, you know, showing up for teams, showing up for clients, showing up for the marketplace.
Tom Ollerton 5:55
So if you're going to go back in time and help you prep for that first talk, and you just had a 30 seconds with you. What would you say?
Christine Maguire 6:04
Well, twofold, one, I think I would wait three months until you really had a lot of listening and tours and understanding of the business to really make sure that, from a pure business side, that you were prepared to get up there and speak. But two, I think I would give myself sort of the grace that I know. What had I given myself that frame was that I really know, the material that I really understand, the business that I have self confidence and self belief and talking about those things. So, you know, I've never put myself in that situation again. I never was as bad as that again. But it also was a journey. You progressively get better in places that you put yourself, you know, in uncomfortable first situation. So, you know, I think continuing to do, to work to get better and look at yourself retrospectively, introspectively, I think, is a really important thing.
Tom Ollerton 7:07
So moving on to a very specific bit of advice. What advice would you give to a data driven marketer to become better at their job? So what is that bit of silver bullet advice you find giving to your teams when it comes to data and creativity and data driven marketing, what is that golden nugget of wisdom that you find yourself sharing?
Christine Maguire 7:28
Yeah, I do think no matter what industry you're in, no matter what function you're in, you're always marketing. Whether you're marketing to your teams, you're marketing to your clients, you're marketing to the CFO and the CEO and the board, you're telling stories. You're telling narratives. I think understanding mindsets is a really important piece of telling narratives and talking to people. You know, I've had organisations over the last 10-15 years that have been in very different places, in their personal lives, in their professional lives. I think COVID was obviously a huge part for everyone where, you know, it was a moment of uncertainty. We have gone through a lot of change, a CEO change, at TripAdvisor, we're a public company. We've gotten through, gone through, you know, lots of business changes. And I think really meeting people where they are, and understanding the mindset that they're in to make sure that you can lead with empathy, that you can lead with really the things that ultimately they can control, makes the strongest organisations, makes the strongest output. So I would say, like always understanding mindsets of your team, your partners, your stakeholders, internally, is a really important part to being successful.
Tom Ollerton 8:53
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Tom Ollerton 9:30
So we're gonna move on now to your shiny new object, which we've never had before. So I'm excited to talk about this. And your shiny new object is stillness, is productive, which I still think sounds like a song title, but you know, what is stillness is productive? What do you mean by that? And why is it your shiny new object?
Christine Maguire 9:50
Yeah, I would say rest is productive. And I would say stillness is clarity. I think we're all constantly running 100,000 miles an hour, and rarely take a beat. And in the last couple of years, you know, I really invested in my own mental health and retreats and a coach and things to really make sure that I'm taking some stillness, having some self reflection, time, understanding where I want to spend my energy, for my life, for where I want to take my career. And then what I find is when you take that moment, when you take that week of stillness, that day of stillness, you come back so much stronger. I think you come back with so much more clarity. I think you come back with a level of insight that you wouldn't otherwise have when you're running at a speed that you don't actually get the time to sort of process, think and have creativity, both for you know, sort of where you want to take your life and your career, but also you know where you want to spend your your really valuable, finite energy.
Tom Ollerton 11:03
So I agree with you, and that's beautiful to hear, but you need to coach me now, how, how do I do that? Right? I run a business, I do this, bunch of other different things, and I totally buy into stillness, right? I've flirted with meditation on and off over the years, meditating this morning on the beach in Cannes. Yeah, that was, that was bit of an Instagram moment. But how do you do that? Like when the brown stuff is hitting the fan, and you've got team coming to you with needs and problems, and you've got opportunities arriving as well from different clients and and what it needs is your full attention, and even even you at 25% is better than nothing. How do you how do you carve out that time? Because you must manage a large team and have people from all over the world demanding your attention, your time. How do you do it? How do you know when to stop?
Christine Maguire 11:54
I think it's very different and individual to each person, so I had to find what was right for me. I've tried meditation a tonne. I just came back from a retreat where there was meditation every morning, and it was great for that week, but I find it very hard to do when I met home for me, I love to take calls as I walk in, and I find that my mental energy really gets bolstered through exercise. I absolutely love saunas and cold plunges. I know it's it's a trend, but I really believe in it, and I feel like a totally different, revived person when I leave.
Tom Ollerton 12:37
On that I had a mad one the other day, so I got this email saying, Do you want to come to an AI creativity networking? I'm like, Yeah, okay, in a sauna. So shout out to the guys at AI cat who organised that was 25 people, and it was, it was like 60 person sauna in Canary Wharf. Was called Oh kiss me, and had a one degree punch pool, and you had to stay in for two minutes. And the ferocity of the discussion after that was incredible, because we'd all been through this trauma of sorts together. So I can, you know, you can combine those two passions, if you like.
Christine Maguire 13:10
Yeah, this I think I love those things. There's so many. I live in New Jersey, but I'm in New York a tonne, and they have all of these communities now where you're you're doing those kinds of things. You're not going to a bar. You're actually going to a place where you can meditate, where you can get spirituality, where you can do saunas and steam rooms and cold plunges, and then you bond over that. And then actually your your mental clarity, your ideation, all the things that sort of come in the back of that experience is tenfold what it would be when you're, you know, in Cannes having a cocktail?
Tom Ollerton 13:44
Well, that's it. I think we're just moving into this kind of post alcohol business world, you know, like you see networking events, and it's just this, is this an alcohol free event? It's, it's now, it's like, will there be alcohol, as opposed to, has it been removed? Which I think a subtle but important difference. And I think now that people are understanding that A, it's not right for a lot of people, but B, the connection and the excitement and the quality of that connection you get when you remove it can be better.
Christine Maguire 14:13
Yeah, I think also when you hear stories of how it's changed people's lives, when they've taken a step back away from those things and into a way more restful, good sort of health situation where they're spending their time and their energy on things that are fueling them versus things that are depleting them. Is, is, you know, great motivation for me. I still love to have my rose here in Cannes. When I go home, I'm in a very different schedule, where I'm refuelling and doing all the things that really give me that sort of stillness, clarity, and ultimately take my energy to where I want it to be.
Tom Ollerton 14:52
I'm reading a book at the minute. I was listening to it on the fight on the way over. It's talking about, how to, how to, you know, grow resilient kids, basically. And it was talking about, like, if. You start thinking about everything around the brain, it becomes super interesting. Is this good for my brain, not for my mouth, or for my moment, or whatever, but like is, is this diet? Is this dish complimentary to what this needs? Because if that works, the most important organ in your body can deliver, work, deliver being a partner, being a parent, whatever it is. And it's so interesting to start thinking about your whole output as being from the brain, as opposed to, like, what you put into your body.
Christine Maguire 15:28
Yeah, that's the kind of stuff I love. I mean, there's studies done too of you know, the people you spend your time with is a really important aspect too, to your mental health and sort of where you get your energy and your clarity and your motivation from and there's three phases to that. Before you go and meet with people, whether it's business or personal or family, how do you feel about going? Are you excited? Are you energised? When you're there: How does it feel? Is it energising in the moment where you're the discussion is so fruitful and so energising. And then how do you feel after you feel depleted? Or do you actually feel like it gave you a boost of energy? And that should really tell you if that's the place you should be spending your energy and your time, or is it something that you're doing because you have to see that family member, you have to see that friend that may no longer serve you, I think really taking a step back and listening in that stillness that I think gives a lot of clarity has so many forms, and who you spend your time with is a really important part of that.
Tom Ollerton 16:35
So practically, how do you incentivize your team to take those moments of stillness?
Christine Maguire 16:43
So many ways. I mean, I make sure when people take their time for, you know, long haul trips, family things, paternity leave, maternity leave, whatever it is, that they really have that space and that clarity to be able to unplug and enjoy those beauties in life that you know, the work will always be there. The advertising industry is not saving lives. So, you know, I'm constantly sort of preaching to the team, but I think more so than anything, I'm telling them about myself, I'm opening up and being vulnerable about my own experiences, and then give them the permission to make sure that they're doing it as well. You know, I also like to create the most healthy work environment possible, where they're working at a unit. They're leaning on each other. The collective is better than the individual efforts. And I'm constantly listening, I'm constantly learning, and I'm constantly evolving the way that we think about the culture and what the needs are, and how the business is evolving, how people are evolving, and what the needs are to continue to make it a healthy, thriving and growing, personal and professional.
Tom Ollerton 17:55
Whenever anyone joins Automated Creative, we're always like, look, go, put your family first. If you're worrying about your partner, your kid, your dog, whatever it is like, you need to get that done, because you take care of the important stuff. And then we, we get all of you, but we've started doing finishing early on a Friday, and we don't take meetings on a Friday as well, which is, which is really nice. So it's like, that day has a not stillness, obviously everyone's working, but it's a different kind of energy. You don't need to like you don't need to go and bring that kind of performance version of yourself to calls and meetings and so on. I think that's been really beneficial for us.
Christine Maguire 18:30
Yeah, I think those days are really important because it allows you to also get things done that you need to get done without the burden of meetings, and actually enter the weekend with a fresh head, knowing that you've got through your list, knowing that you've sort of got through the week at the very end, not being on a high of sort of 10 meetings right into the weekend. So I think there's a lot of those practices. We've definitely done that at TripAdvisor, within different groups. I think when we do it at the the corporate level, it's the most effective because then there's absolutely no meetings, and it's not just sort of within one group or organisation.
Tom Ollerton 19:07
So one thing we've never tried it, what I love is the idea of doing a 10am start on a Monday, just, just acknowledges that you've had a weekend and you're like, Okay, well, just like, you know, you get to ease into the week, as opposed to, like, we've got a big call at 9am on Monday. But, you know, one can dream.
Christine Maguire 19:23
Yeah, I run a global organisation, so it's very hard time zone wise to organise those things very frequently. I'm on 7am calls with London or, you know, Singapore at night. So there's, it's, it's harder to do when you're not US based. But I like that practice as well.
Tom Ollerton 19:41
One day, one day. Well, look, we're at the end of the podcast now. Thank you. I feel we could chat about this all morning. But if someone wants to get in touch with you to talk about stillness or anything else we've talked about where's a good place, but crucially, what makes a message that you will reply to?
Christine Maguire 19:56
It's a great question. So LinkedIn. Um, Instagram, Christine Maguire, lots of ways, and I'm very passionate to talk about it and share my own experience, but also get other people's perspectives on what's working for them. You know, I think the main thing that that typically, I love to mentor and provide guidance and advice to people. So honestly, it's typically, if somebody needs something and they're reaching out and they they feel like I could be a helpful voice and ear for them. That's typically when I respond. I've actually had people send me notes that they wanted to talk to me post an article that I had had posted on LinkedIn about an experience that I had two years ago, going in on a retreat, and then they flipped it into business. So it was their way to sort of get me to answer a business call. Well, shells call, thinking I wanted, you know, a vendor, but, you know, I really believe in sort of paying it forward and helping share my experience to fuel other people.
Tom Ollerton 21:01
What a beautiful way to end it. Thank you so much.
Christine Maguire 21:04
Thank you.
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