Firstly, you need to aim beyond what you are capable of. You must develop a complete disregard for where your abilities end. Try to do the things that you’re incapable of. If you think you’re unable to work for the best company in its sphere, make it your aim. If you think you’re incapable of running a company, make that your aim. If you think you’re unable to be on the cover of Time magazine, make it your business to be there. Make your vision of where you want to be a reality. Nothing is impossible.

All of us want to be good at our jobs, but how good do we really want to be? Quite good. Good. Very Good. The best in our field. Or the best in the world? Talent helps, but it won’t take you as far as ambition. Everybody wants to be good, but not many are prepared to make the sacrifices it takes to be great. To many people, being nice in order to be liked is more important. There’s equal merit in that, but you must not confuse being good with being liked. Most people are looking for a solution, a way to become good. There is no instant solution, the only way to learn is through experience...

As a teenager, Victoria Beckham’s ambition was not just to be better than her mates or even a famous singer but to become a world brand. She not only dreamed about it, but wanted it enough to go about getting it. That in itself makes her different from most of us. It’s not how good she was that mattered, it’s how good she wanted to be. What is interesting in her quote is that she didn’t compare herself with George Michael or Mariah Carey, rather she saw the fame of Persil Automatic as her yardstick. Laugh at it as you may, it’s this highly original imagination that got her where she...

We are always waiting for the perfect brief from the perfect client. It almost never happens. You’re probably working on a job or project right now and saying, ‘This is boring, let’s just deal with it and get it over with. We’ll make the next one good.’ Whatever is on your desk right now, that’s the one. Make it the best you possibly can. It may not be great, but at least you’ll have the satisfaction of knowing you did the best you possibly could, and you may learn something from it. And you’re always free to do an alternative that does satisfy your creative standards. Good briefs...

When selling our ideas, we tend to overpromise in our enthusiasm for our creation. In our vision of how we hope it will be, we leave no room for failure. The result will probably be disappointing. Not disastrous, but a little less than expected. No one will say anything, they just won’t trust you quite as much next time. Basically you’ve blown it. If instead you undersell, pointing out the possible weaknesses and how to resolve them, should they occur, you are not only building a trusting relationship with your client but you’re able to solve any problems. And if it does turn out the way...