Three years into the advertising industry, Nicole Cheah already understands a truth many only arrive at much later — great work rarely succeeds on craft alone. It succeeds, or fails, on people.
Now a senior account executive, her trial by fire came during her internship when she was placed in a company known for its relentless pace.
“You wouldn’t imagine how many times I cried in the office toilet alone,” she laughs. “But all of this is just a growing curve. Slowly, I learned how to manage timelines better, how to talk to clients, and how to manage my team.”
Her early years gave Nicole exposure to one of the industry’s most underappreciated skills: navigating personalities.
“Creative people have a lot of different personalities,” she observes. “Artists tend to be more outgoing and vibrant, while copywriters can be a little more introverted. I need to suit different personalities if I want to build better relationships with my team.”
This people-first mindset is central to her role. When asked what she would like to see done better in the industry, her solution is not structural, but human. “I think more understanding would help everybody. Just be kind to one another,” she says.
Listen to her story in the latest episode of The NexGen Show, a Sunday evening podcast hosted by Malaysian advertising veteran Prof. Harmandar Singh.
New episodes every Sunday, 7PM on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and YouTube.
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