We are currently reflecting on twenty five years of Fuzion! A full quarter of a century which went by in the blink of an eye…..

My “homework” as part of our 25th anniversary celebrations is to come up with my five top Fuzion learnings. I picked learnings that are personal to me and I hope others developing their careers, or starting their own business will find it useful.

As I reflect on 25 years of learnings, the business I started with a borrowed laptop in a bedsit in Tralee, has survived and thrived during downturns and even a global pandemic. We adapted to change and grew our expertise and the range of services. We moved from working from home, to offices and teams in Dublin and Cork, then adapting post pandemic to a very successful hybrid way of working for our team and our clients.

Fuzion has made a positive impact on so many organisations and individuals and it’s something I am very proud of. As I write this, overlooking Fastnet Lighthouse in our home in West Cork, I am living our ethos of ‘WinHappy’ and very thankful for everything Fuzion has given me over the past 25 years.

MY TOP FIVE LEARNINGS IN 25 YEARS OF FUZION

1. FIND A SUPPORTIVE LIFE PARTNER

I met my partner Greg, a few days after I registered Fuzion back in December 2000. Since the day I met Greg he has always had the strongest tenacity, ambition and vision for Fuzion  – so much so that in a short space of time, he gave up his fine pensionable job and joined me in the business. The success of Fuzion would not have been possible without Greg by my side – at home and at work.

If you are with someone who doesn’t support you in your career or your business, my advice would be to kick them to the curb and buy a dog, who will offer you unconditional love and support!

I came from a place where I was with the wrong person, who, looking back now, probably felt threatened by my idea of starting a business. On the flip side Greg always communicated to me how much he admired me as a business professional as well as loving me unconditionally. This has made the good times even better and the more challenging times easier to handle.

Whether you work with your life partner or not, having a positive partner to come home to can really help nurture a successful and happy professional life, knowing that there is always someone who has your back and will pick you up during challenging times.

2. EMBRACE CHANGE AS A POSITIVE

We have experienced great changes over the past 25 years, with the deep Celtic Tiger crash, the pandemic, advances in technology, and especially for our industry the digital communications explosion.  

We always try to find the positive in change, and even if this change is brought on by a crisis we always look for possible opportunities, whether it’s for a client or within our business.

For example, the pandemic was a scary time for all businesses, with lots of change. For Fuzion I think it made us grow up as a business when we had to adapt to a hybrid way of working. We put good systems in place around mentoring, inductions, team days, working from home policies. Over five and a half years on, it’s made for a better work life balance for everyone in the team and there have been significant efficiencies. Another benefit of this change is that it has enabled us to attract some really great people who are thriving in this flexible working environment.

3. LOOK FOR RADIATORS AND AVOID DRAINS

Try to surround yourself with positive people, people who radiate positivity, who will have your back when you need it and who leave you with a feeling of warmth.

People who go to the negative as their position of choice – I call them drains as they can suck the life out of an individual, a project, a team.

Sometimes we are stuck with drains as we can’t often choose who we work with, or often people don’t reveal themselves as drains until they have their feet firmly under the table!

With the unavoidable drains, my advice would be to drown them with positivity – there’s nothing they hate more – just don’t be swallowed down their drain of negativity…..

4. GET THE SMALL THINGS RIGHT

Whether you are just starting in your career or running your own business, getting the small things right from the very beginning and throughout a project, helps you stay organised and focussed and leaves you more mental space for the big things when you need that precious time.

It also shows colleagues, clients and prospects that you are a trusted resource and partner to work alongside.

5. OWN YOUR MISTAKES

Everyone makes mistakes, from the leader of the country to a new intern –  it’s how we deal with them that defines what type of person we are. 

My final lesson from all my years working, not just with my own business, is to own your mistakes. If you are in the wrong, admit it, take learnings from it, make amends if that is needed and move on.

There’s nothing worse than trying to hide a mistake, but there is something really refreshing about taking responsibility for the mistake. It shows great courage, maturity and integrity.

Of course, there have been so many other learnings, and I promise you that not a day goes by without a new one!

I hope you have found this Top 5 list very useful and I would love to hear what your Top 5 are.

Deirdre 

Deirdre Waldron is the founder of Fuzion, a brand communications agency in Ireland.