Leading from Within
Catherine Lawson
As someone who started his career as a horoscope writer for a women’s magazine at the age of 17, and went on to co-found a multi-million-pound media company, Mike Soutar is the very embodiment of self-leadership. At the recent Ayrshire Chamber of Commerce Annual Dinner at Trump Turnberry, Mike delivered a keynote speech in which he shared anecdotes from his illustrious career, and insights from his upcoming book, Next Gen CEO: 60 Lessons for Leaders in an Uncertain World, due to be published by Pan MacMillan on 4th June. Though perhaps best known as one of Sir Alan Sugar’s formidable interviewers on The Apprentice, it’s Mike’s accomplishments as an entrepreneur, business advisor, and portfolio director that have earned him such a stellar reputation as a trusted voice in the world of business.
When we sit down to talk following the Turnberry event, we delve into what it takes to succeed as a leader in a highly competitive and fast-changing world.
“In my book I talk about the five sections of leadership. The central starting section is self-leadership, then it moves to people and team leadership, then organisational leadership, then market leadership, and then finally, to thought leadership. So in my definition, leadership is something which radiates outwards. You have to start with yourself. It has to be a self-centred process… If you’re not able to have that discipline and rigour yourself, the wheels will fall off really quickly.”
You only need to look at Mike’s early experiences in the editorial offices of DC Thomson in Dundee, to see what self-leadership looks like, and to understand why that internal drive is central to sustaining successful growth over time.
‘‘I had just turned 17 and I was supposed to be studying for my Highers, but instead I went leafing through the job adverts in The Courier and in amongst all the ads for the forestry commission and so on, was one for DC Thomson, and so I applied, got offered the job, and accepted it. I was determined to get that gig, because as soon as I walked in for my first interview, I thought, I belong here.”
By the time he was 23, Mike had moved to London and was editor of Smash Hits (the youngest editor in that company’s history), leading a large team and building the skills needed along the way. Though he reflects on how that promotion happened almost by accident, being in the right place at the right time, it proved to be a pivotal moment in his career; the moment which gave him the opportunity to lead.
“I learned very quickly at that point. People had a horrendous work-life balance. I gave them their lives back within two to three months, and I had the respect of everybody on the team, because rather than just talking about it, I did it, and I did it in a focused way. I was focused on their needs as a team, and on the needs of our customers as readers. I was also laser-focused on looking at ways to create wins that would combine both of those things. That was the point where I thought, okay, I might have a future as a leader.”
For Mike, the hook into the world of work was the purposeful environment and the industrious energy of the editorial offices. Although he had been academic at school, anything which lacked a specific purpose failed to motivate him and it’s an issue which we go on to discuss more widely. I ask him, with all that he has seen and the countless interviews he has conducted, what he thinks the system could do to better prepare school leavers for employment.
“I think if you could engage young people in the making and spending of money in a way which is relevant that would be helpful – so they can make sense of a simple set of accounts or a balance sheet – the fundamental foundation stone for success in business. And of course, leadership skills are incredibly important… As a subject, leadership is inspiring. If you teach numeracy and leadership, it gives them the tools to be able to go out and implement those things as soon as they leave education and move into work.”
It’s clear as we talk that Mike’s commitment to personal and professional learning, constantly honing the skills needed to lead with conviction and supporting others to do the same, is at the heart of his own success.
“We’re not born leaders. There are things you like doing and things you don’t like doing, and maybe some of that comes with your DNA, but you can make yourself anything you want to be. I think nurture, practice, honing skills… that’s 100% the way to go. I have a lifelong commitment to putting myself into uncomfortable situations and learning, and that’s either learning from mistakes, and I’ve made plenty of those, or that’s to do with structured learning.”
Being able to honestly reflect on mistakes made is something which Mike looks for when interviewing candidates – a strength which shows glimmers of that all-important sense of self-leadership.
“People who fail, embrace the failure, and learn from it, are the most backable people. They’re the people most likely to be successful next time, because they’ve made a mistake.”
As Mike goes on to explain, those who have an accurate sense of themselves and what they want to do (even if they don’t have all the answers), are usually the ones who stand out from the crowd. And for those struggling to find all the answers, and decide what it is they want to do, his advice is simple:
“Do something that gets you out of bed in the morning. Having a successful business, being rich, making money… those things don’t do it. What gets you out of bed is a noble purpose – the knowledge that you’re involved in something that makes the world, or society, or your community, a better place. And if you don’t know exactly where to start let me stress this: it doesn’t matter where you start, you just need to start. After all, I’m not writing horoscopes anymore…”
