The Boys Club Will Never Be the Same
Lessons on getting to the top from Nina DiSesa, one of the “50 most powerful business women in
America"
According to The Three Tomatoes poll last week, 100% of you said, there’s still a “Boys
Club” out there. Which is sure to make Nina DiSesa’s new book, “Seducing the Boys Club, Uncensored Tactics
from a Woman at the Top”, a runaway best seller. And that subhead is not hyperbole, because this
is indeed a woman at the “top”.
As Chairman of McCann
Erickson New York, one of the largest and most creative ad agencies in the world, and one of Fortune Magazine's "50 most
powerful women in American business", Nina
DiSesa sounds pretty darn intimidating. But the reality is that while there are many adjectives to
describe Nina, like charming, warm, likeable, really funny, down to earth, and yes, seductive, intimidating isn’t one of them.
And whoever heard of seduction by intimidation anyway?
An Insider's Tale
So we sat with Nina DiSesa in her office one day recently to chat with her about the
book, her “S&M” (seduction and manipulation) tactics, and what the next generation of women
can learn from her experiences. And before you start rolling your eyes, let us say right now that you are going to love this
book. It is not one of those preachy, holier than thou “lessons from the top”, or the “my life in
advertising” written to impress mostly the writer. This is a fun read from one of the few women at the top of the
business world, who not only doesn’t mind saying that she’s used seduction and manipulation to get there, but is sharing what she has
learned with other women so they too can use these powerful tools to their advantage.
And those boys, whom she refers to as the “bad boys”, in this case were the creative guys at some of the biggest
ad agencies in the country, who traditionally did, and in most agencies still do, run the advertising boys club. Think Mad Men, and
you won’t be too far off, even in this century. Now granted, the advertising world has long accepted women into the game,
and for sure there are many women high up in the ranks of ad agencies, but it is rare indeed to see one who came out of the creative
ranks. Nina started as a copywriter, working her way up to Creative Director at more than one agency, and then in 1998 she was
named Chairman and Chief Creative Officer at McCann Erickson New York, an agency whose ad campaigns include “Priceless” for Master
Card.
“I’m a woman, I have cleaning products”
Those were the words uttered by Nina shortly after we entered her office. You see, her cozy round
conference table was covered with beautiful bouquets of congratulatory flowers which we helped her move to her window sill so we’d have a
place to sit and chat. And then Nina realized the table was full of water and flower drippings, so she went to her credenza to
fetch some cleaning products. But then we already knew about her cleaning abilities from the story in her book about how she got
her first husband, the “crabby actor”, who believed it was the woman’s job to clean, to actually do all the vacuuming.
“Crabby actor” was also a guy who gave new meaning to the “elevator pitch” when he ended their
marriage on the way down from their 6th floor apartment to the lobby (which had nothing to do with the vacuuming thing by the way). But
the end of that marriage was the trigger that started her career. This is just one of the many direct, honest, stories in
her book all told with great humor. And Nina is just as disarming in person, as are the stories in
her book. As she cleaned up the table, we were charmed by her non-stop chatter with the hint of a Brooklyn accent, and
dazzled by her great smile and cute dimples. Those “boys” didn’t have a chance.
It’s all about S&M (and a great sense of humor)
Nina makes no apologies for what she calls the “seduction and manipulation” of the guys – it’s the
secret to her success, along with a great sense of humor. Her explanation of “S&M” has nothing to do with sex, but
everything to do with women using their natural “seduction” traits, like nurturing, compassion, and listening, and combining them with
“guy traits”, like competitiveness, decisiveness, and combativeness, to “gently manipulate” guys in a way that gets them
to do what we want them to do, and respect and love us in the morning. She brings the art of seduction and manipulation in the
business world to life through her great stories, where she shares her failures, and her successes, and what she learned along the way, starting with
learning to appreciate men. As she says, “men like women who like them.”
“Screw the rules” - - Fewer than 2% of Fortune 1000 CEO’s are women
Nina wrote the book for women in their thirties who have the drive and desire to make it to the top.
It's time to "screw the rules" which were make up by the boys club. "Business is not a level playing field...you can ignore
this basic fact or you can use whatever you've got to overcome the inbalance. There's a double standard. It stinks, but it is there
nonetheless." And in addition to seducing the boys, she offers good solid advice on standing up for yourself, touting your
achievements, and learning to ask for what you want.
Certainly those of you tomatoes, who like us, have spent a lot of years in the ad agency world will love Nina’s
insider’s tale. But even those of you who have never stepped foot inside an ad agency, will find Seducing the Boys Club a funny, human and honest look at dealing with the boys club that exists
in every white shoe law firm, publishing house, academia, and you name it, corner of the corporate and professional world.
So buy a copy for yourself, your daughters, and all the other smart young women you know.
And speaking of the "uber Boys Club", how 'bout our Giants? Wow. What a Super Bowl that
was.
Here's to seduction, all the men we love, powerful women, and never, ever loosing your sense of humor.
‘til next week,
The Three
Tomatoes
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