PALM SPRINGS, Calif.—Musa Tariq has made marketer moves from Apple to Ford. But soon after he became the youngest ever Chief Brand Officer of Ford, he realized the culture wasn’t for him.
Some might stay and stick it out or wait for change. Tariq left, as noted in this extremely popular episode of CMO Moves from June 2018. More than a year later onstage at Brandweek, he shared the eye-opening advice that helped with the transition. He took the time to explore white space. Then, he went on in search of his North Star. He wanted to fuel his spark with marketing, interning with Emily Weiss at Glossier and even a fishmonger. And, he mentored a thousand people in six months to round out the transitional chapter.
“To be honest, we have so much choice in our lives today,” Tariq told the audience. “Anyone of us can go off and do something different.”
Eventually, he landed happily as Head of Marketing, Airbnb Experiences—but only after having lived the product by taking paper marbling, pottery and dumpling classes which made him feel like a better person.
Dive deeper into this can’t-miss episode on his inspiring career journey:
