Why Taylor Swift Is A Mastermind In Business and Leadership

Plus my personal Eras Tour experience in Paris

I was lucky enough to witness the musical and entertainment phenomenon that is Taylor Swift in person last month. Gertrude and I caught her concert in Paris, and as I pointed out in a brief LinkedIn recap, Swift demonstrated a true commitment to her craft that exceeded our already lofty expectations.

Naturally after such a monumental experience as this, I spent time reflecting on it, and I came to realize how Swift is truly a mastermind, not just when it comes to music, but from an overall business and leadership standpoint as well. This woman clearly has a solid understanding of how to create, market, and sell her product, along with leading a team and navigating a career in what is a pretty untraditional job.

Let’s dive into all this together, shall we?

The Taylor Swift Eras Tour Concert Experience

This is a bold statement, but seeing Swift perform felt like seeing The Beatles of our time. Obviously, the talent is there, and no matter what job or career someone chooses, having natural talent helps. But that only gets you so far. 

What sets Swift apart from other artists is the work she puts in behind the scenes. The consistency with which she releases new music speaks for itself. The effort behind planning and executing world tours is unreal. Everything she does is coordinated down to the last detail.

A generation of young women have grown up with Swift’s music as the soundtrack to their lives, and thus have shared their experiences together over the years. Swift has a natural ability to connect with people on a human level, both through her music and in person at her concerts. Many people, myself included, relate to her songs because of how personal they are. It’s this combination of entertainment with real-life messages that takes her music, and thus her business, to a higher level. 

It took her some time to mature and grow into who she is now, as a musician and leader. Swift is comfortable being herself, speaking her mind, telling the truth, and embracing her platform for good. As I touch on in my video series, Love Lionheartedly, Swift is truly using her unique gifts and sharing them with the world. With this foundation built, she has begun to shine in more ways and to a wider audience.

Taylor Swift’s Business and Leadership Strategies

Here’s where we talk about how Swift’s philosophies translate from pop culture to corporate culture. 

Despite being a solo artist, Swift runs her business as a Fortune 500 company, and one that receives constant attention from the public. She takes calculated risks to push the envelope, for herself and for the wider music industry. It’s not easy to balance external pressure and internal control, yet she seems to be doing it effortlessly these days.

In my career as a salesperson and CEO, I always strived to underpromise and overdeliver on every project and with every client. Swift certainly surprised and delighted us with her performance in Paris, just like any great service-oriented individual or company would hope to do.

Leadership, both corporate and otherwise, has evolved in recent years to fit the modern person who has different needs, wants, and motivations than people did in the past. I liked this paragraph from Chris Kay’s piece in Fast Company, titled “Where Have All The Good Leaders Gone,” which is worth a read.

“The modern leadership we aspire to has a feel and a human touch that is built for today’s interactions, capturing the energy and momentum of our new normal. Gone are the days of a stringently defined one-way leadership type, and hello to a new world order of fluid leadership where we, as inspiring management magpies, can pick and steal from all parts of the personal and professional lives that we admire, to build our own unique way of leading.”

This idea of taking pieces of leadership from various individuals, companies, and philosophies is key; no one leadership style is going to fit us perfectly, so it’s up to us to build our own and continue to adapt it. I think Swift has adopted this philosophy. She knows she’s only one person, and thus needs to motivate a large team around her to accomplish all of the goals she has for her business. There is a great nugget in Kay’s article about how she gave $100K bonuses to her tour’s equipment truck drivers. She did this to show appreciation for their hard work and to motivate the entire team to produce at a high level in the future, knowing they would be rewarded.

Bridging The Leadership Gap Between Business and Entertainment

Swift has become a role model to millions through her music. She is now starting to receive recognition for her savvy business and leadership skills, and rightfully so. There is intentionality and purpose behind everything she does, whether it be a song lyric or a business decision. She has the social-emotional intelligence to call all the right shots while staying true to her identity.

Swift’s career has not gone without controversy, but she has always stood behind her values and led with vulnerability, which I find brave and refreshing. She has a “why” behind her job, which is to inspire others to dream big and achieve their potential. She understands that this whole thing goes beyond just her, and has a real vision for the way she wants to run her “company.” Those who know me well will understand how strongly I connect with this concept! 

I was a fan of Taylor Swift the artist, now I’m a fan of Taylor Swift the businesswoman and leader as well.

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