"Maybe – you need to have the spirit and the guile to go in. Maybe you're born with that. But the skills to succeed, I believe you can learn that along the way."
Tony Hardy is the Founder and Director of Canny Creative, a branding, website, and marketing agency that helps companies around the world increase their brand awareness, website traffic, and in turn, sales or leads. Before founding Canny in his bedroom, Tony worked for a supermarket and decided he absolutely couldn’t spend his whole career working for anyone else. So with no experience, and fresh out of University, he founded Canny Creative and started the process of realizing his dream, to run and grow an international design agency.
In addition to business, Tony enjoys spending time with his family, traveling, playing drums, and watching wrestling.
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Table of Contents
Thank you so much for doing this with us! Can you tell us a story about what brought you to this specific career path?
Tony Hardy: I always wanted to run an agency. It just appealed to me from being young. Traveling, seeing clients all over the world, awesome office spaces, working with Great Brands and people from every corner of the planet. What wasn’t to like? The idea isn’t anything new. Agencies have existed for years. But we wanted to attack it from a new angle.
I started Canny Creative straight out of University. Common industry knowledge (or just common sense really) dictates that you can’t just go launching an agency without any experience. But;
I’ve never been one for doing things the traditional way. And I knew I could. And, I knew by doing it without any preconceived notions of how agencies should and shouldn’t function, I could be guided by our clients, and design our approach around them.
So that’s exactly what I did.
Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story?
Tony Hardy: I’m super grateful towards several key members of my family. My Mam and Dad – they ran a roofing company for years and years, so I grew up around self-employed people, and that gave me the courage to step out on my own. And, my Grandad – who ran a sweet stall on a market for years, and then moved into running a sweet shop in a local seaside town.
Being around a family who all had the ambition to work for themselves, definitely gave me the confidence to step out on my own. I heard about financials, taxes, and everything that comes with running a business around the dinner table. I think that definitely had a huge influence on my decision!
What are the most common mistakes you see entrepreneurs make and what would you suggest they do?
Tony Hardy: I think entrepreneurs try to do everything. They watch GaryVee on YouTube (I also love GaryVee) – and see that he’s doing everything, everywhere. Speaking, writing, podcasting, filming, talking, social mediating (is that a thing!?) and then beat themselves up when they can’t. What they always seem to forget is that he’s got a massive team around him, helping him. I think in a recent interview it was 10-20 people he works with. Which is huge!
When you’re starting out, I think it’s important to pick something you’re good at, understand, and enjoy, then build up from there!
Is there a particular podcast you listened to, or business thought leader that you find helpful while maneuvering this pandemic?
Tony Hardy: I think the pandemic shifted the world, and shifted how we think about doing business. But, I find myself listening to my regular podcasts – it reminds me that things are changing, and will go back to normal! Regularly I listen to;
- GaryVee
- How I Built This
- How to Win
Just hearing from others, how they’re navigating the world, and what they’re doing as things return to normal, keeps me thinking and keeps the wheels turning!
In your opinion, what makes your company stand out from the competition?
Tony Hardy: Lots of agencies are purely transactional, they don’t actually care, as long as you keep topping up their bank account. And sure, money pays the bills, makes the world go around, etc. But when people work with Canny, they always say “Wow, it’s like you’re actually a part of our business. Nobody else thinks or acts like this!”
And I think it’s that sort of partnership approach to our work that has really worked to our advantage. It’s not often we lose clients, and we’re always adding more. Being proactive, being responsive, and being on top of things are the 3 things I find help drive Canny forward!
You are a successful business leader. Which three character traits do you think were most instrumental to your success?
Tony Hardy: I hate looking at myself in the mirror, so this question is particularly difficult to answer. But, I think;
- Patience – I try to let things play out, and let things reach a natural conclusion. Sometimes just seeing something through, even if it’s not happening fast enough, is the best way to get a result.
- Understanding – I always look at things from both sides of the coin. Being able to see and think about other people’s views is a bonus when you end up in a sticky situation.
- Vision – having a vision of where you want to go and what you want to achieve always keeps you looking at and working towards that North Star.
Phew. Glad that one’s over!
Being a CEO of the company, do you think that your personal brand reflects your company’s values?
Tony Hardy: I do think it’s important that a CEO’s personal brand reflects through to the company. But, I do have to say, my personal brand is shocking.
I’ve been so busy building the company and growing things out, that I haven’t let my feet hit the ground with my personal brand. I never wanted to have a big personal brand, but the bigger we get, the more important I think it is! It’s definitely on my watchlist for the very near future.
How do you monitor if the people in your department are performing at their best?
Tony Hardy: We talk. And we talk a lot. We’re a super sociable bunch, and honestly, it just comes up! To get into the real nitty-gritty, we use time tracking and task management software (Toggl and Monday.com) respectively.
And of course, we hear from our clients too. We know if there’s something going on, but being open and transparent, with as much dialogue as possible helps get us there.
Do you think entrepreneurship is something that you’re born with or something that you can learn along the way?
Tony Hardy: I think you can learn things along the way.
When I was younger, I wanted to design. And design. And design. I went to college and university, and that’s what my degree is in. As I grew and built Canny Creative, my love for marketing came to the forefront. It’s not something I knew or had a qualification in, but I’ve evolved into that role.
Maybe – you need to have the spirit and the guile to go in. Maybe you’re born with that. But the skills to succeed, I believe you can learn that along the way.
What’s your favorite “leadership” quote and how has it affected the way you implement your leadership style?
Tony Hardy: “Never choose to be a hero because heroes die uncomfortable deaths.” – Dave Chappelle
Yeah, I know, it’s a strange quote to reference a comedian. But, this quote hits the nail on the head for me. If you’re out there, shouting about how great you are, telling everyone you’re the best, you can save the baby from the burning building, or get the 10x their results – you should be prepared for the comedown. You can’t declare yourself a hero.
You can become a hero, by doing all of those things. Putting your money where your mouth is. But if Superman lets that baby plummet, you can bet he won’t be Superman for much longer.
Mike Weiss, VIP Contributor to ValiantCEO and the host of this interview would like to thank Tony Hardy for taking the time to do this interview and share his knowledge and experience with our readers.
If you would like to get in touch with Tony Hardy or his company, you can do it through his – Linkedin Page
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