Next month, Facebook's COO Sheryl Sandberg will publish her book, Lean In. Among other things, it’s been reported that Sandberg believes that, as women, we hold ourselves back by lacking self-confidence, not raising our hands and pulling back when we should be leaning in.

Another book, Heather McGregor's Mrs Moneypenny’s Careers Advice for Ambitious Women—released in 2012 and shared with me by Cilla Snowball, group chairman and group CEO of AMV BBDO in London—devotes an entire chapter to confidence, specifically how in an effort to please, women often lack the basic confidence to say no.

And then there's the title that stopped me in my tracks while traveling through an airport in 2008: Linda Babcock’s Women Don’t Ask. These books have been on my mind lately in the aftermath of what seems like endless articles and commentaries over the past year, debating the issue of "Can women have it all?" and the unfairness, the challenges, and ultimately, the compromises women have to make to be successful in life.

My hope is that we can shift the focus away from "having it all" and toward the more important dialogue of what kind of leaders do we want to be. I would like to stop debating "Are we doing this right?" and instead start doing what is needed in our business to create change; to create environments where people do not continuously question themselves or their successes. We should aim to become leaders who instill confidence and celebrate the contributions we are making to our businesses and stop beating ourselves up for what we may or may not be able to do.

I have carried the belief for some time that freedom and confidence are the essential elements needed to inspire success. Freedom and confidence can relieve us of the stress and tension we face when we set balance as our goal and can achieve for us the kind of respect we deserve as leaders within our respective industries and communities.

Enhanced freedom certainly helps with balance between personal and professional time. We absolutely no longer need to be chained to our desks to get our jobs done.

In fact, because of technology, we now have more freedom than ever (I'm actually one of those individuals who finds the smartphone to be liberating). Those who work with and for me know they don’t ever need to tell me that they have a parent/teacher conference or a doctor’s appointment for one of their children. They don’t ever need to worry about attending an important event. They simply know what they are accountable for; how and when they choose to get their work done is up to them. All we should ever really care about are the end results.
As for confidence, I've learned that if you foster empowerment, personal pride flourishes and guilt and worry diminish. We live and work in a critical, fast-paced and transforming media environment that is often too quick to judge, label and move on.

We forget how important instilling a bold ethos in those on our teams and around us can be. Nothing drives success more than confidence, and nothing builds confidence more than having success. We need to find ways to better empower the women around us and give them the opportunities to create their own wins. Small wins beget bigger wins, which in turn beget long-term success and sets the example for others to follow.

I also strongly believe we have to really love what we do because if we don't, those around us won’t either. Negativity is incredibly contagious and will destroy confidence.

This year, and going forward, we have the opportunity to redefine and build women's influence in the workplace and, as a result, create, attract and retain the best talent in the business. No doubt rivals on Wall Street and in Silicon Valley and Alley understand this as well and are starting to adjust their processes and philosophies accordingly.

So, just as Cilla was kind enough to share Mrs Moneypenny's Careers Advice for Ambitious Women with me, I plan to review Sheryl Sandberg’s book when it comes out and share copies with the female leaders around me as we continue to conquer our own individual challenges, and work together to build ourselves up.

Let's lean in, stop asking how to have it all and start asking for what we need to succeed.

SIMON BOND
Chief marketing officer, BBDO and Proximity Worldwide
Age: 37
@bond006

After spending more than a dozen years at BBDO and clocking time at the agency's Paris, Singapore, Dubai and Japan offices, Simon Bond has reached the upper rungs of the Omnicom Group network. His ascent has been propelled by his work bolstering the agency's digital operations.

Through an innovation and thought-leadership initiative, he was responsible for setting up its "Digital Lab," in which staff and BBDO clients are instructed on cutting-edge technologies and the ways to capture emerging-marketing opportunities.

Now based in New York, Mr. Bond is considered one of the few leaders who can help sketch BBDO's future. But when he's not plotting the agency's path forward, the motorbike enthusiast can be found hitting the road in far-flung locales and traveling to exotic destinations.

Did you know? His next passport stamp: "Uganda -- to see the gorillas in the wild."

MANILA, JANUARY 28, 2013 - (UPDATED) Despite the onslaught of digital campaigns, there is no shortage of creativity in print. And to celebrate the best of print advertising, the 3rd Tinta Awards was held on Friday, January 25, 2013 at the Buddha Bar.

The verdict has been given and BBDO Guerrero emerged as the big winner. The creative shop was recognized as the Tinta Awards Agency of the Year, bringing home two Grand Prix, two Golds, one Silver and one Bronze. TBWA\Santiago Mangada Puno comes in at second in agency rankings, while Ace Saatchi & Saatchi tails at third.

The awards show, organized by the United Print Media Group (UPMG), gave the highest accolade to BBDO Guerrero’s ‘Closed Eyes’ print campaign for the Union Journalists of the Philippines. The campaign caused quite a stir when an issue of the Philippine Daily Inquirer in November 2011 showed pictures of their columnists with closed eyes, an act of remembrance of the gruesome Maguindanao massacre which saw 57 people, 33 of them journalists, murdered.

The campaign also won a Gold in the Integrated Print Campaign category.

A second Grand Prix went to another BBDO Guerrero campaign in recognition of its single campaign print ad for Bayer Philippines entitled ‘Strike’. The print campaign graphically illustrates how a bad headache feels like and how Saridon, a brand of pain relievers, can help relieve the headaches.

The other print executions for Saridon were Gold Tinta magnets. The ‘Persistent Headaches’ campaign garnered three Golds in the consumer campaign category.

One-third of the ‘Persistent Headaches’ campaign, ‘Hex’, stood out in the Consumer Single Print Out category as it took home a Silver Tinta. ‘Repair’, still a part of the campaign, was awarded the Bronze Tinta in the Consumer Single Print Out category.

Another big winner that nights is P&G Philippines which went home with the most-coveted Advertiser of the Year award. P&G's print campaigns, by Ace Saatchi & Saatchi, won two Bronzes and three Silvers.

Gold Tintas

The ‘Sea Creatures - Shark’ campaign by Leo Burnett Manila for WWF bagged Gold in the Craft-Art Direction category.

Additional metals were awarded to Leo Burnett Manila in the Craft-Art Direction category. Their Samurai campaigns, ‘Xerox Man’ and ‘Cook’, won two Silver Tintas while the Samurai Hero series was recognized in the Consumer-Campaign category with two more Bronze Tintas for the Coca-Cola Export Corporation campaign.

DDB Philippines’ Pacquiao Positive campaigns were a blockbuster hit, garnering two Golds and one Bronze. The Pacquiao Positive False Covers were recognized for Special Print Media Execution, winning a Gold and the Integrated campaign for Pepsico International’s Sting Power Pacq Energy Drink garnered Gold.

In the same category, Draftfcb Manila’s ‘Help Japan’ campaign for the Philippine Red Cross took home Gold. Seven A.D.’s ‘25th Anniversary’ ad for Medicard Philippines took Gold in the Special Print Media Execution.

Commenting on the relevance of print, UPMG chairman and adobo magazine editor-in-chief Angel Guerrero said, “Print still remains creatively strong.”

Leo Burnett Manila executive creative director Raoul Panes backed up this statement, saying, “If you want to immortalize something, print is the way to go.”

The complete list of winners of the 3rd UPMG Tinta Awards:

GRAND PRIX - Special Print Media Execution
BBDO Guerrero, Union Journalists of the Philippines - 'Closed Eyes'

GRAND PRIX - Single Campaign
BBDO Guerrero, Bayer Philippines - 'Strike'

GOLD - Special Print Media Execution
DDB Philippines, Pepsico Int'l - 'Pacquiao Positive False Covers (3 Series)
Seven A.D., Medicard Phils - '25th Anniversary Ad'

GOLD - Integrated Print Campaign
DDB Philippines, Pepsico Int'l - 'Pacquiao Positive (4 Series)
BBDO Guerrero, Union Journalists of the Philippines - 'Closed Eyes'
Draftfcb Manila, Philippine Red Cross - 'Help Japan'

GOLD - Consumer - Campaign
BBDO Guerrero, Bayer Philippines - 'Persistent Headaches ("Hex", "Repair", "Strike")'

SILVER - Single Print Out
BBDO Guerrero, Bayer Philippines - 'Hex'
Ace Saatchi & Saatchi, Procter & Gamble - 'Pick Nose - Safeguard Soap'
Ace Saatchi & Saatchi, Procter & Gamble - 'Stuck toe - Safeguard Soap'

BRONZE - Consumer - Single Print Out
TBWA\SMP, Suyen Corporation - 'Gecko'
TBWA\SMP, Pacific Paint (Boysen) Philippines - 'Eel'
JWT Manila, Johnson & Johnson and Bactidol - 'Non Stop Karaoke ("Wake Me Up Before You Go Go On Girl", "Closer You and I Don't Wanna Be")'
BBDO Guerrero, Bayer Philippines - 'Repair'
Ace Saatchi & Saatchi, Procter & Gamble - 'Safeguard Soap ("Tear Wipe", "Eat")' and 'Fiesta (Balloon Heads)' 

Colenso has continued on its winning streak, and has been named YoungGuns International 2012 Advertising Agency of the Year. The Auckland-based agency won four awards in total – one Gold Bullet, two Silvers and a Bronze – as well as having nine finalist entries.

The YoungGuns recognise the best young (aged under 30 years) talent in the advertising and communications industry. Jae Morrison was awarded the Gold Bullet in the Best Use of a Single Channel category, and a Silver in Television/Cinema for the Donation Glasses campaign for Pedigree. Simon Vicars and James Tucker won a Silver Bullet in the Up To and Including 3 Ex category for Sorry about the Twigs, folks campaign for Monteith’s, as well as winninga Bronze in the Newspaper Campaigns category for Bevan, Idiot, Sean for DB Breweries.

“I’m thrilled for the guys. Jae, Simon and James are exceptionally talented
and bring a truckload of great ideas and creativity to the agency,” says Nick Worthington, Colenso BBDO’s Creative Chairman. “We like to think we have an unfair share of the talent locally and internationally. Being named
YoungGuns 2012 Advertising Agency of the Year confirms our
suspicion that we have some of the best young minds in the
world working with us.”

Graeme Clarke, Lachlan Palmer and Joel Little were also finalists for their work on campaigns such as the V Motion Project for Frucor, The Art of Money for BNZ and Books shape you for the New Zealand Book Council.

Colenso YoungGun Awards and Finalists:

Gold –
Jae Morrison, Donation Glasses for Pedigree
– Best Use of a Single Channel

Silver –
Jae Morrison, Donation Glasses for Pedigree
– Television/Cinema
Silver – Simon
Vicars and James Tucker, Sorry about the Twigs, folks
for Monteith’s – Up To and Including 3 Ex

Bronze – Simon Vicars and James
Tucker, Bevan, Idiot, Sean for DB Breweries –
Newspaper Campaigns
Finalist – Simon
Vicars and James Tucker, No one will know except you
for Off Wax Bar – Radio Campaigns
Finalist –
Simon Vicars and James Tucker, The wine is over
for DB Breweries – Integrated
Campaigns
Finalist – Simon Vicars and
James Tucker, Sorry about the Twigs, folks for
Monteith’s – Best PR led Integrated
Campaign
Finalist – Simon Vicars and
James Tucker, Sorry about the Twigs, folks for
Monteith’s – Integrated Campaigns
Finalist
– Graeme Clarke and Lachlan Palmer Hubbard, V
Motion Project for Frucor – Technology
Innovation
Finalist – Graeme Clarke
and Lachlan Palmer Hubbard, V Motion Project for
Frucor – Integrated Campaign
Finalist –
Graeme Clarke and Lachlan Palmer Hubbard, The
Art of Money for BNZ – Copywriting
Campaigns
Finalist – Lachlan Palmer
Hubbard, Books shape you for the New Zealand Book
Council – Sound Design
Finalist –
Joel Little, V Motion Project for Frucor – Music
Composition