Next up is Jo Bird! If you’ve been to FLOW before, you’ve probably seen her –either in the audience, cheering others on, or up on stage with a mic in hand (see her past session here from FLOW: Europe 2024). And if you’ve scrolled LinkedIn at any point in the last year, chances are Jo’s posts have stopped you mid-scroll–yes, they're that good.
But beyond the FLOW Stages and the LinkedIn limelight, Jo is an award-winning Creative Director, brand builder, and TEDx speaker who knows how to turn businesses into brands people obsess over. She’s spent the past decade shaping stories and campaigns for names like Gymshark and Lounge Underwear, balancing bold creative with real business impact.
Backed by over 90,000 followers on LinkedIn now, Jo proves through every post and project that confidence is the ultimate creative superpower.
So, what did we learn from Jo’s episode? Let’s dive in.
Takeaway 1: Personal Branding Starts Now
You don’t need to quit your job to start building your personal brand. In fact, Jo began while she was working at Gymshark, and it made her stand out both inside and outside the company.
“Start whenever is my advice. You do not need to be in a certain circumstance to build your personal brand.” –Jo Bird
Her point is simple but powerful: waiting for the “perfect” time means you’ll never start. Personal branding doesn’t need to be a grand master plan; it can be as small as one LinkedIn post a week or an hour on a Sunday to batch your ideas. Confidence builds from action, not the other way around. And don’t forget, the best time to start is today, not “someday”!
Takeaway 2: Talent Isn’t Enough Without a Voice
Being the most creative person in the room won’t matter if no one hears you. Jo knows this firsthand; she went from being the shy girl who went bright red in meetings to someone who can command a stage.
“It’s not enough to just be talented. There are so many talented people in the world that do not get their time because they cannot vocalize or communicate who they are and what they do.” –Jo Bird
The advice: treat speaking up like any other skill — practice it, polish it, and start small.
For Jo, that started with work presentations over Zoom during COVID, which she would record and watch back, analyzing her pauses, tone, and body language. From there, she tested herself at local meetup groups where “it doesn’t matter if you’re a bit rubbish” because the crowd is friendly. Each step built confidence until the stage no longer felt like a threat but an opportunity.
That’s the kind of obsession you have to have if you want to get good at something. Be okay with obsessing over yourself and really polishing yourself. – Jo Bird
Now, whether it’s a boardroom or a keynote, Jo sees speaking as part of her creative toolkit. The lesson: creativity is powerful, but only if you give it a voice…and the courage to use it!
Takeaway 3: Creativity Needs Conviction to Cut Through
In the corporate world, ideas often get watered down through “death by committee.” Jo says that the most memorable work comes when people back their vision with conviction.
“You get this death by committee culture… every idea you pitch is like, can we Frankenstein the ideas together? That’s my worst nightmare.” –Jo Bird
It’s a familiar story: too many voices in the room, too much compromise, and the end result is work that looks and feels like everything else. Jo sees this as one of the biggest reasons for the “sea of sameness” in e-commerce and marketing today.
Instead of blending in, she points to brands like Liquid Death, a killer case of what happens when a single, unapologetic creative vision refuses to be watered down. The lesson is clear: bravery beats consensus. Creativity that cuts through doesn’t come from compromise but from people and teams willing to stand behind one strong idea.
And while not every brand can afford to be radical, every creative can learn from that mindset. Whether you’re pitching a campaign or defending a concept in a meeting, the work that truly resonates is the work that’s carried forward with clarity and conviction.
From personal branding to public speaking, from protecting ideas to reframing creativity in a business context, Jo’s episode is packed with lessons for anyone navigating today’s noisy world.
Connect with Jo on LinkedIn and catch the full episode on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.