DIANE TOMPKINS

Founding Partner, the Curious Company

Words of Wisdom: I think of the choices I have made less as off-ramping or going part- or flex-time, and more as rebalancing the responsibilities in my life to align with my values.

Diane spent the first 15 years of her career in advertising, working at some of the best and most demanding agencies in the world. She worked hard, played by the rules, and by the time she chose to leave in 2000, was an Associate Partner at Goodby, Silverstein & Partners (of ‘Got milk?’ fame). She had long been thinking about re-structuring her life but wasn’t sure how. Nor was she sure she was ready to leave the stimulation and recognition that she enjoyed at Goodby. On her return from a four-week journey to Bhutan she hit a series of bumps in the road—in the form of internal political conflicts at the agency. As often happens after traveling, she was able to see with fresh eyes the reality before her: that there was little support for her rewriting the rules to favor things like life balance and raising a family in a mindful way. So she left the agency and in 2001, joined forces with her best friend and business partner to help launch The Curious Company—a market research and brand strategy practice that specializes in non-traditional forms of qualitative research. She works full-time on a project basis, so she can control how much work she takes on at any one time (a skill she’s learned the hard way). And she can take time off when she needs or chooses to—as she did this summer, after her second child, a son, was born. She stated “My priority is my family and being a fully-present and engaged parent. Structuring my work as I now do lets me create a rhythm to my life that feels deeply supportive—literally and emotionally. And I love that my husband and I are setting an example for our children that life can be lived on one’s own terms. It’s taken years to come around to the simple truth of what matters most. But having found it, I wouldn’t have it any other way.” And as for that stimulation and recognition she feared losing at the agency? Her answer: “Any mother knows being a mom’s the hardest, most stimulating, and yes, rewarding job on the planet.”