Adam Jacobs helps kids’ biggest dreams come true. As the managing director of Australia’s longest running talent agency, Bubblegum Casting, he assists babies, children, and teen talent land the opportunities that they dream of. Alongside his own work, he helps these young dreamers learn the value of creativity, optimism, and hard work: the very same values that he’s learned while building up his businesses. 

Jacobs took over Bubblegum Casting when it was a failing business. His late sister had been one of their reigning stars, and when a tragic accident took her life on his birthday, he committed to fulfilling her legacy by revitalizing the company. In addition to saving the business, he’s grown it to enormous heights, working with Australia’s largest and most credible brands and media companies.

Throughout the process, he’s learned many valuable lessons about revitalizing a failing business, and his own lessons correspond with what he helps his young talent to understand in their dream seeking endeavors.

1 The power of creativity. 

“I always tell parents that encouraging their children’s ingenuity is what will help them to succeed,” Jacobs shared. “We all have unique ideas and visions - this is what helps us stand out!” For Jacobs, his own creativity was unleashed in his approach to growing his business empire. He recently acquired several new businesses that all relate to one another: in addition to Bubblegum Casting, he now owns Hunter Talent, children’s clothing brand Byron Babies, and a photography studio.

Furthermore, recuperating a failing business required creative ideas for new processes and ways to make money quickly. “I believe that creativity powers success - I’ve used it in my own business achievements, and I tell talent to harness it for their auditions and otherwise,” Jacobs explained.

2 The power of optimism. 

The very nature of recuperating a failing business requires optimism, which Jacobs simply defines as “being able to think positively when facing challenges.” This is exactly what Jacob did when he took over Bubblegum. The business wasn’t doing well at all, but he was able to think positively about how to bring it back on the right track and grow from there. A combination of his optimism and his creativity helped him to identify new business growth opportunities that have taken Bubblegum Casting to the heights it has now achieved.

“I specifically tell young talent to believe that everything will ultimately work out to their advantage. This mindset takes practice, but can help with the confidence necessary to achieve your goals,” said Jacobs. “Optimism is how you keep going even when you’re not positive something is going to work out, which is the true nature of entrepreneurship.”

3 The power of hard work. 

Last but certainly not least, hard work is a value that Jacobs encourages parents to instill in the talent from the get-go. “If someone believes that success will just fall into their lap, they won’t have the motivation to work hard,” Jacobs explained. “Specifically, I tell talent that they should never stop polishing their skills. No matter how ‘talented’ you are, the ones who really succeed combine their talent with hard work.”

Jacobs reflected on the hard work that helped him get to where he is today. “It wasn’t easy to take over a failing business and to grow it, or to acquire any of my other businesses. I had to get serious about taking out any time-wasting habits: the same advice that I tell young talent. This enabled me to narrowly focus on the businesses and to bring them to success.”

It’s important to Jacobs to live these values and demonstrate to the young talent at Bubblegum Casting that the same values are required in practicing for and attending auditions.