I love what I do for a living... It's a very happy thing to get paid to learn something new, and to have a job that requires it on a daily basis. Every new brief, every new assignment is an open opportunity to ask questions and discover new information that will inform the path you choose from the infinite number of possible creative solutions to a given problem. I have a real passion for design, and I really don't think there should be distinctions or exceptions for advertising. The clients and assignments I've had over the years seemed to call for a certain restraint in look and feel and tone and manner that I understand and respect.
New business is a favorite, and something I've done a fair amount of. There is usually a steep learning curve in understanding the prospective client, then a frenzy of learning about what people think about their products or services, and then the challenge of reducing that great big pile of information to something presentable and engaging - whether it's a campaign or a strategic plan. Unlike a lot of creatives, I like powerpoint. Sure, in the wrong hands, it's a soul-crushing nightmare - but if it's considered and well designed it can be a very effective tool. If you really push it, it can be like performance art.
I really enjoy building relationships with clients. I feel that it's much better to have a conversation with someone than make a presentation to someone. It really helps to get to know their business and their expectations and hopes and dreams and to guide them gently back to reason, if necessary. Once most clients come to understand that you actually care, it makes selling good work so much easier.
Over the years, I've had the pleasure of working in a variety of creative roles, from fashion and design, to interior design and commercial production. I've done a lot of work across a lot of related disciplines and everything informs everything else. My hope is for an assignment or a role that allows me to use the enormous amount of odd and useful stuff I've learned on a regular basis.
If you're coming to this after you've seen my work, I want to assure you that I also have a sense of humor, and am regularly humbled and awed by the developing minds of my daughters and their innate sense of play and creativity. It's cool. I used to take a lot of pictures of things, now I take a lot of pictures of them. I have a deep interest in the world around us - the built environment, technology, infrastructure and popular culture and I read a lot about that. For fun, if you can imagine.
When my friends in high school were making hamburgers or bagging groceries, I worked at a nuclear power plant. Really.
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