WHIP – Junior - Celebrating life at the bottom

Apr 04, 11

The Monday Morning Whip // 116

Some simple advice from Stan. (http://branddna NULL.blogspot NULL.com)

I’m rambled many times on Monday mornings about the importance of your folio.

Today I’m going to let you in on a little secret – What you put in your folio isn’t the key to success.

Yes you read that right.

You see what you leave out of your folio is just as important (if not more so) than what you put in it.

So when you get a moment, flick slowly through your work and if there’s a piece that’s good but not as good as the rest, ditch it.

Once you have done this you should have a folio of excellent ideas.

Simple, really.

Mar 28, 11

The Monday Morning WHIP // 115

A famous book (http://en NULL.wikipedia NULL.org/wiki/Catch-22) started this well known ‘logical conundrum’, and this week, one of these situations has got Stan (http://branddna NULL.blogspot NULL.com) stumped.

Over the last few months, I was looking for a copywriter to join my team.

As you can imagine I looked at the lot of folios before finding right person

What I want to talk to you about today, is something I think you need to think about in regard to your hunt for a creative position.

Putting your folio online.

You see I can’t decide whether or not it’s actually a good idea.

Confused?

So am I.

You see most of the people who got in touch with me about the job sent me a link to view their folio.

Which meant that I reviewed their work rather than interviewed them for the job.

And those that I did interview were generally unable to show me anything new as I had already seen their folio online.

It’s a catch-22 situation for which I do not have an answer.

And it’s something I think you need to think about in your hunt for a job.

Mar 21, 11

The Monday Morning WHIP // 114

This week Stan (http://branddna NULL.blogspot NULL.com/) tells us why this common saying is a timeless piece of wisdom.

Many years ago the legendary John Hegarty gave what I think is one of the best pieces of creative advice I’ve ever come across:

When everyone else zigs, it’s time to zag.

Seems an obvious thing to say when you stop and think about it. But if it was so obvious, then why are so few people following his advice?

Every kid who’s done Award School shows me a folio of Award School work.

Every photographer who comes to show me their folio has twice as much work in their folio as they need.

Every wannabe copywriter who comes to see me has lots of concepts in their book but little (if any) evidence of writing ability.

And every creative who considers themselves digital, has very little in their folio other than design work.

Obviously I’m generalising here.

But suffice to say most of the people who come and show me their work do it in way that is very similar to everyone else.

So why not do as Mr Hegarty suggests – stop zigging and start zagging.

Mar 14, 11

The Monday Morning WHIP // 113

Whether you’re relaxing in Melbourne today, or contemplating the suckiness of being back at work on a Monday morning — take a few minutes to read Luke (http://heywhipple NULL.com) and Stan (http://branddna NULL.blogspot NULL.com)‘s advice.

It’s a public holiday in Melbourne today, so while I’m enjoying my day off I’ll be borrowing the wisdom of Luke Sullivan for today’s Whip.

Luke is the man behind the must read advertising book Hey Whipple. He’s a veteran of the industry and one of its wise men.

He recently published an article (http://www NULL.heywhipple NULL.com/2010/04/07/report-from-sxsw-interactive-i-see-dead-ad-jobs/) about a talk he gave at South By Southwest. It is required reading for anybody who works as a creative.

And especially for anyone contemplating a career as a creative.

Mar 07, 11

The Monday Morning WHIP // 112

We’ve got some extra things to add onto Stan’s (http://branddna NULL.blogspot NULL.com) WHIP this week. 1 (http://www NULL.whirlwindprint NULL.com), 2 (http://www NULL.australiaprinting NULL.com NULL.au/information/products/business-cards), & 3 (http://eplot NULL.com NULL.au/business-card-printing NULL.htm?gclid=CNuRyLX7uqcCFQT1bwodN0UoXA).

When I was a young wannabe creative hawking my folio around, Creative Directors would always ask me if I had a business card after seeing me.

And of course I didn’t have one.

Fast forward a few too many years, and it is now me who asks the young wannabes if they have a business card.

And guess what – hardly any of them do.

Given we are in the brand building business, you need to think of yourself as a brand.

Then ask yourself how you can get that brand onto a Creative Director’s shopping list.

Now I’m not saying a business card is the secret to success. But it sure makes you look focussed and organised.

Plus it gives the CD something to add to his Rolodex.

Which is always the first port of call when a need arises for a talented young freelancer.

Feb 28, 11

The Monday Morning WHIP // 111

It’s time to get your creative on! As Stan (http://branddna NULL.blogspot NULL.com) tells us, there’s always more hours in the day to do things for love, not money.

As a side note, this WHIP is #111. It seems fitting that that’s also the emergency telephone number in NZ. Please give (http://www NULL.christchurchearthquakeappeal NULL.govt NULL.nz/) a little (http://www NULL.grabone NULL.co NULL.nz/christchurch) to our Kiwi bros in need.

Last weekend I caught up with an art director friend of mine, who told me about an interior design project he’d been working on.

During the week I met two very interesting copywriters. One is about to have a book published and the other has had several pieces published in magazines.

And on Wednesday I’ll be going to the opening of a photographic exhibition by an art director I worked with many years ago.

That’s four talented creative people, all of whom make a living in the ad business, being creative outside of their day job.

Which, to be frank, left me feeling like a bit of an under achiever.

Until my wife reminded me that I have a very popular blog, write a monthly column for Marketing magazine and also write this Monday morning ramble every week.

So that’s five talented creative people, all of whom make a living in the ad business, being creative outside of their day job.

And I’m sure I could find loads more without too much effort.

So if your pursuit of a full time role as a creative has yet to come to fruition, why not channel some of that creative energy into personal projects?

Of course not everyone can write a book. I certainly couldn’t. But if you use your creativity as often as you can, in as many ways as you can, who knows where it could take you.

You may end up a writer instead of a photographer. You may find yourself arranging flowers rather than art directing. Who knows!?

Regardless of how things turn out, you’ll end up one day with a career where you make a living from being creative rather than simply being a creative.

Feb 21, 11

The Monday Morning WHIP // 110

Juniors, sometimes you have to think about the seniors out there. Not the pensioner, mobility cart wheeling kind, but those who know their shit — who have the ability, and the experience to tell you what’s makes a freakin’ good ad, and what you should do if you ain’t got one in your book. Stan (http://branddna NULL.blogspot NULL.com/) tells us why we need to listen to them.

This morning I am going to share with you some wisdom from Suzanne Pop (http://adteachings NULL.com)e, creative director of highly regarded Canadian agency John St.

“A number of years ago, I had an advertising student whose thirst for success far outstripped the quality of her work.

I think her work would have improved if she had been willing to listen to me or her other instructors, but that never happened.

My explicit message to her never changed:

Unless the quality of your work improves, you will have a very hard time getting hired.

When this woman started taking her portfolio around to interviews she heard none of the effusive praise she had expected.

Instead, creative directors ripped her book to shreds.

I have never seen student work get praised by a creative director after being panned by an instructor.

So if you are holding on to this faint hope, the time has come to unhitch your unicorns, smack them on the hindquarters and dry your tears as they gallop off into the hills. “

Wise words, don’t you think?

As I have said many times in the Monday Morning Whip, don’t show your work to senior people for praise. Do it for criticism.

Because that criticism, although often hard to take, will make you and your work better.

Feb 14, 11

The Monday Morning WHIP // 109

The odds of being a success aren’t as low as being struck by lightning. It can happen, but as Stan (http://branddna NULL.blogspot NULL.com) tells us, it’s all about the hard yards.

The class of 2011 has just been announced for AWARD School. And for every kid who got the thumbs up, there are sure to be two or three times as many who didn’t get accepted.

If you are one of these people don’t fret. All you need to do is work harder.

That’s easy for me to say, I’m sure you’re thinking, but it’s true.

Talent is important. But persistence and hunger more so.

So rather than simply resigning yourself to not getting in, put in the effort and prove the naysayers wrong.

And if you did get into AWARD, or perhaps you already have a job, the same applies.

Because the harder you work the better you will get. And the better you get, the more successful you will become.

Jan 31, 11

The Monday Morning WHIP // 108

Seriously, how good is TED (http://www NULL.ted NULL.com/)? This week Stan (http://branddna NULL.blogspot NULL.com) has found a nugget that we should all take heed of.

I came across a great quote yesterday that I thought would help you put your creative aspirations into context.

It’s by Sir Ken Robinson, a noted thinker on creativity and learning. He has a couple of brilliant video talks on the TED site (http://www NULL.ted NULL.com/speakers/sir_ken_robinson NULL.html) that are well worth seeking out.

Anyway, here’s what Sir Ken had to say;

“For most of us the problem isn’t that we aim too high and fail – it’s just the opposite – we aim too low and succeed.”

Keep that quote in mind next time you tackle a brief, work on your folio or think about settling for close enough is good enough.

It could make the difference between you creating something good versus something great.

Jan 24, 11

The Monday Morning WHIP // 107

Everyone wants to be liked, but as Stan (http://branddna NULL.blogspot NULL.com) tells us, pleasing everyone is a sure-fire way to get nowhere.

I’m sure by now you’ve either seen or read about Ricky Gervais hosting the Golden Globes (http://tv NULL.gawker NULL.com/5735192/watch-ricky-gervais-extremely-uncomfortable-golden-globes-monologue) last week.

Depending on who you listen to, Gervais was either mean spirited and unfunny, or a razor sharp satirist.

Either way, he was anything but dull.

There’s a lesson for every young creative in Ricky’s turn at the Globes I think.

Don’t play it safe.

Because by trying to please everyone, you will end up pleasing no one.

So be brave. Be opinionated. And be prepared to piss people off.

You career could very well depend on it.

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