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The Monday Morning WHIP // 64

Listen to people like Stan (http://branddna NULL.blogspot NULL.com/), work hard, don’t whinge, don’t whine, do more than expected, surprise, build trust, make friends, know your place, and show some respect.

There are many things that contribute towards a successful career as a creative person. One of them is ego.

As the Skyhooks (http://en NULL.wikipedia NULL.org/wiki/Skyhooks) sang all those years ago, ego is not a dirty word (http://www NULL.youtube NULL.com/watch?v=Xpm9xwb5VnY). It is however something that needs to be managed.

So even though you might think you’re more talented than many of the people who have jobs, it doesn’t entitle you to go slagging them off on blogs or Twitter.

And just because someone doesn’t love your folio, it doesn’t mean you shouldn’t send them a thank-you card for looking at your work.

Why is all this sort of stuff important?

It just is. Ok.

Because the people you meet as you climb the career ladder are often the same people you will meet as you descend that ladder.

So be nice. Show respect. And one day in the future, when you need to ask a favour, you’ll have no shortage of people willing to help you.

WHIP | Also tagged RESPECT

Tag Archives: WHIP

The Monday Morning WHIP // 63

So you’ve started adding digital work to your folio, but dammit, there’s only so many iPhone apps and ‘find the product’ maze games you can come up with. Don’t worry, we’re all still figuring out this thing too. Stan (http://branddna NULL.blogspot NULL.com/) suggests you start thinking about the possibilities beyond the obvious.

Got any digital work in your folio? Of course you do, it’s 2010. But before you take a moment to pat yourself on the back for having a banner or two in your book, consider this:

Digital work dates fast. Really fast. So make sure you keep up to speed with the possibilities.

Think video not animation. Think engagement not clicks. Think sharing not watching.

Anything is possible with digital. And if it isn’t it soon will be.

You also need to think digital not computer. Because before we know it almost everyone with be using mobile internet.

To get a glimpse of what I’m talking about take a look at this video and then put aside some time to think about the possibilities it offers you as a creative.

ADVERTISING, WHIP | Also tagged DIGITAL, FOLIO

Tag Archives: WHIP

The Monday Morning WHIP // 62

If you wanna be a success in this game, sometimes you need to do things you might not want to. But, as Stan will tell you, it’ll make you better than anyone else hawking their folio about. And it’ll be impossible not to get a job.

Ever shown your folio to someone and they’ve made comment about having seen one of your ideas before?

No? Lucky you!

For most of us though (including me) having an idea that has been done before is an occupational hazard.

So if someone tells you they’ve seen one of your ideas before, ditch it.

Yes ditch it.

Don’t sit there fretting about how long it took you or the fact that it’s one of your favourite pieces of work.

Just ditch it.

And as you crumple it up and toss it into the bin take a moment to sit back and smile.

Why?

Because you’ve come up with an idea that was considered good enough to run. Possibly even good enough to have won an award.

The only problem being that somebody else had the idea before you.

Now all you need to do is sit down with your pad and pen and come up with a new idea that’s just as good, that nobody has seen before.

ADVERTISING, DESIGN, WHIP | Also tagged FOLIO

Tag Archives: WHIP

The Monday Morning WHIP // 61

Seriously. Stan (http://branddna NULL.blogspot NULL.com/) couldn’t make it much simpler than this.

When you see an ad on the television does it have subtitles running across the bottom of the screen explaining what the brief for the ad was?

No, of course not.

Ever seen a poster on the highway with a copy of the brief attached to it?

No, didn’t think so.

So why oh why do so many juniors have creative briefs in their folios?

If your ad needs a copy of the brief alongside it in order to help someone understand it, then the ad is a failure.

In the real world ads have to do all the talking.

So please apply some rigour to your folio and ditch any briefs, labels explaining the ideas, and all those sticky notes with the proposition scribbled them. And do it now!

WHIP | Also tagged BRIEF, FOLIO

Tag Archives: WHIP

The Monday Morning WHIP // 60

Looking for a job can be a real drag, man. Heck, even thinking about looking for a job takes a lot of effort sometimes. And we should know–we’re slack just like the rest of you bananas. But you don’t have to make it that hard for yourselves, jeeeeeez. Listen to Stan (http://branddna NULL.blogspot NULL.com/) and give yourself a chance.

Imagine you’ve heard about a job opportunity at an agency in town. You ring up, put on your best telephone voice, and snare yourself a chance to come in and show your folio.

What next?

Well from what I’ve seen of late, you probably wait until about an hour before your appointment, dig your dog-eared folio out of the cupboard and then head off to show it.

And you wonder why you don’t have a job?

Firstly, your folio needs to look as good as it possibly can. So think about which work goes where, how it’s positioned, etc.

Next, make sure you and your folio have a point of difference. Yes that’s right, a point of difference.

Something to help you stand out. Something to remember you by. Something that says this kid’s a little different to all the other young folio carrying wannabes.

I can’t tell you what that point of difference should be. Only you can determine that. But to get one, you need to think of yourself as a product, then put together a brief to create your personal brand.

And like all strong brands, you will have a clear point of difference. Because if you don’t, you’ll probably end up gathering dust on a shelf somewhere.

WHIP | Also tagged ADVERTISING, DESIGN, JOB HUNTING

Tag Archives: WHIP

The Monday Morning WHIP // 59

What’s your excuse for not visiting every Creative Director, Senior Creative, Group Publisher, Studio Manager, Design Director and Big Wig With Advice to Give that you can guess the email of? It better be good, because if it’s not, you’ll meet someone like Stan (http://branddna NULL.blogspot NULL.com/) in the real world–and they might not be this helpful.

Once upon a time a kid rang me to ask if I’d take a look at his folio. When I asked him what sort of folio it was he ummed and awed before replying that he wasn’t sure.

When I asked him why, he said that his was just a black plastic one that he’d bought at Officeworks.

As you can imagine, I pissed myself laughing.

I then explained to him that what I actually wanted to know was whether he was a writer, an art director or a photographer.

“I’m a writer,” he said.

So I told him that whenever he rang people up to look at his folio he should always say up front that he was a writer.

“But what if they’re not looking for a writer,” he said.

My answer was the same piece of advice I have given many times over the years;

Don’t show a folio with the expectation of getting a job. Show it with the aim of asking for advice on how to make it better. Because the better your folio gets, the better your chances of getting a job.

ADVERTISING, WHIP | Also tagged ADVERTISING, FOLIO, HUNGER, JOB HUNTING, JOBS

Tag Archives: WHIP

The Monday Morning WHIP // 57

Hey everybody! We’ve got ourselves organised for 2010. This year is gonna be great! Stan (http://branddna NULL.blogspot NULL.com/)’s back with more weekly whip’s, we’ll be posting a new interview every week, and we’ve got a handful of new columns to surface over the next month. But enough of that hoo-hah–listen to Stan! Get to work! Do stuff!

I thought I’d kick start the year with a little tale about how getting off your arse and simply creating stuff on a regular basis can help get you a foot in the door of whatever creative industry you aspire to be a part of.

About 18 months ago I was at a brekky gathering in Sydney, where I met Annik Skelton (http://annikskelton NULL.com/). At the time she was doing some mundane job that she thought would involve creativity but didn’t.

Like many of the people I meet nowadays we hooked up on Twitter.

Over the course of last year she has kept me, and I’m sure many others, entertained with her surreal Twitterisms (http://twitter NULL.com/neekatron) and seriously off the wall blog posts. The girl can write, no doubt about it.

Seems I wasn’t the only person who noticed, because late last year she was hired by new Sydney agency Tongue (http://www NULL.campaignbrief NULL.com/2009/12/tongue-lashes-out-on-hiring-an NULL.html).

In the agency press release about the appointment they described Annik as, “a well-known Twitter personality, notorious for her tongue-in-cheek commentary and unique methods of story-telling.”

So there you go kids. Next time I tell you to just go off and create something, do it. Because the more stuff you put out there, the better chance you have of getting to wherever it is you want to go.

WHIP | Also tagged ADVERTISING, COMMITMENT, HUNGER, JOB HUNTING, JOBS

Tag Archives: WHIP

The Monday Morning WHIP // 56

whip 56
Holidays are almost here! And that means no more Monday mid-morning whippings from Stan (http://branddna NULL.blogspot NULL.com)! For a little while anyway. But remember kids, just because he isn’t posting, doesn’t mean you can’t be doing. This week Stan’s got three words that could change your summer – hell your 2010, if you let them.

Just Do It. I’m sure you know which brand those three little words belong to. As a tagline it is one of the best. As a way of live, it cannot be bettered.

Many of us, myself included, have moments of self doubt. We may be reluctant to commit, hesitant to act and probably spend way to much time wondering what if.

Which is fine if the only person depending on you is you.

But imagine if every decision you made impacted on a group of people. And imagine if the actions of that group of people impacted on thousands of people, maybe more.

Now you’re imagining life as a member of the SAS. An elite group of soldiers whose job it is to do the jobs that others cannot. They put their life on the line each and every time they go to work.

Their motto – Who Dares Wins.

With the holiday season almost upon us, I want you to grab a big fat Sharpie pen and scrawl the motto of the SAS on as big a piece of paper as you can find. Then I want you to stick it on the wall above your bed.

Then every night over summer, while you’re lying there thinking about what you should have done, you will have a constant reminder that lying there thinking about what you should of done just won’t cut it.

WHIP | Also tagged INSPIRATION, SAS, SUMMER

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The Monday Morning WHIP // 54

whip54

Most advice we juniors receive these days is so predictable. It’s always the same old cliches spoken by the same old people who have nothing better to tell us than, ‘Be your best’, ‘Believe in yourself’, ‘Think big’, or, ‘Never give up’ — Goodness me! That guff helps no one. Lucky for you Stan (http://branddna NULL.blogspot NULL.com/) doesn’t think that way. His advice is always practical. ‘Make phonecalls‘, ‘Have realistic expectations‘, ‘Don’t expect lots of money‘, and now some advice you’ll likely need — ‘Take the job’.

A young art director came to see me for some advice last week. After many months of job hunting and folio showings, she had been offered a position at a small agency.

Thing is, she wasn’t completely sure that she should take the job.

I asked her the name of the creative director and, as I expected, it was someone I had never heard of.

Next I asked her whether or not she had hit it off with the creative director and she said she had. She then went on to say how he had been very encouraging of her and her work.

So I asked her why she had come to see me. Turns out she wanted my advice on whether or not she should take the job.

This is quite common amongst aspiring creatives. As you can imagine, most kids want to work at big name agencies and hot shops. Can’t blame them for that.

But the reality is that creative opportunities are few and far between. So if you get offered a job at a shitty little agency no one has ever heard of, my advice is to take it.

Just don’t stay there too long.

Treat it as an apprenticeship. Use it to build your craft skills. And make good use of studio equipment to build a folio good enough to get you a job at a better agency.

Because you’ll learn a lot more actually working than you ever will sitting at home fine tuning your folio.

ADVERTISING, WHIP | Also tagged JOB HUNTING, JOB INTERVIEW, WORK

Tag Archives: WHIP

The Monday Morning WHIP // 52

That’s right everyone. Keep working. Don’t stop. We’re with you all the way. No matter who says your work is shit, off-brief, derivative, uncool, forced, uninteresting, lofty, idealistic, beige, untrue, wallpaper, too long, too short, too big, not big enough, square, round, pointy, or plain. We don’t care. Just keep doing your thing. And listen to everything Stan (http://branddna NULL.blogspot NULL.com/) says…

Apparently I’ve been churning out these Monday Whips for over a year now. If you were there for the first one, and still haven’t landed a full-time creative gig, don’t panic.

As I wrote sometime ago, landing a job where you get to use your creativity for a living isn’t easy. But then you probably already know that by now.

So I’ll reiterate what I say to every young hopeful that comes to show me their folio:

If being a creative is what you want to do, what you really want to do, then you will eventually become one.

You must however steel yourself for what could be a long and frustrating ride.

People will criticise your work. They will question your ability. You will often wonder yourself whether or not you’ve got what it takes.

Hang in there, is all I can say.

Stay focused. Stay passionate. Stay hungry.

Because sooner or later you will happen to find yourself in the right place at exactly the right time.

Until then, keep working on your folio. Working until it is the best damn folio anyone has ever seen. Ever.

ADVERTISING, WHIP | Also tagged FOCUS, FOLIO, HUNGER, INSPIRATION, KEEP WORKING, PASSION

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The Monday Morning WHIP // 64

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The Monday Morning WHIP // 63

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The Monday Morning WHIP // 62

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The Monday Morning WHIP // 61

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The Monday Morning WHIP // 60

Tag Archives: WHIP

The Monday Morning WHIP // 59

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The Monday Morning WHIP // 57

Tag Archives: WHIP

The Monday Morning WHIP // 56

Tag Archives: WHIP

The Monday Morning WHIP // 54

Tag Archives: WHIP

The Monday Morning WHIP // 52

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