Filed under: A Bit Of Inspiration, Attitude & Aptitude, Colleagues, Comment, Content, Context, Dad, Planners Making A Complete Tit Of Themselves And Bless
A while back, someone sent me the image above with the words, “you’re in a cartoon”.
While they didn’t specify which of the 2 characters they were referring was me, it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to work out which.
I have an incredible knack of saying things that come out the wrong way.
Or can be interpreted as coming out the wrong way.
But believe it or not, I never intentionally do that.
OK, I 96.3% of the time never intentionally do that.
I swear it’s because of my Dad …
He had an incredible array of techniques, questions and words to put people either on the back-foot or to get them to reveal their true agenda … so I think I got it off him.
Of course, he was a brilliant prosecutor and I’m an OK advertising planner … so what he did was not only part of his job, but something he was revered for how he did it, whereas mine is, errrrrm … not any of that.
That said, some of his techniques are things I have used for years.
For example, when someone say’s something I disagree with – rather than just say “can you help me understand what you’re actually trying to say” [which I also occasionally do, hence the cartoon], I simply repeat whatever they’ve said to me, but in a slow voice and an intonation at the end that makes it sound like a question.
You’d be amazed how often this makes the other person back down or rephrase what they said in much more palatable way.
And while I am still learning at how to be a better person, the one thing I can honestly say is that at least I’m asking questions to learn and understand rather than just make corporate small-talk.
God I hate that stuff.
The attempt to bond over mutual superficial bullshit.
It’s not schmoozing … at least there’s a purpose for that, it’s pandering.
And while this could easily be read as an excuse, that sort of shit is – for me – far more insulting than anything I may accidentally or unintentionally aggressively say.
Filed under: A Bit Of Inspiration, Advertising, Apathy, Attitude & Aptitude, Brand Suicide, Business, Confidence, Context, Culture, Fake Attitude, Marketing, Membership, Planners Making A Complete Tit Of Themselves And Bless, Pretentious Rubbish, Revenge, Twitter
Over the last 12 months, one of the things I’ve had an almost adverse reaction to is twitter.
I can see Andy reading this – and I expect an email from him reinforcing this – and shouting:
“Now you know why I always called it twatter”
And he may … just may … be right.
I used to like twitter.
It had a similar feel to the early days of blogging.
Community. Supportive. Elevation of knowledge and debate.
But now …. well, it’s a cesspit of hate, ego and imposters.
Full of people on self-made pedestals claiming to be the next incarnation of Christ. Who believe they are better and smarter than the bastard love-triangle-child of Weiden, Edison and Ocasio-Cortez. Who are disturbingly confident in their claims of being more knowledgable about companies histories, operations and decision making than employees – or even founders – of those very companies. Or even the CIA.
And yet, when you look for any of the work these genius’ have actually made … what you tend to find is more tweets.
Tweets about what others are doing wrong.
Tweets about how they could do things better.
Tweets about how they know the answer to everything and beyond.
Tweets about how they want others to give them answers to questions that someone else is paying them to provide.
Tweets about how they claim ownership for business or societal behaviour change via articles that they had nothing to do with that talk about business or societal behaviour change.
Tweets about how their ego, arrogance, aggression, bitterness and dismissal of others know no bounds.
Tweets. Tweets. Tweets.
And this was before Elon Musk, the World’s comedy villain, overpaid for the bloody thing.
Of course not everyone is like this. There are still some amazing people on there who are generous and open with their comments and consideration … who can disagree without aspiring to demolish those who have a different point of view … however they’re increasingly becoming the minority, drowned out by wave after wave of hateful, spiteful, vicious commentary which – for the first time in my life – pushed me away for my mental health.
This was shocking to me for 3 reasons.
1. Having worked in this industry for so long, I have the thickest of thick skin.
2. I’m a social-media tart. Not just in terms of platforms I belong to, but in terms of ‘content’ I churn out.
3. No one was personally attacking or abusing me.
Basically, twitter has become exhausting to me.
A firehose of cliquey, self-congratulatory, pseudo-intellectual commentary that tries – and fails – to hide it is ego and insecurity shouting into an echo-chamber.
Personally this has devastated me.
I loved twitter – like I loved blogs – because I genuinely felt they helped me be become better at things I do or wanted to do.
It gave me a direct line to people I respected where I was able to listen, learn, interact, explore and debate.
Twitter wanted me to be better.
It wanted me to be exposed to new ideas, ideals and considerations.
But not now.
Now it’s like a digital version of The Hunger Games.
Destruction in 280 characters.
Words used as bombs and swords.
People elevating themselves by bringing others down … through verbal attacks, gaslighting or building a wall of imagined exclusivity between them and others, even if it only exists in the minds, ego and insecurity of those who post so often, you wonder how the hell they have time to do their actual job.
Anyway, the reason for all this is that I recently read a quote from Musk about what he thought Twitter was:
I couldn’t agree with him more.
In fact, I think he encapsulated why I have fallen out-of-love with his $44 billion indulgence.
Because mediums are neither rare nor well done.
Filed under: Advertising, America, China, Collegues, Planners, Planners Making A Complete Tit Of Themselves And Bless, Shanghai, Wieden+Kennedy
So a little while ago, the wonderful human that was Dan Wieden sadly passed away.
A lot of amazing things were written about this amazing man.
And I added my own little story to the compendium as well.
But there was one that was not published.
Mainly because it was a conversation between some people who worked at Wieden about how sad we were that Dan had passed..
It’s possibly the weirdest tribute written.
Not specific to Dan, I mean ever … and yet, it is a tribute that was expressed with as much love and respect to the man and the legacy he built, as any of the others.
I should point out Dan – and I – are not guilty as charged. The person in question is simply referencing the fact that I sent them to Portland for a W+K meeting and Dan happened to have started W+K in a city where this particular form of ‘entertainment’ was everywhere.
Don’t be hard on the person who wrote it.
They were young.
They were from China.
This was their first overseas trip.
And he was given these experiences by people who wanted to ‘introduce them to the West’.
I personally would have chosen a different approach, but each to their own and I know the intent was to explode this visitors mind in good ways, not damaging.
Given he still remembers his trip so vividly – maybe 10 years+ after it happens – I guess this means they succeeded.
Which results in Dan getting the most unique, but well intentioned tribute ever written.
I think he may have liked it.
Or the sentiment of it at least.
Miss you Mr W.
And you LL.
Filed under: Advertising, Agency Culture, Attitude & Aptitude, Comment, Planners Making A Complete Tit Of Themselves And Bless, Planning, Strategy
Insights.
That single word that causes so much debate.
What they are.
How you get them.
When you know you have a good one.
It may not be fashionable, but I’m still a big believer in them.
Sure, there’s rarely one single silver bullet insight that stands the test of time, but they still have a valuable role to play for effectiveness, creativity and possibility.
Or they do if they’re done right. And used right.
And not made to say stuff that they’re not saying.
I say this because I saw this brilliant tweet recently …
I have to be honest, I laughed and laughed.
Until I remember a long time ago, reading an award submission that said something like that.
Except they were serious.
Something that tried to connect Facebook likes with human motivation.
No … I’m not joking.
And what was scary was people didn’t call it out. They didn’t even question it.
Which explains why some people may read the tweet above and want to enter it into an Effie whereas others will want to enter their face with a fist.
Filed under: Advertising, Agency Culture, Attitude & Aptitude, Authenticity, Colleagues, Comment, Confidence, Creative Development, Creativity, Culture, Dad, Honesty, Insight, Management, Mum & Dad, Parents, Planners, Planners Making A Complete Tit Of Themselves And Bless, Planning, Point Of View
When I was about to begin working for the first time, my Dad sat me down and said, “be generous, be kind, but never be a pushover”.
What he was basically telling me was I should always listen and learn … but I shouldn’t blindly follow what someone has told me without asking questions and exploring or voicing my own thoughts and ideas.
Nothing reinforced this than my first ever client meetings.
I was 19 and in a room with very senior and experienced clients.
After it happened, my boss called me in to ‘have a chat’.
He wanted to know why I’d been so quiet throughout the meeting when normally – as my Dad had told me – I kept asking questions as I wanted to learn more and to start to form my own perspective on things.
I told him I was worried I’d say something stupid so felt it best to keep my mouth shut … and that’s when he gave me 3 pieces of advice that not only changed my career, but that I pass on to anywho who feels in a similar situation.
1. When you’re young you’re not expected to have answers so you should exploit the chance to ask whatever you want while you’ve got it.
2. You’ll find out if your views are stupid or valid by speaking up … and you’ll find out from the most qualified people in the room, which is worth its weight in gold.
3. Remember you were hired because we believe in you. So while you might not always be right, we trust any question or opinion you have comes from the right place and with a desire to be useful and make a positive difference.
And while I’d like to think that the response I got is what everyone would get, you just have to read the stories on Corporate Gaslighting to realise what I was being encouraged to do – by my boss and Dad – is not what many are encouraged to do.
In fact, I’d go as far as to say in many cases, it’s not even tolerated.
You’re called a trouble maker.
Not a team player.
A maverick.
Which, of course, is all kinds of rubbish [not to mention debilitating in terms of personal development, standards and reputation and quality of work] but it seems to be what a lot of modern corporate culture often expects – no, scrap that – demands.
But there is good news.
Because if you find yourself in this exact position, you can either read this post I wrote years ago about how to be Freddie Mercury in the boardroom orread the letter below and see how 97 year old Mary Grant proves it’s never to late to change.
We never needed more Mary’s.