Filed under: Australia, Emotion, England, Family, Love, Loyalty, Mum & Dad, Music, My Childhood
Someone recently asked me what I was proud of.
Specifically, what I had done in my life, that had made me proud.
I took a long time thinking about it.
Not because I had to run through a cavalcade of possible answers, but because when I took away the things that made me proud by association rather than personal involvement – like family and friends – there wasn’t a lot left.
After what seemed about an hour, I said 3 things.
That I had got healthy.
That I had managed to have a career.
That I had stayed true to who I was in pretty much all I did and do.
Take away the fact I only got heathy in the last 2 years and maybe that’s not a lot to be proud of for almost 55 years of life. But then, how many things should there be? What are the sort of things that can even be considered?
If the question was, ‘who are YOU proud of’ … I’d be here all week, rattling away names of people directly in my life or in my consciousness. But when it’s about what am I proud of doing … there’s not much.
It made me wonder if this means I’m hard on myself, down on myself or just a bit thick?
I’m sure if I was to ask Jill or my parents, they’d highlight a bunch of things I should be considering. But I must admit, I quite like that there’s not much that springs to mind. Not because I’m a sadist, but hopefully because it means I’m a realist.
You see over the years, I’ve met countless people who told me – with full sincerity – that they ‘knew’ they were going to be rich/successful/famous. And when I’d ask why – or how – they’d just reply with, “I just know”.
I always looked at them with a sense of awe.
I found their confidence of conviction amazing.
Because while I loved the idea that maybe one day, I may be successful at something, I never for once thought it was preordained. Shit like that didn’t happen to kids from Nottingham – oh no. If I wanted to stand a chance of achieving anything – however small – it would need me to graft for it.
And yet I distinctly remember my parents once worrying I didn’t have a good work ethic.
To be fair, I did go through a phase where I liked to stay in my bed. A lot.
On the other hand, I was about 14 years old, so did it really matter?
Well to my parents it did and while they didn’t give me chores around the home, they did have expectations of how I would behave.
That I’d go after the things that were important to me.
That I’d work hard to learn and experience all I could.
That I’d give my all in all I explored.
That I’d chase fulfillment over easy contentment.
The older I get, the more I realise how brilliant they were in how they raised me … because while they placed these expectations on my behaviour, they did it without ever making me feel pressure to ‘achieve’. In fact they were perfectly fine if I failed … the main focus was that I never phoned it in.
To them, laziness was an act of disrespect.
Not just to those who were giving you the opportunity, but to yourself.
I get why that was the case … because they had to work for every little thing they got.
Like, proper work for it.
In every part and period of their life, they faced trials and tribulations … which explains why it was so important to them I went into the things that mattered 100%. And when they sensed I was doing that, they would back me 100% … even if they didn’t really like what I was doing.
It’s why Dad backed me to become a musician, even though he wished I’d become a lawyer. It’s why Mum encouraged me to still move to Australia, even though Dad just had a terrible stroke. It’s why they supported me when I told them I didn’t want to go to university, even though it had been a dream of theirs.
For them, graft was a demonstration of taking something seriously … so maybe that’s another thing I can feel proud of because I never took the opportunities Mum and Dad created or sacrificed for me, for granted. I loved them far too much for that.
Thanks Mum. Thanks Dad.
Filed under: 2025, Birthday, Childhood, Dad, Death, Immaturity, Mum, Mum & Dad, My Childhood, My Fatherhood, Old, Parents
So it’s June.
That means we’re 6 months into the year already – WHATTHEACTUAL?!
It’s going to be a big month for me …
I’ve got a bunch of big meetings, a bunch of big travel, the small matter of giving a talk – with Paula – at Cannes and turning FIFTYFUCKINGFIVE.
Jesus Christ … I am now, proper old.
I appreciate the difference between 54 and 55 doesn’t seem massive, but let me tell you it is.
You see over the past few weeks, I’ve been receiving letters from the UK about my pension.
I’d never really received these before so it seemed a bit strange … strange enough for me to call them to find out what the hell was going on. And that’s where 2 things happened that shook me to my core.
The first was that they were letting me know that I was approaching a time where I could either ‘cash them in’ or move them into a different scheme. Given I’ve not lived in the UK for most of my adult life, there’s not much in there so I’ve never really paid attention to it.
It was at this point I asked how could I cash it in if I chose to … to which the very kind woman on the end of the line said:
“You just contact us 6 weeks before you turn 55 and we make it happen for you”.
I paused for a moment before replying,
“We are 6 weeks before I turn 55”.
And let me tell you, she was as shocked as me with that news – albeit her shock was because she hadn’t checked my date-of-birth whereas my shock was I could cash in – should I choose – my fucking pension.
How was this possible?
Pensions are for when people are ancient.
A 1000 years into the future. How the hell am I eligible for mine now?
But I guess I am … because I am ancient.
So ancient, I’m only 5 years off when my Dad died – which is terrifying for a whole host of obvious and less obvious reasons.
Except I don’t feel 55.
In fact, I feel younger than I have in decades. I am healthier too.
But despite that – and the fact my maturity level still resides around 14 years of age – you can’t stop getting older however hard you may try, so no doubt I am on the path to playing bowls each afternoon, complaining about the kids in the neighborhood ‘for making too much noise’ and smelling of wee. Or something.
And just remember before you all take the piss out of me.
You’ve got all this coming … so don’t be too cocky, because the one good thing about getting old, is you don’t give a fuck about keeping your mouth shut.
Not that I’ve ever had a problem with that – which I’ve literally just realized why Rupert Howell used to say I was the youngest old person he had ever met.
Oh God, as Monday’s go, this one sucks balls.
Happy fucking June.
I’m not a huge royalist.
To be honest, apart from a couple of them – I question what any of them do.
Oh I appreciate their role in terms of history, pageantry and tourism … but to consider their validity beyond that is ridiculous. Let’s be honest, at this point, they’re more Reality TV stars than anything else.
Andrew should be on Worst Ex Ever.
Harry and Megan need to launch Real Housewives of Santa Barbara.
And Edward probably belongs on RuPaul’s Drag Race.
However, despite all that, NZ is closed today to celebrate King Charles birthday.
I know … I know … we don’t even celebrate that in the UK, but thanks to the Union Jack appearing on the NZ flag, we’re all getting an extra days lie-in EVEN THOUGH IT’S NOT EVEN HIS REAL BIRTHDAY which means – for one day only – NZ may be the most pro-Royal place on earth.
Given how the current government seem hell-bent on undermining everything that makes NZ special, I look forward to them announcing October 7th as a new national holiday: Putin Birthday Day, Day.
See you tomorrow.
Filed under: A Bit Of Inspiration, Advertising, Attitude & Aptitude, Augustine, Colenso, Creative Development, Creativity, New Zealand, Planners, Planning, Reputation, Respect, Strategy
The Colenso strat team are kinda like busses.
None leave for years, and then 2 leave within a month.
Add then Lizzie goes off on maternity leave soon … so that makes 3.
Christ almighty … that’s more than the total number of strategists who have left in the 4 years I’ve been here.
But like Martin before her, Augustine is going for all the right reasons. In fact, I had told her in her last review that if she didn’t leave this year – I’d fire her.
And before anyone thinks that’s a toxic thing to say, I need you to know I adore Augustine … utterly, bloody love her … and the threat of firing her was an act of love rather than an act of bastard evil.
You see Augustine is a pretty rare talent …
She joined us during COVID without the faintest fucking idea what advertising was, let alone strategy. And yet despite that, in just 4 years, she has built a portfolio of work that could put much more experienced strategists to shame.
She’s helped Colenso win major new clients across NZ, Australia and America. She’s led our cultural studies, reports and books – from Dream Small and Dream Bigger in NZ to X-Ray in Australia. She’s authored award-winning Effie’s, Spikes and (hopefully, at time of writing) APG papers. She’s presented to the CEO’s and CMO’s of some of the biggest companies in Asia-Pac and – most importantly of all – she’s helped create some of Colenso’s most loved work of the last few years; from the FFI collab with Rick & Morty through to the pioneering Killabyte gaming festival idea.
And if that wasn’t enough to make people hate her with jealousy, she’s done it while being compassionate, collaborative and bloody good human to boot.
What an asshole!
But for all the talent she has, her potential can only stand a chance of being fully realized if it’s fully tested – and that’s why she’s not just leaving Colenso, but New Zealand.
Obviously, I’m sad to see her go – pretty devastated in fact – but I also am thrilled, proud and excited for her.
She’s been talking about this for a long time.
We’ve spent the last few years preparing her for this moment.
And while she still has things to learn – don’t we all?! – her talent and portfolio of work means she has a fantastic foundation to really go and embrace what’s out there.
To test herself.
To prove herself.
To grow herself.
Of course, moving overseas is a big thing. And the market is arguably more challenging than ever before. But even with those challenges, I wouldn’t ever bet against her in terms of achieving something she can feel proud of.
I’m not saying it will be easy, but in addition to her talent and her body of work, she has 4 things that give her an edge.
Her work ethic.
Her hunger to learn.
Her desire to keep getting better.
Her ability to survive working with me – and trust me, I’ve put her through heaps.
Last point aside, those first 3 attributes are things our industry doesn’t talk enough about.
Worse, we often classify them as ‘toxic traits’.
But the reality is, if you want to get better, it’s more than just turning up – you have to want it, work for it and keep practicing it.
That’s true in all aspects of life but what I love about Augustine is that her drive isn’t because she has a blind ambition to move further and faster up the career ladder, it’s because she gains real satisfaction from simply knowing she is continually getting better at what she does.
Not because she wants to ‘optimize’ her approach, but because she wants to develop and express the full force of her own strategic voice.
It’s one of the main reasons why I wanted her to leave us – because the more she is exposed to different challenges, different people and different creative approaches, the more she will discover who she is and who she can become.
That’s really important to me because – as I’ve written many times – I’ve always believed a bosses role is to help their people recognise their talent, nurture it and prove it so when they leave [as we all do at some point] they’re in a position to seize or explore opportunities that they either felt were not available to them or didn’t even know existed.
But this move is far more than just about career growth, but life … as demonstrated by the fact she is moving to Paris rather than one of the ‘usual suspect’ markets.
This is not because she is being ‘un-strategic’ but because she wants to connect more deeply to her French heritage.
Don’t get me wrong, Augustine is most definitely a Kiwi … however she has French family and feels a real affinity for the French culture and wants to embrace, immerse and explore all of it.
That doesn’t mean she will be there forever – could be, but who knows – but it does means this is more than an ‘overseas adventure’ but the beginning of a whole new chapter of life and if that isn’t worth celebrating and championing, I don’t know what is.
However, my loss is Europe’s gain because Augustine is going to be available for freelance, because while she will be based in France, her brain can work for any timezone, category or culture.
I’m not just saying that, I’ve seen it and experienced it – mainly because I forced her to live it – but the bonus is everyone out there now has the opportunity to work with someone they’ll not only adore as a strategist, but as a human.
I love building teams.
I love the debates, the conversations and the creativity.
In many ways they always teach me more than I ever teach them.
Which is why I think the payoff for that is that – at some point – they all break my heart by buggering off.
Except the pain is soothed by the pride of what they do and what they create, which is why I want to sign off this post to Augustine with this.
Augustine:
Thank you for all you did for us and gave to us. [Except Covid]
Thank you for your smarts, patience, bants and reluctance to report me to HR.
Believe in your smarts.
Believe in your words.
Be humble with your talent, but go burn the fucking house down in all you do.
Au revoir.
Rx
You can reach her here.
Filed under: A Bit Of Inspiration, Attitude & Aptitude, Community, Context, Creativity, Culture, Emotion, Empathy, Happiness, Harmony, Humanity, Inclusion, Japan, Love, Perspective, Resonance, Respect
Over the years, my wife has told me all she wants me to do is listen to her when she faces challenges, rather than try and fix them for her.
I suspect she is not the only woman who has had this conversation with a man.
And while she knows the reason we do it is out of love, she finds it annoying-as-fuck.
Fortunately we’ve been together so long that its finally got in my thick skull, hence I now listen rather than automatically run to ‘fix’ mode.
The point of this is that I think a lot of advertising needs to adopt this trait.
Too often we think we can solve everything.
Marketing.
Politics.
Poverty.
World hunger.
You name it, our ego believes it can solve it.
But there’s something quite magical in embracing problems rather than trying to solve – or go around them.
Sure, we’re paid to help clients move forward … but that doesn’t always have to be from tackling issues head-on … sometimes, it comes from realizing some problems don’t – or can’t – be solved.
Recently I read something that embodies this perfectly.
A ‘solution’ that doesn’t fix the issue, but deals with it with dignity and grace.
It’s not unique, I’ve seen things like this before and have written about some in the past … but where they tended to be addressing issues in a private environment – such as care homes and parks in the Netherlands – this is something where the public are actively encouraged to be part of the solution.
Except it’s more than that.
Because they benefit as well.
In connection. In understanding and – at a time where there seems to be less of it about – in humanity.
It’s not just magical and beautiful, it’s important. For everyone.
