Back2Work: There's No Crying in Advertising

Once you step into the office, put your bag/phone/iPod/whatever you carry down, take a minute to gather your feelings and pack them away in your bottom drawer. You won't need them.


Things need to get done. Ads need to get made. Deadlines need to get met. When you're in a professional environment, your personal feelings/needs/wants/expectations don't matter.

How you feel about this project, the strategy, that account person, the client, the timeline, the logo size doesn't matter.

There is work to do. Put your feelings and emotions aside and do it.

When someone doesn't like your idea, it doesn't mean they don't like you.

When someone gets short or snaps at you, 9 times out of 10 they're super stressed out and just thinking about how to get this done in the quickest and easiest way. Sometimes there's no time for formalities.*

You can't take these things personally.

The project you spent all week working on will get cut. The idea you love will die. Your campaign will get completely changed. Someone else will execute and take credit for your concept. People won't say please or thank you or good job.

Cry about it when you get home. Right now, you have to shake it off and keep it moving.

Your creative director doesn't hate you. The project manager didn't look at you funny. The ACD isn't trying to ruin your life. No one is sitting around trying to hurt your feelings or ignore you or go all Mean Girls on you.

And even if any of that were true, it doesn't matter.

This is a place of business, not a soap opera.

What's next on your to do list?

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* Don't get me wrong, there are rude, malicious and uncouth people running these agency halls. But what are you going to do about it? Tell your mom to talk to their mom? You just have to suck it up and keep it moving. There are assholes everywhere and you can't let them, or your hurt feelings, stand in the way of your greatness.