It Aint Easy Being Creative

People think advertising is easy until they actually have to do it.

It looks fun, but there is some science - and art - to it.

Recently, after going through several rounds of feedback and revisions -- about two minutes before I'd start pulling out my hair - I had the clients sit with me and said "Let's figure this out together."

I wanted get better feedback so I could properly solve their problems. And more importantly, I wanted them to see my frustrations.

Within the first ten minutes, they were both frustrated. One even said "It's like we're stuck in a box."

I wanted to hug her. WELCOME TO MY LIFE!

Eventually, we found a hole and were able to get out of that box and while it was only a small part of a big project, we all kind of wanted to throw confetti.

I can't always trap the client in a room until we figure something out, of course. Sometimes you just have to try and fail. Then try and fail. Then try and fail again.

But when you do get it (If you get it) it feels like bathing in champagne waterfall at the end of a double rainbow.

Here's a snippet from Art & Copy talking about how the teams came up with "Just Do It"

It wasn't easy. But they did it. And it was (still is) brilliant. 

Back2Work: I hate my partner

What do you do with 120-200 lbs of dead weight? 


You're going to hate me for this one, but the simple answer is: Deal with it.




When you have a partner who is not doing their part it is the most frustrating thing.

And even more frustrating is being stuck with that person - whether for a semester at school or at a job. 


But it's just one of those things you have to deal with and grow through.


I've had a partner that only worked in Photoshop. One that would decide the project wasn't important enough for his time. One that I had to draw everything out for first. One who told me to figure everyone out and then just give him the copy to lay out. One that always ended up putting typos in our ads even though I clearly said to just copy and paste everything from my Word doc. And one gem who would sit and concept with me but then only mock up his ideas.

Good times. 


I'm not gonna lie. I've crawled into a bathroom stall and cried a few times. I've also plotted putting pencil shavings in someone's food. 


When you have to rely on someone else to help you create something, and they suck, it hurts.





But it didn't kill me. (And I didn't kill anyone.) 


Now I can work in Photoshop and inDesign. I have a better design eye and can draw a mean thumbnail. I have  friends or colleagues I can reach out to to bounce ideas off. I know how to grin and bare it like anybody's business. 


You still have to go up and say "our idea" even though you're the one who came up with it. 

And you have to accept the praise and criticism together, even if you're the one who did 90% of it. 

And you can't go whining to every and anybody about your piece of shit partner because that makes you look like a whiny, needy brat. (Sucks for you. Twice.)


Use this time to sharpen your skills. 
Work on writing if you're an art director or art direction if you're a copywriter.
Work on biting your tongue. 
Learn to negotiate, barter, bride, beg. (Whatever it takes to get your partner to do what you need. People rarely change. You have to adjust yourself to make the best out of bad situations.) 
Take notes for the kind of partner you really want/need and look for that person. (Read my post on Picking A Partner)


And remember, what doesn't kill you, makes you stronger. And this won't kill you. (Another one of my life mottos)







So get to work.

Picking a partner

eHarmony needs to create site for creatives that matches you with the right partner.

You think dating is tough... *face palm* Finding a great copywriter or art director to work with is even harder.

Your partner is your work wife/husband. You sit together, work, eat, whine, win, lose and cry together. You bring all your awesome copywriting skills to the table and they bring all these amazing art direction skills and together you can do anything.

You need someone to bounce ideas off of. To help you push things further. To lay stuff out or write headlines. To go to meetings when you're busy/sick and to stand up with you when you're presenting and nervous.


Having a great partner makes everything easier/better. EVERYTHING.

I'm always concerned about schools that don't have people work with partners. When you get to an agency you're most likely going to have to. Maybe not the same person all the time if you're on a rotating team (I worked with 5 to 8 different ADs at one place, which made me feel promiscuous at times but I mostly loved it because I have commitment issues.) but you're almost always going to be working with at least one other person. So start looking for the right now now.

Plus, if you find the right person in school, you can interview for jobs with them, which makes the process easier for everyone.

Tips on Partner Picking 

Shop around. If you can, partner up with different people and see who you click well with. You need to be on the same wavelength personally and professionally. Especially professionally. I've worked with people who have great personalities but were mediocre art directors. There are also people who are great copywriters but are assholes. Find the right balance for you.

Know your style. What is your work ethic like? Do you prefer working at night or in the morning? Do you prefer concepting on your own first or brainstorming together off the bat? Knowing how you like to work and what your needs and expectations are will help you find someone that matches.

Find a complement. Look for someone who has a similar work style as you but also look for someone who makes up for what you lack. I'm not into movies and TV shows, so it helps when I have a partner who is because they balance us out when it comes to pop culture (and give me the recaps so I don't look stupid in conversations).

Pick someone better than you. Choose someone whose work you admire and respect. It will make you work harder and be better.

Set goals. Talk about your goals - whether it's just for this project or for the long term. You don't want to approach something thinking you want to enter this for awards while your partner is thinking they want to get this done so they can go nap. Have a few conversations to make sure you're on the same page before going into anything.

Hang out. Spend some non-working time with your partner. You're going to be with them for majority of your day and you're going to share a lot of frustration, disappointment and late nights together so make sure this is someone you somewhat enjoy being around.

Be good. If you're a good writer/art director, people will want to work with you. If you have a great attitude and even better work ethic, folks will be knocking on your door.