i`m an associate creative director at a mid size advertising agency.
what that means is attend meetings, come up with ideas, work on them and in some cases pass the job on for completion [actually if i can get rid of my controlling and anal retentive nature i can do my job properly and pass it on to be executed].
it`s an interesting job, i get to do some writing, some layout, supervise photgraphy and i was hoping to do some television production but that`s not likely to happen here. the part of my job that`s the most difficult is client relations. i don`t deal well with them, i tend to say very little in meetings.
i`ve come to realise that ad agency/client meetings are just opportunities for the sort of people who like to have meetings to blow hot air up each other`s ass and apparently my sitting quietly and only making salient comments is considered near genius is these circles. i don`t like meetings for two simple reasons, i`m not particularly sociable; glad handing and not speaking my mind are not my strong suits; the other reason is could be doing something productive. meetings very rarely are productive.
ideally, i work best with clear, concise instructions and limited interruptions and stupid questions. i believe if a client has gone to the trouble of hiring an ad agency, they should basically tell them what they want and get to fuck out of the way. don`t contribute. we do know what`s best for you. that`s why you hired us.
the shit that happened yesterday was annoying for one specific reason, primarily, the client knew what we were doing, he`d been kept in the loop, so don`t wait until 6 hours before deadline to make changes.
i like working under pressure, if you don`t give me a deadline, i`m just going to sitting around and dance around the job, i will work on it, but i won`t give it my full attention until i have a defined timeline. and at that point, i`m going to putting my all into it. my other problem is the tiny changes at the end of the job. there will come a point where i`m just irritated by the project, where the very presence of it on my desk is anathema, which is why i need to work on delegating more. that way i can start, pass it on, may suggestions and clean up at the end if i need to.
this is my third creative director gig, the first one was the most challenging, i was completely out of my element, i had no back up or support, i wrote my first scripts there. i edited my first tv commercial. my baptism by fire. i like a challenge.
this business, particularly, the creative side is driven by ego and force of will, i like to think i`ve not been a complete asshole but i doubt that will stand in a court of law. the only place i tend to exhibit alpha male behaviour is where my designs are involved. i`m not averse to constructive criticism, but `i don`t like it` or making changes to prove your power just sends me into a tizzy. that and the dreaded `just`
there a more nuances to my job, like reading account execs and helping them develop a spine so they can sell your ideas to the client but i need to get ready to head in, i may come back to this at some point
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