My inaugural visit to SXSW. Yes I know, as a proud member of the Nerdpocolypse movement, it might be a little surprising that I had never been to the gathering of my kin. But 2012 was the year.

It’s everything and nothing I expected it to be. Great, provocative thinkers and presenters. I was in awe of Jaron Lanier and Danah Boyd. To see both of them speak live was amazing. As awesome as they are to see online, seeing Jaron Lanier play a lute made of crab 10 feet away is completely different than streaming in-between deck building at home.

Learning about Code for America was equally inspiring — enough so to make me “actually” want to sign up for that coding school that everyone talked about earlier this year (oh you thought we’d all forgotten that promise??) Democratizing design and technology is all of our responsibility and it was great to be reminded of it. Looking at one of their projects for Boston school system, find myself thinking WHY ISN’T THIS HAPPENING MORE? Join them here: http://brigade.codeforamerica.org/

That’s just a smattering of learning. Then there was social time: it was amazing to see so many friends. It’s bitter sweet because you never feel like you’ve had quite enough time with the people you don’t get to see everyday. It’s a shame, but I think one of the first SxSW lessons learned was “you are not going to do it all so don’t even try.” Wonderful memories and friends old and new. Thank you and hopefully this year will be more quality time without the bustle of Austin.

Biggest surprise? Austin’s sheer awesomeness. Never spent a ton of time in the city and was in awe. Much thanks goes to my amazing co-worker Mary who’s a SxSW/Austin expert.  The rich culture and musical roots are incredible. Favorite find? a store called UnCommon Objects (vintage store and store of interestingness that puts every store I’ve ever been in to shame). Then our team excursion to Mary’s family ranch was a piece of heaven that we were all looking for. Felt really quite connected to the city that evening.

Best of brands: OK, nothing really ground breaking here but first off the Nike Fuel Band experience- hands down the most awesome consumer experience. I’ve never experienced something so brilliantly crafted — every nuance of the experience was thought through. Incredible stuff. I was lucky enough to not be in line for very long, so my experience may be even more jaw-dropping than those who had to wait a few hours.

Also: AMEX and Jay-Z. Uncomfortable as it was to see many, err of your “not so typical” Jay Z fans out there, it was brilliant marketing. Lots of people now have a twitter account synched to their AMEX thanks to the hopes and dreams of getting into an intimate show with Hova.

…the unexpected:

Holy hell the crowds. Rain didn’t help the cause. That coupled with devastatingly slow transportation it was a bit ugh. Overall, really grateful to have gone and experienced it, but next year I may just watch the hashtags knowing that I’ve done it already.

Finally: the best.

My crew. I am truly blessed to work with such incredible people. It’s just the beginning…

Wow…it has been awhile since I last blogged. Actually as Rob Campbell gently pointed out last week, it has been several months. Hopefully if you’re somewhat interested in what I have to say, you’ve followed along with the 140 character daily digests in the land of twitter and know a bit of what’s happened (career wise!) the last 6 months.

Welcome back friends. You look amazing. Have you been working out? Whatever you’re doing. Keep doing it. You’re fabulous. (I swear I’m not shamelessly trying to win your heart back).

In a nutshell, following a tough decision I decided to listen to my heart to yet another little move. This time into the heart of Los Angeles: Hollywood (yes: me, Hollywood) to BBH Los Angeles. After a little courtship with the black sheep, we’re officially going steady. And it’s pretty awesome.

We live in the sweetest little bungalow that was once the home of Frank Sinatra (well, in his off moments on set). His spirit of creativity burns shines brightly along in our humble home and a crew of incredible smart creative minds (and in Pelle’s most excellent selection of vintage hats). I look around and am rightfully humbled by my company. We’re still true to the black sheep heritage with a distinct personality all our own. We’re tiny. We’re ambitious.  Stay tuned. I’m incredibly lucky.

Back to the blogging, or lack thereof. It’s not to say I stopped having things to say, in fact it’s quite the opposite. I just found myself having to channel it in other spaces, neglecting my personal thinky space.

But I’m baaaack.

There are days that I look back on thoughts from the blog from a couple years ago and am a little surprised by the fact that many of the exact same conversations still persist in our big ad land. But in effort to not be redundant and say all that again, I want to reset what my intentions are with this blog. I continue to be inspired and mystified by the intersections of brands, culture, design thinking and social media and whatever that nets out to. Hopefully with more soul and spice than ever before.

Social media is no longer the “new frontier” — but there are still countless opinions that postulate otherwise. Many more social media agencies and consultancies have emerged — while I hate painting an entire group with a single brush (I know there are some really awesome shops out there), some of the really big, corporate “social media” agencies (who admittedly many have their bread and butter coming from the B-to-B world, so perhaps I judge too harshly)  push fabricated complexities to something that can be quite beautifully simple.

Jargon word after mind-blowing jargon word – the fact that social media can still be treated as the “dark arts” of an agency still blows my mind.  Yes, it requires dedication, skill, thought and rigor –  but it’s not an entirely new world. The world has just evolved. The way it always has. And will continue to do. To be all too simplistic, in its most basic form to survive this “new digital frontier” (which isn’t new anymore), requires an open mind, open heart, a healthy dose of iron clad nerves and humility. Humility that you don’t know everything and you’ll have to lose a little bit of control to someone other than yourself.

Expect more thinking bits on this and other things. Hopefully it helps keep me relevant and sharp in this EVER-CHANGING NEW MEDIA LANDSCAPE.

Hahaha. I just had to throw that in.

How much did you miss me????

Today we lost a hero, a visionary, an incredible mind.

Steve Jobs has always been an enigma. He changed the way we work (otherwise our entire lives could have been  as disappointing as Lotus Notes). He’s changed the way we connect. He gave us what we needed before we knew we needed it. While he was never known to “crack” what we generally refer to as ’social media,’ he gaves us the means to do it. He was the most incredible strategic and creative mind our generation has ever known.

I’m looking at my social feeds this evening and am completely awestruck at the impact he has had on the creative community. Yes, I used to work at Chiat/Day, the home of Apple advertising and it has an enormous impact on many of my friends lives (and my own)–regardless if we worked on it or not. But it’s bigger than just Chiat. Our advertising world has been shaped by the innovation of Jobs and Apple. We could not do what we do without his technology. We would not be building apps, creating our digital experiences and amazing broadcast spots, playing with Instagram, sharing our lives the way we do without his vision.

He changed the game of advertising — with a little help from his agency of course. He had the guts to take the risk. Buy work that wasn’t conventional (hello, 1984?) The Think Different ad got me into advertising. On my toughest days early in my career, it KEPT me in advertising. It gave me hope that one day, maybe I could help make something that would make me feel the way that did. That’s what good advertising does: grabs you in a way you’d never expect, hugs your heart and makes you want a piece of whatever they “got” at any cost. So here’s to the crazy ones.

Beyond just what he helped create, was the attitude and the swagger that he brought to the world of technology. Before Apple, one could argue that technology was looked down upon many as just another “nerdy pursuit.” Technology was for “them” not “us.” Apple made technology desirable. Who wanted to be a suit PC when you could be the smart-assed Mac?

While the physical manifestation of the “Mac” persona may be true-yes, many of us wear our funky sneakers and tote our iPhones as if they were actually attached to our bodies–what’s beneath the surface is probably even more fundamentally true. We all live to be the pirates. We want to have strong opinions, bold ideas, a don’t f*ck with me attitude and perseverance to survive even the worst moments. We want to be curious and live in a world of wonderment. One where anything and everything is possible…

My favorite part of his Stanford address is this. I’ve read it several times this evening and to be honest, it’s inspiring me in this moment to follow my heart.

“Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma — which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.”

Stay hungry. Stay foolish.

Rest in Peace Mr. Jobs. And thank you.

– Steve Jobs narrating the timelessly incredible Think Different ad:

Click here to view the embedded video.

First of all this sounds far more morbid than it should. ***This is not for when you die*** (well, I guess it could be…but I assume you have a few more things going for you outside work).

I have this firm belief that when you start at a new job you have to set your intentions. It’s not just a clean slate for starting a new “McJob,” it’s a beginning of a new chapter, but as any good strategist will tell you, you kind of have to know what you want the ending is going to be before you start the book.

Yes, things change. Ideas evolve, assignments shuffle and expectations evolve. As they well should. But if you force yourself to really think about what you want to get out of the experience you’re entering it sets your own expectations. I find it a handy tool and wanted to share.

Since I’m in the habit of oversharing anyways, here is my (personal) planning eulogy:

• “she changed the way I think about what “planning” does/is capable of as a discipline”
• “she challenged me to think in a way I never thought to go before”
• “she was a little unrelenting in her desire to make things better and make people feel like they were important parts of the process”
• “she’s a person I can look up to, this is (visibly) her passion. she has a lot of integrity in what she does and believes in making great work”
• “she was a lot of fun to work with — made the workplace more enjoyable”

The other thing this exercise does is focuses you on the “right” thing–takes it away from the silly stuff. The politics, the meetings and brings it back to what’s most important. The people. The work. The journey.

There have been a onset of fabulously provocative articles written lately on what constitutes a good/innovative/new “idea.” My favorite is last weekend’s NY Times article (that has been RT-ed endlessly) The Elusive Big Idea. Elegantly written and very smart. While I don’t agree with every element of it–it’s a bit too cynical even for cynical little me, essentially postulating that nothing is an idea anymore because we’re so inundated with information, I do believe there are some really relevant pushes against any one who works in the “ideas business.”

There was a time where we had incredibly evocative thinkers: from Gore Vidal to Steven Pinker to Noam Chomsky, who dreamed and thought BIG…there was room for interpretation and formulating elaborate hypotheses and form thesis’ and opinions. At the time, there was value (monetary and respect) in being able to be a big thinker. Flash forward to today where we tend to thrive on very rational, numbers driven, easily monetized smaller “ideas” or thoughts. The desire for the bigness of idea tends to fall less in the public eye.

So we’re all a bunch of idiots now?

Not at all. Culturally, we’ve just evolved to value something slightly different. Something easier to process. But it doesn’t necessarily make it right.

If you work in advertising, some of this post-enlightenment era academic speak may be vaguely striking a chord…

We’ve all heard it, “Down with the big idea! They are expensive and arduous! (I agree). “Think smaller” is definitely a smart thesis in and of itself (the ever-awesome Gareth Kay describes in his excellent presentation Think Small). But when we focus solely on the small, do we run the risk of losing a little bit of the magic?

I’m currently reading Sir John Hegarty’s book “Hegarty on Advertising.” He talks a lot about “magic.” Yes, I believe it’s a bit of the old ad world’s self-importance speaking, but I can’t help but be a little inspired by his mantra. There IS an element of inspiration that I believe that this industry can bring. At it’s best, it has the power to make people FEEL something. It’s not to say that small is unfeeling, but there’s still a truth and value to bigger emotional provocations that can lead to really smart work.

Brands vie for that elusive place in a consumer’s heart. Be useful. Absolutely–it’s the smartest way to a consumer’s heart today. But we can’t forget that as a brand you also have the power to be something they love…and that’s where I believe there’s still room to play with BIG ideas that come from big, thoughtful places.

So planners, take yourself to a place where you aspire to think like a Betty Friedan or Stephan Jay Gould. It’s not an ounce of bullshit big idea talk–quite the opposite. Smart, well crafted thoughts that ladder up to this crazy thing called an idea.

Here’s the Canadian coming out of me…do we live in a world that can embrace both? Big emotional ideas, that have small, smart and utility driven elements? Maybe? Examples?

Pictured above, three of the smartest and loveliest in the biz, that I happened to be able to catch up with one awesome evening in London. Thanks @melex @patsmc @dddiana for your mugs.  ;)

Gender equality and advertising…a story we’ve all heard (unfortunately) nearly ad nauseam. I wish it could be just *done* with already. We’ve heard many points and counter points, watched panels come and go where women are fiercely underrepresented, watched plenty of episodes of Mad Men and then the “IRL” experience of my (short) five years in the business I can confidently say, yes it’s still a problem.

Enter the past year or so, prominent figures in the industry like Edward Boches and Cindy Gallop, taking the problem on head on, and Farrah Bostic providing a “go-to” list for women to serve on speaker and judging panels (as well as potential mentors and beyond). Strong, incredibly smart women continue to lead agencies the way forward in an increasingly forward thinking industry. But we all look at the “main events” of our industry and it’s the same (albeit lovely) faces. Check out the hashtag #toomanywhitemen for some colorful debate at any time.

So why oh why does this persist? Many far more interesting, smart people have sounded in on it and I’ll add my two bits worth. It’s deeper than an awards show, it comes from the place of truly asserting and “joining the big boys table”(never forget your spot AT the table as Sheryl Sandberg so elegantly shared in her TED talk). There’s always an ounce of fear when it comes to stepping up in this way. The spotlight (which I hate to even use that term) is a hard one for many women. Humility is ESSENTIAL in this industry. Being kind, fun and humble is the only way to be–however this can’t be confused with quiet, meek and lacking confidence. Throughout college I took classes in gender equality in the workforce, completely fascinated by the double standard every woman faces when in any sort of position of power. The delicate balance between traditionally “feminine” qualities (generally being kind, lovely and maternal) and the way that can play in sharp contrast to what “wins” in the business world (strong, ball-busting ways). Err to far either way and no one will hear your voice.

There are ways forward. I believe very strongly in the idea of learning from other strong females (which is why it’s so important to be on these speaking and judging panels): mentorship and support is one of the most valuable things we can provide and be provided with. I feel incredibly blessed to have the MOST incredible women to look up to and share problems/stresses/ ideas/happy moments with (many of these amazing ladies to be found here and of course the owner of the list @melex) Awesome organizations like SheSays are standing up and the industry is listening. It’s not an easy or short road but we’re getting there. Would be incredible to see the “big award shows” (ahem, like the one we’re all just spinning off of now: rhymes with “mannes”) be completely fairly represented. Not because of us having to “push” it there, but because it was a natural fall out from the prominent figures rising to the top of agencies AND the spotlight.

If you have not seen this talk I mentioned earlier, sit yourself down immediately and watch:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Wow, I can’t believe it’s already here again! This is just a note to say how THRILLED I am to be attending again this year. I’ll be in the audience this year, the wonderful planning skills of Ms. Claire Grinton and Sir Mark Lewis will undoubtedly make this another stellar year. THANK YOU guys in advance for truly keeping the fire burning on this and putting on what I know will be totally amazeballs.

Planningness changed my career back in 2009. Hell it changed my life. I sound like I’m doing some strange preachy infomercial, but it’s the absolute truth.

It seems to bring the best out of people–rooted in the ethos of the conference itself: it’s completely about collaboration and as a result, attracts people who <gasp> enjoy such things! That first year for me, as a strategy person living on the “outskirts” of the hot-stuff cities, it was eye opening and inspiring. I couldn’t believe I was in these little collaboration groups with the ilk of Edward Cotton and Mark Earls (yes THE herdmeister). And realizing that not only were they the brightest folks I’d talked to before, but were ALSO incredibly generous and open with their thinking (and nice to boot). It’s a unique experience to say the least.

So if it’s your first time to Planningness:

Ideas will be exchanged. Words will be had. Beverages will be had. Planner-ish-ness will be spoken. We will meet some of the closest friends of your life and carry them for years. It’ll be one of the most valuable experiences you’ll have in your career. Just have fun and be yourself.

It inspires and then we all go home with enthusiasm, ideas and spirit. Then it’s each of our responsibilities to keep that fire alive…that part proves to be the hardest.

Tickets are sold out for this year, but stay tuned here for all the updates. http://planningness.com/

And of course follow the #planningness on Twitter May 19-20.

And word on the street there may be more Planningness on the horizon for later this year…Stay Tuned!

We live in mushy times. It’s not easy. Strategists are acting more like “creatives” and “creative technologists”. Creatives and CTs can be better at strategy than strategists. It’s amazing! In the wise words of my (former) fearless leader Lee Clow, “Creative people RISE UP! They can’t do s**t without us!” Strategy people you’re included in this–MAKE THINGS. It’ll make you a better, more balanced strategic thinker.

Stop waxing poetic. Start making stuff.

We have all said this. Multiple times. There are too many talkers in this industry. Make something. Even if it’s not at your “job” bloody well, try to create something in the world. Watch it breathe and grow on the internets. Sit in your garage and construct something out of found objects. Motivate a group of like-minded people and do something amazing for your community. This industry breeds some of the most fascinating, intelligent people in the work force. Take advantage of it, be inspired by others and just break free and create. There are so many inspirational makers out there, I was at a gallery this weekend where creative people from all orfices of the agency came together to START a gallery. And it’s magnificent, one of the most tangible “makery” places I’ve ever seen.

I also have come to realize that this last one is not always attainable from the “regular” job. Actually it probably won’t at all. It has to be 100% self-motivation outside to just push and create. The exercise in and of itself will make you better at your day job. But what it will give you is far greater. It gives you purpose.

My old boss who I’m very lucky to have in my life as a great friend recently gave me this piece of advice, which I literally read every day.

“ people always think about their next promotion, next job, or what’s around the corner. They don’t think about being bigger than that, because they can’t imagine themselves being it.”

So what have I done? Well, unfortunately not much I can share yet. But I’ve begun. And it feels great. A little overwhelming, a little crazy, but a lot fulfilling. Who knows, it’ may never come to full fruition, but I’m going to understand the process, I’m working with one of my best friends and it’s going to be amazing.

BE AMAZING.

Lame title. Deal. Sorry.

It’s funny, I spend a lot of time talking about how behaviors are what drive the development of new tools/technologies and are core to functionality and usefulness. Behaviors evolve over time and changing interactions, but I’ve always been of the mindset of that direction relative to causal influence. While I don’t believe it is wrong, I started thinking (selfishly) about how these “tools” have changed me and how I interact with the world around me. There are more and more examples of how the tool is shaping behaviors.

Instagram is quite an interesting example of this. Not only do I constantly need to check it (I love peeking into my friends’ lives and seeing what’s beautiful, funny, in their lives) but I realized something today: the days that I don’t have “something’ to instagram lately are typically a little underwhelming and maybe even a little depressing. Lead me to a question (terrifying self discovery): is a day that you don’t have anything to share, one that was worth living? That sounds way more dramatic than I mean it to, but broadly speaking, it reframes the way you can look at your day. Shouldn’t you strive to have a moment in your day (fleeting or not) that fills you with enough joy that you want to share it?

I think that’s a big part of the power and lure of an instagram or even Facebook. Making you think just a little more critically about the life you’re living. When you look back on the collective memories that you’ve shared (or not shared), is there a point in which you can actually see the unhappy breaks? Eras of joy/optimism hope? Maybe this could be a tool for therapy–tracking your visual history to see where things went “wrong” or “right”. I truly believe there’s an incredible intrinsic value to tracking memories and creating tangible “memory buckets”.

Regardless of where you stand on the issue, these personal logs create incredibly rich places and spaces as “marketing” folks to be able to mine for insights into the way people really live. Would be amazing to be able to look through someone’s FB or Instagram feed and juxtapose to the way that they answer questions in a focus group (on their will of course)…there are some things you just can’t “make up”…

Back from vacation is always a hard time…regardless of how exciting life is, it’s never as exciting as being on a fun little escape from the everyday. My little trip over the pond yielded so many points of inspiration, I can barely contain in a post (but hell, I’ll try). First and foremost, I feel so incredibly blessed to have amazing friends (in the industry and outside) that made me feel incredibly at home. I called it my own little “SXSW”, as so many people I admire and interact with on a (near) daily basis live out in jolly old London.

Warning: this post will be a little self-indulgent. I just don’t want to forget what I learned and want to share with those who are interested in similar learning, that’s all. {smile}

The most important thing I walked away with is a renewed sense of curiosity. A common thread of the interactions I had was the perpetual questioning and intense desire to know “but why?” and “what’s next?” There is always more to uncover, and the minute you feel like you’ve answered all your questions, it’s time to turn a new stone. There’s also a bit of a natural unrest — restlessness that I think comes from always wanting to know more and frustration that you don’t actually know everything you want to.

Further from “learning about learning”, I think we all know that in this business there’s a lot of smarts/skill that go into what we do everyday. And there is also a very important part of what we do that is completely intangible. It’s a charm, a charisma, a way of taking clients (and co-workers/friends) on a journey through conversation and being *truly* engaging. We rarely talk about this because it’s so ubiquitous. However, when completely inundated with it, it becomes completely clear that there are some folks that just have “it”. The only way to “get it” as I decipher, is A) god given talent and B) maturing around it.

A lovely lunching with the hilarious, frighteningly smart @malbonster (Tim Malbon to those non-twitter/instagram-ites) reminded me why I love creating things of value for the internets. It’s just not about simply making an ad or a communication…it’s about creating valuable properties that live WITH/FOR people other than just to tell them about something (If you’re curious about this, check out @madebymany blog, which is an incredible source of information/inspiration).

Lucky enough to meet up with a trifecta of a few of the smartest ladies I know (@dddiana, @melex, @PatsMc). As a gal slowly coming up in the ranks in the industry, it’s so inspiring to know such a powerful/dynamic generation of (female) leaders are at the reigns. A sisterhood of strong opinions, strong ideas and good shoes. I’ve never felt so optimistic about the future of our industry as I did after that little dinner. Totally humbled by their ideas and ambition.

Other “work-ish” folks of note are a couple of my biggest inspirations. I met a couple of very smart fellows at the original Planningness conference (also the time I decided I wanted to take the advertising/strategy world by the horns and steer away–pre-Twitter/social media days). Now creative directors, these guys (who are also incredibly humble) are taking the world by storm–focusing on creating things that live and breathe in the world that truly help meet unmet needs (not necessarily just ads), pushing brands forward in a very relevant way, that many of us talk about and admire. Needless to say, doers.  And also incredibly interesting and simply the nicest kind of people.

Net-net: the art of inspiration can be quite simple: make friends with people you really, truly respect and are completely humbled by. And then expect mind = blown.

And some fun (touristy) snaps from the trip below…