A Thank You Letter to my Peers
Thank you for asking the insightful questions only you could think of.
Thank you for brining with you a positive mindset.
Thank you for being on time and respectful.
Thank you for knowing how to navigate the subway in a time crunch.
Thank you continuing conversations beyond our visits and teaching us what you know.
Thank you for inspiring me to follow in your footsteps.
Thank you for demonstrating professionalism and kindness.
Sincerely,
NYC Wallflower
I came to learn and observe. I cannot believe how much I learned in one week and how much I hope to bring back with my to share with others next year. Never having been in this situation before, I appreciated learning from others and absorbing everything around me.
Paige Price
Doing Business
In New York, we each got the opportunity to visit a variety of different agencies. Each agency had their own missions, goals, culture, and people creating great work. I began to wonder how a business may choose who they want to do business with; all these agencies produce such amazing work, it work be a very difficult decision. What I came to find by the end of the week is agency-customer compatibility is key. Businesses should want to work with agencies who produce the work they are asking for, but be open to a bit of a risk at time. Similarly, agencies should produce what companies ask for, but be willing to take the risks necessary for good advertising. I also came to realize that often times companies are not ready to take the risks proposed by agencies. As one strategist mentioned, only about 20% of his work gets to see the light of day. As students in advertising, this rejection is not something we face when creative mock-campaigns and passion projects. One of my goals from now until I graduate is to begin finding opportunities in which I can allow my work to fail or succeed, rather than have it lie around and collect dust. I want to gain experience in rejection (as odd as that sounds) before I enter the industry.
Paige Price
Love letters to my LinkedIn babes!
Some advice I recall Deb sharing during our preparation for the trip: always write handwritten thank you notes to anyone you connected with or to anyone that you thought was worth talking to. Because of this sage advice, I frantically made my way to Target as soon as I got home and sent these lil notes out on Tuesday.
Their recipients could find them stupid, or they could just throw them away upon not remembering the anecdote I included to remind them, but it was only when I started writing that I realized how wonderful it would be to receive one of these.
Who knows? Maybe by building my network I could end up with my dream job? Maybe I could find a mini mentor in the mix? That would be the best $4 decision I have ever made!
Alex Dalton / 5.16.19
it’s just a big city
I went in to this trip knowing I probably don’t want to end up in New York. I came out of this trip feeling the same way. Don’t get me wrong, this city is amazing and big and exciting and I loved every second visiting it. But I think that’s how I’ll always want to experience it– just a visit. It’s too busy for me. Too crowded, too corporate, and most of all, too isolating. As weird as it sounds, as big as NYC is, I think I would feel trapped living there. I love being able to get in my car at any given moment and drive to the coast or drive to the mountains or drive anywhere. New York is the dream for a lot of people, but for me, it’s just a big city.
Regan Nelson 5.16.19
“Live from New York, it’s Kristen and Olivia!”
If any of you haven’t seen the Garth and Kat sketch on SNL, it is basically a perfect representation of Olivia Howe and I every single day.
For example, as we were walking down the streets of New York, we’d take turns finding random store names and turning them into New York’s hottest clubs (referencing the Stefon skit on SNL). This included, “New York’s hottest club is: The Juicy Seafood! This club has everything; rolling backpacks… cringe memories from your sophomore year homecoming… dogs with sweaters….”
So why wouldn’t we tour NBC Studios together for the second time? To be in the SAME BUILDING that Stefon, Garth AND Kat were once in?!
This time we got to experience the excitement with our trip cohort, a group of about 20 students on the program. Every cohort did something different on their “explore day,” and we were lucky enough to get a full tour of the Today Show studio, the Tonight Show studio and the one and only Studio 8H.
As the elevator went up to the eighth floor, my hands started to sweat. I stared at the NBC Peacock logos that were printed on the carpet. IT’S HAPPENING.
Olivia and I were practically hyperventilating when we walked up to Studio 8H. You better believe our faces were fogging up the windows as we watched the set-makers paint the kitchen set walls in complete awe.
Then at one point Liv and I looked at each other and we both knew what the other was thinking:
“We need to write for SNL one day.”
There you have it. That was a real New York experience.
A Stream of Consciousness as I Sit in an Agency Visit
I shouldn’t have worn these shoes.
I hope the person leading this visit didn’t notice that it took me a solid two minutes to search through my backpack for my pad and pen.
He’s talking too fast, and I’m not sure if I should be writing down the words on the slides or if I should be writing down his fast words. To think I’m a senior in college and still don’t know how to properly take notes.
Okay, advertising creates culture. Noted.
I’m never going to make it in advertising.
Have more confidence in yourself, Liv.
I’m going to make it in advertising.
Seeing that typo on this presentation is actually comforting.
This presenter listens to cooler music than all of us, and he knows it.
Oh damn, I forgot to write that down.
There’s something special about seeing that producer beam with pride as he presents his work.
Question time, oh boy.
Gotta come up with a good question, gotta think of a good question.
Is it possible to have infinite questions yet none at all? I’ll clarify: infinite stupid questions yet none smart enough to be voiced?
Have more confidence in yourself, Liv.
Question: asked. Nailed it. Is my face red?
// Olivia, copywriter
I’m walkin’ here!
Take a walk. At your own pace. On your own schedule.
And do it alone.
This city can be overwhelming at times. Most really. So it’s important to step out of the crowd and move at your own speed from time to time. So much networking to be done, not enough agencies to be visited, and too many sites to be seen that we often forget about taking care of ourselves.
The best way I found to take a deep breath, take note of my surroundings, and decompress was to walk around the city streets on my own. There really is something therapeutic about alone time, and I never understood the importance of it until I was airdropped into one of the densest cities in the world.
The dichotomy of feeling alone on a busy New York City street corner…
But really. Find time for yourself in this city. It’s worth it. It makes sightseeing a whole lot easier and people watching a whole lot funnier.
Teddy Popick
Something for men to consider…
I loved my time in NYC, don’t get me wrong, but one thing I noticed immediately was the way it felt to move through the city as a woman.
I feel men don’t often consider what it is like to live in a woman’s body. Most women will tell you that they have felt violated or degraded by men on the street, whether the interaction was verbal, physical, or simply the way they look at us. It happens everywhere, but the men in NYC were particularly aggressive.
I won’t go into too many details, but just understand that although we women had fun and enjoyed ourselves, for many of us, in the back of our minds, there is a constant awareness of how men are viewing and interacting with us. Most men that I walked passed, regardless of how old or young they were, glanced down at my chest at least once. Some made comments, some whistled. It sucks.
Sometimes I’m bitter because most men will never understand what it is like to feel less than human, or even ashamed by these interactions. Some men will even dismiss women who bring the subject up. However, I’m grateful to the men in my life who try their best to understand, who call out their friends who might participate in this behavior, and who are simply there for me when I have a particularly upsetting experience.
Maddy Kinsella 5/15/19
A name is a name.
Throughout this trip we’ve had the opportunity to visit plenty of agencies, who’s size has varied from the intimate and budding to the expansive and vast.
There’s often a connotation, especially as students, that names carry inherent worth. The larger or more prestigious the agency - the better.
That’s all been but dispelled after this trip. Often times, this can come across as bitter or envious of what large agencies have to offer. No - this isn’t a knock on large agencies. Large agencies deserve their pedigree, as they have produced work that has allowed them to enter the upper echelon.
It’s about the symbiotic relationship that exists between what we as students are seeking from the agency experience. Some seek the ability to enter a world that has a foundation in strong clients, large networks and the budgets to create cinematic campaigns. Others are hungry for initiative, drive, the leadership capabilities of being the catalyst that can launch a smaller place into the stratosphere. Both opportunities provide different challenges, opportunities, and payoffs.
What I’ve learned is that the us vs. them mentality does not exist. You don’t choose sides when you choose an agency - you’re still entering a family tree of people who are invested in the success of everyone. The careers of so many professionals are fluid and weave through agencies of all sizes and creeds, but the network remains and only grows.
Seibold 5.9.19