Making things sustains me. Writing is part of the story—I've been painting, sketching, writing rhymes (what I wrote when I was 6, and when I was a teenager, shouldn't be called poetry), headlines, and very elaborate emails all my life. I recently made a little girl and she's 100% high art. My parents have always encouraged me to explore my creative potential and it's to them that I owe my confidence.
I started my undergrad studies with the hopes of being a political journalist, but soon discovered that I couldn't write a single line without trying to modify it creatively. Some call it bad journalism. I call it self-awareness.
When I graduated in 2011, I knew very little about advertising that wasn't from textbooks. I've worked 14-hour days for years—chiselling my craft, paying attention to marketing strategy, learning design principles, attending every meeting I was invited to and some I wasn't—to arrive at some conclusions:
1. It's a privilege to be able to work, and even more of one to work in a creative field.
2. If your workplace doesn't support your physical, mental, financial, and social well-being, run the other way.
3. The only way to sustain a long(-ish, I'm only 13 years in this field as I write) career is to bring your authentic self to the table.
4. Open yourself up to new experiences—whether it's a new point of view, a new colleague, a brand you've never heard of, a challenge you've never faced before—and you will grow.
Personally, I'm a chatty person. I watch cricket and football (soccer, for the North Americans). I love cities and being around people. I have a sense of humour that has been called dry, cheeky, punny, annoying at different points. I apparently also love talking about myself.
Thanks for your interest. Get in touch if you've got something cool I can help with.
Thank you!