Up Close and Personal

We attend a school located a half block from one of the most famed, awarded and talked about advertising agencies on the planet. I have walked or driven past it ever single day for the past 3 months. I have concepted on their patio, drank coffee on their steps, and sketchily peered inside their lobby on several occasions. (The security guards don’t like that).

Today, ten other Adcenter students and myself were able to take a tour of the Martin Agency, led by a man whose name I have seen sprinkled around Comm Arts Ad Annuals over the past few years. (If you get the chance, check out his 2005 work for The Onion. Wonderful.)

Mike Lear, it turns out, is not the eccentric, 50-year old gray-haired ad legend genius that I always pictured. He doesn't, in fact, look a day over 30. He looks like guys I went to college with. He doesn't have a plush corner office, but instead works at a cubicle by a window. He gets excited over his hilarious, homemade YouTube videos. He also happens to have been lucky and talented enough to be incredibly successful doing what he truly loves.

The experience today as well as the experiences I have had so far at this school have really changed the way I view the ad world and its innovators. Who are these “Advertising Giants” that we are so in awe of? Why do we get so thunderstruck by their presence? Why do we think they're so different from us just becuse they have columns in CA, articles about them in AdAge, and have graced the covers of Creativity?

As Professor Peter Coughter wrote once to his students, "Nobody knows what they're doing (in this business). You just happen to be younger and not know what you're doing."

Since coming to the Adcenter I have been yelled at by Coz Cotzias, had a beer or six with Mark Fenske, watched Bob Greenberg take a phone call, stared at Mike Hughes, played ping pong 8 feet from Rick Boyko’s desk, studied Brian Collins’ facial expressions, pitched TV concepts to Wayne Gibson, talked football with Charles Hall, complimented Andy Azula on his hair, seen Jim Nelson conduct a client meeting, listened to Jeff Weiss make redundant comments, watched girls cream over Nick Law, and tried not to make eye contact while passing Cabel Harris in the hallway.

Every single one of these people I had heard of, read about and emulated before coming to Adcenter. That emulation has not decreased.

The rock star mentality has.

Walking around with Mike, listening to him talk about the industry and his stories really brought things back into perspective. All these people—these amazingly talented individuals with their seemingly surreal lives—are just that.

They’re just people.

They’re the same as you and I.

In many ways they're no different than incredibly intelligent, witty and successful accountants. Accountants whose work is constantly on display to the entire world.

At the end of the day, it's just their job.

With every "famous" person I meet and see, I am constantly in awe not of their achievements, but of their humility. Each encounter serves to constantly remind me that staying humble gets more and more important the more successful one gets. It serves to remind me that we are all the same, more or less, and that we all have to start somewhere.

I hope I will be that humble someday.

And I hope to God I'll reach that point in my life and career when staying humble becomes that much more important.

dubs. out.