[Sorry I’ve been very rubbish at putting up these last 2 reasons – they were written, but I’ve been suffering from a semi-crippling case of uncertainty…]
If you’re ‘a creative’ you either want to write a novel or make films. If you’re a planner you want to be a writer. At least that’s what a lot of people reckon. Working in advertising (and it’s related functions) is, for most people, a great way to do things that are pretty similar to the things they really want to do (and get paid well for it at the same time). It’s a chance to live the dream of the starving artist but without the starving bit. Exercising and developing our creative brains at someone else’s expense. And always having clients to blame when the work isn’t quite up to scratch is always a handy getout ;-)
That’s not to say that clients don’t get something out of it too, or else they wouldn’t pay for agencies, would they?
Personally I enjoy writing but I’ve got no desire to be a writer. I admire people who can make great films and tell great stories, but I don’t think that’s where my passions or skills lie. I like having interesting thoughts, but writing them down into a well structured and cohesive argument that stretches over pages (let alone chapters) is something that I find incredibly daunting.
If I could be anything in the world I’d be an inventor. And it’s not just getting to work in a really cool inventing shed that appeals (although that is a big part of it).
Working in the digital space gives us the chance to play at inventors. In pretty much every brief we get there’s an opportunity to do something that’s never been done before – and that’s not just about executional technique or new ways of communicating things. It’s genuinely about making technologies or systems that enable people to do, feel and experience something new.
nice post. it sums up why i prefer digital to ads. as someone who used to be in ads, and then went client side (did some work with Poke with Amnesty actually), the thing i feel most proudest of was irrepressible.info – which was a little website we built which allowed people to distribute content censored by evil states. it was load better than creating any ad i’ve ever been involved in, mainly because it felt like you were connecting with people in a more personal way, getting them to do stuff they wanted to do, rather than shovelling more zombie ads down their throats. and it only cost £6K.