*Typing*

Reading isn’t an efficient means of consuming art. At least not compared to watching a film, listening to an album or gazing at a painting. We forget 90% of what we read. Yet, we recollect the scenes of a film, the lyrics of a song and the colors of a painting decades after last experiencing them. So, why read at all?

I find the act of reading to be so much more than the absorption of information. It’s a means of both ideation and meditation. Folks get down on themselves when their minds wander while reading. But, I’d argue this is a great gift of reading. I’ve read entire pages only to find I wasn’t reading at all but instead mulling over an idea for an ad, poem, short story or song. If you are struck with an idea that distracts you from reading, it’s likely a good indicator the idea if worth pursuing.

Rarely do we allow our minds the space to wander without constant distraction from our many devices. And so the time spent day dreaming while reading is not wasted. Occasionally, we will happen upon a book that is so enrapturing, we do not day dream at all but instead experience unparalleled presence. Is this not meditation? We leave a reading session like this latter one and we feel lighter and perhaps even enlightened, as if we spent an hour walking some alternate plane.

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If you’re working closely with creatives, you must have conviction.You don’t necessarily have to be a good copywriter or designer. But, you should have an opinion on what good copy and design look like.

Rick Rubin is one of the great producers alive today. Yet, he doesnt sing. He doesn’t write. He doesn’t play an instrument. He rarely touches a sound board. However, he knows a good song when he hears one. And, more so, he knows what direction to give the artist to help them create their best work. Artists don’t hire Rubin because of his skill. They hire him because of conviction.

Being a creative director is not unlike being a producer. In advertising, this doesn’t necessarily mean stepping in and doing/ editing the work yourself. In fact, this can piss creatives off. Don’t tell Picasso where to paint the boob.

Instead, your job is to develop a degree of conviction around what you believe to be good creative work and finding the right words to describe this conviction. If you hire the right creatives and articulate this conviction effectively, most of your work will be getting out of their way. When you do speak up, it’s because you believe they are capable of more. And, if they trust that you have their best interest in mind, they will listen.

But, otherwise, being a creative director is mostly keeping mum.

The Marlboro Man is arguably the most successful advertising campaign of all time. It sold billions and billions of cigarettes over several decades. Prior to his introduction, Marlboro owned just 1% of the tobacco market share. After his creation, that number climbed to 40% within about 3-5 years. Four of the five Marlboro men died of lung cancer or lung-related diseases (the one that survived never actually smoked the cigarettes he advertised). Prior to their deaths, many of them became anti-smoking advocates.

Those most outspoken about the importance of work/ life balance are preaching atop a fat pile of cash they earned by violating their own gospel.

Unless you’re a tightrope walker, you don’t achieve mastery in your vocation through balance. You achieve mastery by finding something you’re obsessed with and then working like a dog on speed.

For the first decade of your vocation, you want to gain a reputation for being the kind of person that gets things done. You want to be relentless. You want to show up first. You want to leave last. You want to be easy to reach. You want to be quick to respond. You want to be obvious to work with. You want to say “yes” to everything. You want to be indispensable. You want to do really, really good work.

This will cost you a few friendships. You won’t remember everyone’s birthday. This will cost you a few life experiences. You won’t make it to every wedding. This will cost you a few vacations. You won’t have the prettiest Instagram page. This will cost you a few relationships. You won’t be the perfect partner.

It’s called “making sacrifices” because you are quite literally making sacrifices. The only difference between you and the Aztecs is there is less blood.

You can’t have it all and anyone who says otherwise is in denial of the sacrifices they’ve had to make along the way. As you grow older, you will become increasingly more aware of these sacrifices. You will likely have to reckon with them.And so you should place a considerable amount of thought into the sacrifices you make for your vocational. It’s not for everyone.

You will likely be happier finding balance with your work and your life. But, don’t be under the false impression that balance breeds mastery in vocation. It doesnt. Mastery is earned only through obsession, and obsession is paid for in the sacrifices we’re willing to make.

Great ideas are obvious in retrospect.