The Main Event: Rookies vs. Seniors

In this corner, fighting out of years of advertising... With hundreds of wins by lots of approved campaigns and experience, The Seniors.

And in this corner, fighting out of maybe college or some small little ad agency you don't know about... With wins by new creativity and hunger for experience, The Rookies.

I'll try to keep it above the belt (talk about balls and some people get testy, pun intended).

Round One. Fight!

I'm a senior. Not because I need the title (I am soooo beyond titles it's disgusting), but because in this business, after 3 or 4 years you should be considered one. You have some experience, by now you should know the basics and then some. Being a senior is like having an American Express. It has its privileges. You get paid more, you can manage your time a little bit more (in La La Land), you get your opinion heard sometimes (if your CD is not a dickwad). People get to know you and what you do, and suddenly the calls come from another agency wanting to offer things they will never, ever, in your wildest dreams will come true. Seems like a wonderful life but... not really because advertising sucks. Anyway... this is not really a post about whom is better than whom.

This is my homage to rookies.

Hey there guys! It really sucks being a rookie, right? I've been there, got a Tshirt. It sucks... ba---... ass. Rookies are one special breed that no CD or boss understands. Have they forgotten what it felt like? I can! See if this rings a bell.

You get interviewed. Your potential boss comes in, with a great smile and a tan provided by hours of golf and sailing. He sits down and tells you this great line: "I really like your work, you have great potential. We think you could work with us. Hey, this is a great agency, we have lots of great accounts you can work on. You will learn lots of stuff. If you decide to join the team, you will be placed with a great copy/art director, and you will have all the decision making in what comes out. We want your input. You can come in and joke around, we have a great atmosphere, creatives here have a blast. Are you in?"

You, delighted as hell and broke, decide to utter one single word, the word that will destroy you and haunt you till you rot: yes.

First day comes. You even come in early, wearing your wildest message tshirt and some run down jeans. You are busting out with new ideas, you are more than willing to stay longer if it means that your ad will get approved and published. You think your creative director will hear you out, get your points and you are happy as hell to meet your partner.

First job comes in. Do an adaptation. Second job. Do some corrections. Third job. Remember that adaptation? They want it in black and white. But... what happened to being part of the creative process? Um... You're a rookie. You have to wait for that. What the hell?, you think. Um. Welcome to the great life of advertising. This is the adults table. Go sit at the kiddie table and wait 'till you grow up. That pisses me off.

OOOOOh I wish some Creative Directors read our blog, really. In fact, let's turn this post to them, shall we?

Hey, YOU CREATIVE DIRECTOR! Yeah, you sitting there reading last week's emails. What is the matter with you, anyways? Are you out of your mind or something? Did the joint you smoked in '77 gave you some permanent brain damage? Rookies are a great source for creativity!!! They have hundreds of great ideas! They are sitting there, waiting for you to give them something to sink their teeth into! They want to work! They are willing to work long hours, because they want their shit on the newspaper, tv, radio or whatever great media plan there is at the moment! Give them a chance, dammit! By thinking that only seniors can handle the "big" accounts you are making a huge mistake. Rookies can handle their business as well as the next guy.

The last big ad agency I worked on had a bunch of rookies come by. Some seniors just made them sit at a corner and watch. If they were lucky, they were given shit jobs to revise. Fuck that, I'd say. Sit down, here's the brief. Since I'm working on this, so are you, mister. Help us out. Talk with us for a while until we come up with a decent idea. This is the way to work a rookie, in my honest opinion. Give them the hard shit as well as the easy stuff. They have to learn, and fast. My job was to report back to my CD and tell them if we thought this person could handle it. Some didn't, some did. Some were just awful and picked the wrong business. Some were gold mines, but they shined because some other person gave them a chance.

And this is a bit of fact I hate even more: some shit creative, senior, but of course, will make rookies work on a campaign because they simply don't want to do it or because they are so fried and tired they don't want to work that day. Funny thing is? The campaign gets approved, makes a bunch load of money and what happens? The senior takes all the credit. The rookie goes back to adaptations and copy revisions, as nothing happened. But the thing is, by not giving credit where credit is due, they cannot get ahead.

So, my message to all those young padawans out there is... keep trying, dudes. Fight. Ask for more difficult jobs. Don't settle for shit revisions only. Get involved. Bitch your way out or Rookieland. The only way to a better life in advertising is by demanding work, good work, from your Creative Director. Prove yourself, ask for that great pat on the back when you do something great, you deserve it.

A warning... Give it time, but not that much. Because if you feel after a couple of years that you're still slaving away and you are not learning anything new or contributing something... well, read below. You'll get the picture.

ROOKIES RULE!!!