Now, my sucky friends. Let me tell you about drugs and advertising. There are some people who swear by having a healthy joint at the office now and then to get those creative juices flowing. There are others who think that a nice cocaine will get them through a long night. Oh well. Let me give you the other, boring side of that penny: it's a waste of time.
I knew a balding, bitchy, stupid guy who used to be my partner from time to time at an ad agency. The fact that this man was as low as the worm that crawls up from the mud that all of us step on is not the point here. He sucked as a human being, but he sucked even more when he was high.Why? Because he became even more idiotic, to the point of absolute moron. The last time I had to endure working with this piece of dog poo, I was desperate. We had to finish a campaign one night so it could be delivered next day to some other country. This was important, and we had to do it right or we were screwed. Our boss gave us some changes (surprise, surprise) at 11pm. I think: let's do this and get the hell home. Then, I look at his face. He's plastered.
Oh lord. Don't do this to me. Trying to give changes to this man right there was simply impossible. I had to sit down with him, like a child, and go step by step. What a waste of time, dammit!
Every single person I know who gives the lame excuse of drugs helping work is stupid. It doesn't! It makes you slower, dumber, assholer. The ideas you come up with, if any, suck beyond belief 'cause they don't have structure. Strategy? Out of the question. It doesn't help, not at all. And besides, you are so prone to making mistakes, it will make your work harder.
Oh come on, face it! You don't drink to make driving more interesting, right?
2 comments:
HA! I used to work at an agency where 2/3 of the creative folks (I'm in media) used to be stoned the majority of the time they were at work. We even had an artist who would sleep under his desk, with his feet sticking out, during the workday. Others would saunter in around 10, 11 o'clock in the morning. These were also the same folks that would be there at 3AM though. The president of the agency used to joke that he could never drug test his employees as well over half of them would be gone. Of course, I guess I can't really judge, as half the time I was sitting at MY own desk with a DEFCON 5 level hangover from the previous night. (this is when I was in my early 20's though - now I can't even have 2 drinks without feeling like crap!) I've also worked with AE's who would come in still drunk from the night before or just not show up at all (I had a flat tire, my alarm clock didn't go off, my cat has leukemia and started having seizures, so I had to take her to the vet - yes, these were all from the same person), and one who even went out to get "dinner" before we started work on a big presentation for the next day, had several cocktails, and ended up passing out on the couch, where we left him. He woke up about 7AM, and showed up at the presentation in the same clothes as the day before. Needless to say, he's no longer employed here.
Anyhow, my point is, that people who rely on that sort of thing to get their creative juices going, will eventually start realize that they can't keep up that sort of lifestyle forever, and will have to stop relying on the drugs and start relying on themselves.
The last line of the first comment is brilliant...
..."and will have to stop relying on the drugs and start relying on themselves."
It's fascinating how some people NEED a joint or NEED a drink or NEED some blow to get in the right mindset to work.
I've never smoked pot and I say it openly, not because I'm against it, but honestly I have my fair share of vices and I don't need another one. Wine, cigaretts, guitar, surfing, writing, and sex not withstanding, anything else added to the mix would fuck my reality and I would need to adjust .. and all because I need to get a buzz? Hell that's what I drink good wine and beer for damnit, but I never do it at work.. or rarely do. Sometimes a little licquor makes work go a lot more quicker.. and I've only drunk way after normal people have gone home to jerk off while watching Seinfeld.
BUt I never get trashed to get creative. And the reason is because........ what if it works? What if I get so creative and awesome that everything is a friggin Cannes Lion (though I MASSIVELY doubt it). What if the solution to all my creative blocks is within a rolled cigarette with bad refer laced with PCP? Then I'm screwed... because I will depend psychologically of a twisty joint to get my shit done. Uh uh.. no thanks I'm quite fine being creative with my vice set and not having to depend on them to get creative. To unwind is another case, but to be creative, shit I'm so random sometimes I even say what the hell is wrong with me. But I can get my work done, I can focus, I can work under pressure and I don't need to go to the point to get my "work material".
In my generation, it's rarely heard of anyone not smoking pot. but at 25 and crazy as ever, shit I still don't see the point in smoking a joint unless I'm at a place where it is legal and controlled by the government. Coke and other drugs no way because I've heard people describe the buzz and I've seen people change because of it. no thanks. I'll stick to cracking my skull while cracking a cold one, because the day I need a drug to do my job, I hope to be on a stage wearing tight leather pants that have stuck to me from all the groupies that were licking me as I toked up to prep for my show. Until then, happy drinking, writing, playing, surfing or fucking.
yours truly
another sans pot creative
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