When I was a kid in the business, there were basically two or three advertising schools where you could put your book together under the aegis or tutelage of someone actually working in the business. If you lived around New York, you went to the School of Visual Arts. If you lived on the west coast, you went to Art Center. Today, of course, there are dozens of schools where you can put your book together.
But to my mind, school doesn't matter, schooling does.
Over the past few months I've been involved in a variety of projects with a variety of notable creative people. What I've found, and this is obvious, is that it pays to shut the fuck up and see how they work.
None of the creative luminaries I've been working with are young. One has probably 60 years in the business, the other has probably around 40. Another also has been working 40 years or more. How do they approach things, how do they stay sane, how do they stay insane? What keeps them going? What keeps them fresh.
What I've found is watching these guys is an education, a symposium of sorts. They are my ad school.
My best friend's father, when asked how his day was always replied "Still laughing, still learning."
If you're not, something's wrong.
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