Meet Shelby, Your New Social Creative Director.

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Today, we’d like to introduce you to Shelby R., the new Social Creative Director on your business.

Shelby has over four years experience as a Creative Director and is well-versed in the entire Adobe suite of resources. Shelby believes in seamless usability and frictionless marketing and thinks that experiences are awesome!!!

Shelby, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I have always been passionate about advertising. A few years ago, I took some courses at the Vero Beach Ad School and found that doing ads was my hardcore passion. As soon as I began to create more and more ads—I was doing more than just advertising, I started living my truth, my passion. I WAS LIVING MY BEST LIFE!!!. When I discovered this, I didn’t want to find myself going back into a job or position that didn’t fulfill me like that.

As an older creative director (I’m 31!) being able to teach young people about advertising is just great. It’s a ripple effect. I get to guide someone both to advertising and to be more kind to themselves, and in turn, they will then be kind to someone else, and so on and so on.

When I create an ad or a campaign, I get to create a flow, an experience. I'm mindful about what is relevant from my life and relate it to the work I’m doing for clients. It’s important to think about the people who might look at my ad.

I don’t like doing film—because no one has a TV anymore. Why bother? I think film is a waste of time. Most of the things I do really serve to get my clients nodding and they really liven up what would otherwise be a dull deck. Do I expect high-fives after a meeting? You bet I do!

I care deeply about creating work that really brings out a human connection with, like, other humans. And I like getting to use all the qualities I like about myself; like passion, creativity, making connections, being active, nurturing my curiosity, and open-mindedness within my daily life.

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
Arriving at this point in my journey has not been so easy. I tried in my teenage and adult life to fit into society’s mold and expectations, what a job should look like, and having your creative self be more of a side thought than the guiding light. It has not always been easy to take risks, and take a step into the unknown. What I found to be true, is that as long as you follow your heart, and trust your own capabilities, that will lead you to success, if you continue to trust in yourself and trust in the process. It’s all about being mindful of living your Best Life.

Have you any goals you’d like to accomplish? 
I think advertising is about much more than just selling products. It’s about having an impact on culture. Imagine taking the L train and hearing someone talking about a Tweet that you worked on! That’s a thrill.

I also think advertising can help people all over the world live their best lives like it’s helped me live my best life! 

There’s no reason we can’t cool the planet, find homes for refugees, roll back sea-level rise, house the homeless, stop animal testing, ban fur, save the bees, whales, snail-darters, screech owls and get kids drinking more soy-based milks because there is such a pandemic of lactose intolerance around the world today. 

There’s so much all of us in advertising can do. Fight against coal, the Dakota Access pipeline, the over-commercialization of Halloween, wind-power, saving the butterflies, child literacy, ring worm, hook worm, round worm, tape worms and tape measures.

As important as these causes are, there’s more to advertising than doing four-color spread ads for Scrabble and Lego blocks. There’s even more we can do to make the world the Best World it Can Be!

Peace out,

Shels