My First Win

Before now, the only thing I had ever won before was a free Diet Coke (which I never redeemed).

But today, I found out that I won one of the AICP Directors Scholarships at alloted to the Adcenter. It's a very small amount of money, but I'm really honored, as well as excited to have the opportunity to add the word 'scholarship' to my resume.

My Application (be warned -- it's quite sappy):

The day that I met Libby, a strategic planner at Y&R in Chicago, I knew my life had changed. Eating salads with her at the China Grill, I had the kind of feeling that made me suddenly understand what priests were talking about when they discussed their “calling.” I vividly remember listening to her speak about her job, her daily routine and the people she worked with. All I could think was, “this is what I need to do with my life.” It may sound cheesy -- the way that being called by God had often seemed to me – but I can’t think of any other way to express my need to fulfill this strategic planning dream.

At the time of my conversation with Libby I didn’t know if I could be a great planner or even a good one, but I had a hunch that if I could manage it there would be no career better suited for me. Two internships, one grad school application and eleven months later, I am confident that I have chosen the right path for myself. I have come to the Adcenter to learn how to delve deeper into people and what makes them ‘tick’; to use that information to make advertisements and build brands in a way that is more creative, relevant and focused; and to kill my fear.

I am a big fan of the phrase “times change.” People, ideas, technology, priorities and morals may change, but time only changes in relation to them all. It is my view that the job of the planner is to keep up with the changing times by understanding all of the things that change them. A planner must ask ‘why’ until he or she gets to the highest level of the problem, and then must use that knowledge to deliver ideas to people in a way that makes them actually listen and consider.

For many years advertising has numbed people with its frequency and monotony. There have been great ads, great campaigns and great brands built, but not enough of them. I believe that one major, extremely basic reason for this is the fact that advertising has not changed at nearly the rate that time has. As advertisers, it is time to recognize and fully grasp the fact that consumers are now in control. We can no longer expect that people won’t change the channel or switch the station or avert their eyes from our messages. Instead of wallowing in sadness about Tivo and Sirius and people’s general distain of bad advertising, it is now time to put down the megaphones and focus on truly engaging the people that we are trying to reach.

I am at the Adcenter to find out if I have what it takes to encourage and actively participate in changing the way that advertisers think about their consumers. I believe I do. I am at the Adcenter to stretch myself, to learn all that I can from the professors here and to remember their ideas as I try my hardest to be a part of the movement to bring advertising up to speed with its audience. I believe I can.

I believe that my commitment to making advertising more focused on the people that it is meant for and my willingness to really work for that change are what make me an ideal candidate for a scholarship at the Adcenter. I will not be just another person to pass through here. I plan to learn all that I can and to use that knowledge to create change, interest, and ads that people can stand to watch.