A - We work a forty-hour week, but I can't remember the last day I am in at 9:00 and left at 5:00. I'm always here at 8:30 to 5:30 or later. I probably work a forty-five-hour week.
On the average it's sixty hours a week. Last week I put in over eighty hours. We're in a crunch right now. It's long, and 1 put in a lot of time.
Q - Would you describe the evaluating process?
A - I'm always evaluated by the person one position up. We have a very formalized structure of evaluation. Every job has a description and 1 little checklist of those facets of the job that the individual is evaluated. On every six to eight months based on a scale of 1 to 4, you evaluate yourself, your supervisor evaluates you, and then you sit down and compare how you think you're doing compared with how well he or she thinks you're doing. We also have a lot of room for comment. You are supposed to discuss your short-term and your long-term goals.
Q - What do you like about media?
A - I like the day-to-day change. There's always a new project here to work on. I like the deadlines. I'd much rather work under those conditions, than string something out for three or four months. I tend to work harder under those conditions; it aids in incentive; it's like a very, very firm kick in the rear. I would never survive in a bank.
I enjoy the work. It's fun to me, because it is creative and it's mathematical to a certain degree. I love talking with people. I've met a lot of interesting people. I like the way it's set up, everybody knows everybody; it is its own unique little world. I've known people in the business all over the country for years now, and they've become really good friends. People are probably the best element.
Q - What do you dislike about your job?
A - At times people you work with are very unorganized. You do one thing, then you have to turn around and change it. Then they decide they want it changed back the way they had it. To me that's a total waste of time. I hate incompetence in anything.
Some people I have to deal with on the outside can cause headaches. Sometimes I'm handed assignments and I know people are trying to pull the wool over my eyes when I know better. I don't like people coming off like I'm dumb or thinking that I don't know when they're talking about. They try and con me into things.
There's a lot of paper work involved, which I could do without.
Q - Is there a lot of stress?
A- Stress is such a negative word right now. It's exciting and it' fun, and, yes, there are times when there is a lot of pressure because o the time constraints, the importance of the business, or the need to make a presentation in front of a large group of people. There are a lot o factors involved. I find it exciting, and I find it stimulating and challenging. Sometimes, yes, I think it is stressful, but I don't think it is any month so than other businesses.
It can be, but you can't let failures affect you for more than five seconds, because you're right back on something else immediately A Yes, it's very stressful, but that's one of the talents one must acquire, the ability to switch projects very quickly. Sometimes I'm successful; other times I'm not.
Advertising on the whole creates a lot of pressure. At the last minute it's always change this, do this, get this done, we need it yester day; it gets to you sometimes. You just need to sit down and breathe Somehow it gets done.
Q-What would you say are some valuable skills needed in media?
A - I would say that the number-one emphasis should be communication skills, writing skills in particular, rather than advertising, because I feel you learn an awful lot on the job once you get in. I think it's very important to be able to express yourself and to be articulate, to think logically and clearly, and to write that way also. Advertising and marketing skills, I think, are the next most important.
You have to be a good listener, and you have to ask the right questions. You have to be perceptive enough to know the right questions to ask. You have to be flexible enough to deal with different personalities. Those are the key things.
The mathematics you use is all arithmetic. Very seldom do you have to do anything more than add, subtract, and divide. Occasionally, if you have a heavy quantitative background, you could be doing something as elaborate as regression, but that's uncommon.
Creativity in the big sense of the word. Not so much in creating a great idea for the advertisement, but being able to provide several different points of view on a marketing issue, or a media issue, and that's important. You'll find that after some of these people have worked on these accounts for five to six years, they get a little dry. They need new people to throw things out. This is the type of industry that is constantly hanging, and you have to be able to do that or you don't survive.
Q - Do you have any advice for a person considering a job in media?
A - I would tell people to learn how to think. I interview a lot of people for jobs here, and I'm most interested in people who have some interest other than just marketing. They're able to do it, but they are also human beings on the inside. Other people have different opinions, but I would much rather work with a person who is well-rounded, rather than someone who's some sort of drone and just knows how to market a product.
Get as much background as you can while you are in school. If you can work on the school newspaper and sell advertising, that's super. If you have an advertising club on your campus, work on the campaigns, get a part-time job selling, or work for a radio station, a newspaper, anything. You're meeting people; you're learning the inside.
Get exposure to the business, whether it's part time as a disc jockey or as a production assistant at a television station. Anything you can do. If it's paid, great; if not, volunteer. Do whatever you have to do, but get some exposure to the business before you go knocking on doors for a job.
Be very visible. Follow through by calling numerous times. Once you make a contact, keep that contact, and don't let it go.
