Title: VP, Creative, NYC Studio
Last Job: Content lead for IBM’s internal content team
#1. What would a friend say is “unmistakable” about you?
My laugh.
It’s loud. The sheer force of my joy used to set off The Clapper installed in my friend’s apartment—from a room away.
#2. Share one secret that reveals a lot about how you work.
It’s probably not a secret to anyone who has worked with me, but when the going gets tough, the funnier I find it.
Putting the absurdities, indignities and delights of our job in perspective helps me find the humor when I need it most.
“After trying a few jobs in history on for size, I realized I was less interested in knowing what happened than I was in why.”
#3. What’s your favorite “no way!” moment?
“Favorite” is impossible to choose, so let’s go with a recent one: climbing a rickety metal staircase at sunset to see petroglyphs at the Valley of Fire in Nevada.
There’s something extra special about 2,000-year-old artwork an hour’s drive away from the masterpiece of American kitsch that is the Vegas Strip.
#4. What’s the best way to start a conversation?
Compliment someone’s shoes.
#5. What drew you to your profession?
My college history thesis was about a vaudeville performer who knew exactly what buttons to push in the culture around her, and I spent the beginning of my career chasing the high of that project.
After trying a few jobs in history on for size, I realized I was less interested in knowing what happened than I was in why.
If you understand why a cultural object is popular—whether it’s a vaudevillian, an ad or a political candidate—you understand the people who make it so.
At its best, advertising is a conversation with culture and the people who decide it, and the most democratic art form there is. I consider myself very lucky to have found this path.
