May you be in a magic time and may you know that you’re in it.
Happy Summer!
I hope you all are getting sun on your faces and grass under your bare toes. 'Tis a requirement, I believe.
This has been an epic month! I have to say…specifically in terms of connections and reconnections, which have fed me on a different level. I feel very tapped in.
Chicago Recap
First, I am so sorry MKE friends, I did not make it there! I ended up with a full schedule in CHI, but I have a conspiracy brewing to come your way for a few days in August. Ask your friendly Adworkers board chair to inquire about the opportunity ;)
Secondly, we had a BALL in Chicago. Saw dear friends (neither at agencies anymore, fwiw) who are well and happy. Went to the OG places I love and found some new places (Cindy’s Rooftop and Remington’s, I highly recommend.) Other than Marshall Fields being bought by Macy’s, I swear the city is exactly as I remember it when my time in Indianapolis and at Culver/Purdue kept me a moth to the flame. I am thrilled this city is all that still!
Traveling and shopping with Lex is always so fun but sharing this place with her was just that little bit extra. We scouted places to hold workshops and were so pleasantly surprised by the options. Other conversations I’ve had this week were all with people I worked with years ago at various companies and agencies, but they're all still kicking ass, and we are playing together. Couldn’t be happier. I would so love to touch base with all of you when you have a minute! I got an invite the other day that was ‘breeze shooting’ as the title. I need many of these in my life.
The one thing I’ll wrap this little love letter to Chicago with is this: when I was talking to my friends from the past, who I haven’t chatted with in a while, I realized that we had an indescribable bond that was forged from going through a magical time within the teams where we worked. While chatting with these people I felt the same FIZZ I felt when they were in the agency with me, a client of mine, or someone who made me look good--and it hit me that it was the PEOPLE who were electric for me, not the time, place, or the agency. I get the agency brand as a signal of the era (my Cole&Weber time, BBDO time, etc), for sure, but it wasn’t necessarily what made the magic sauce. I could find these people in the dark and I'm buzzing that this energy is still accessible to me!
I believe being in a magic time was recognizing a combination of smart, kind people who had a curiosity and a willingness to play with ideas. People I never doubted trusting. And those who laughed with me. And stayed up late even though it was a bad idea on paper. It may have been that being together and not talking about work for a minute was the key, but we were always talking about work. We wanted to make cool shit and make work suck less. Regardless, we made time to laugh and kick things around. We played in the hallways. I think this is what I’m talking about…it’s a bit about thewho, but more about the when and where we connect. It’s about taking a moment to connect on a human level.
I’ve always believed that ideas happen in hallways, and sometimes you find a ‘hallway of life’ that is beyond the ‘eye of Sauron’ (someone’s judgment) for a moment. And you find yourself with people who, when we pass each other in the hallway, want to bounce off the walls or giggle 'til we can’t breathe or go for a long, boozy lunch with. They electrify us. We leave with more energy than when we started. And then life happens. So it’s important to reach out, reach back, and shoot the breeze every now and again.
You may not be aware automatically of the effect people have on you, but start looking for the ones you’re DYING to talk to and reach out to them. 20 minutes feels like a real vacation.
What I’ve always said as my wish for people: “May you be in a magic time and may you know that you’re in it.”What I would add now is, “Magic times are there for the making if you create the conditions for them to be. When and where is your hallway?”
May you find the magic this season and I can't wait to hear all about it...
