a lovely lil quote from soren kierkegaard, and something that i’m still encountering during my job searches of late.
stopped in traffic in big sur
from 2002-2007, i worked on an auto account. i wrote brochures, web sites, point-of-purchase, plus a few more odds and ends. i got some great experience, some award-winning samples, and several promotions during the time i spent driving the creative.
but after 5 years, i felt like it was time to move on. see, people (read: other creatives and recruiters) were starting to see nothing but tire treads in my work and experience. i was becoming “a car guy.” not that there is anything wrong with that. it’s just that, the subject was overpowering the creative genius. (or perhaps just the creative behind the wheel.)
now, nearly 2 years later, i’m getting some interest because of the automotive experience, but alot more “no thanks” because of it. sure, i’ve been shuffling my portfolio around to try to soften the auto samples in it. but try working in that field for 5 straight years and not have your book feel a little road weary.
i guess what it comes down to, is i’m hoping that my future employers (or creative partners) can
focus more on the creative. how i use words to tell the story. and hopefully they’ll see that i can use my writing skills, creativity, and overall business sense to take whatever gadget/service they want me to help market, and treat it with the same loving care i gave to automotive. until that happens, i’ll have to stick with the label “freelancer” until the right job appears. and so far, there has been no automotive offers coming in. (i’m not even getting the deals from the auto dealers.)
my freelance clients so far have been in education, healthcare, pharma, mortgage, computer hardware, and nonprofit. all of this work is reflected in my portfolio, along with the automotive.