The Adnostic

It feels like I haven't blogged in ages. I think three and a half months adds up to something like ten years in blog time, but I lacked the motivation to blog lately and once I stopped, it was hard to get started again.

To start off the missing story of my life, I made a valiant effort to find a job in London. I cashed in my miles, met with as many planning directors as I could (thank you Russell), and earned tendonitis in one of my ankles from walking around London in high heels for five days. On the surface, it seemed like the perfect compromise for both Dave and I. I could probably find a planning job there fairly easily and he could get a working holiday visa as a citizen of the commonwealth. Unfortunately, the finding a job part got in the way. People seemed perfectly willing to speak with me considering my qualifications and what not, but they were unwilling to make the extra effort a visa would have required.

I did manage to snag one job offer, but they low balled me to the point that I couldn't accept it. Maybe one day I'll be able to transfer through another company, it just would have been nice for Dave and I to live abroad at this time in our lives.

Once London didn't seem like it was going to work out, Dave and I started to look at the plan of last resort - me finding a really great job in the US and making our relationship more permanent. I applied for an opening at Crispin Porter + Bogusky in Boulder, Colorado. I never thought they would consider me, but I figured that I should at least try. When I got the call saying that they wanted to meet me in person, I was on Cloud 9. I skipped merrily down the halls at work. I could not have been more excited and everyone who knew was excited for me.

The experience of interviewing there was amazing. They had a driver on staff to take me to and from the airport. During the tour they showed me the desks for the Quality of Life department (aka HR), the gym, and the office of the concierge (that isn't a myth, he's real). The concierge's job is to get CPB employees into the Colorado lifestyle. If you want to go dirt biking with Alex, he will set you up with a dirt bike. If you want to take up mountain biking or road biking, no problem. Are you interested in snowboarding? You can borrow one of the snowboards from their collection and the concierge will tell you the best mountains to go to depending on what you want and your skill level. The overall consensus from the people who worked there was yes you worked really hard at CPB, but they took excellent care of you.

Everyone I met with was very nice and very smart. None of the attitude that people seem to expect from the top agency in the country. I was really thrilled to be there and I desperately wanted the job. Alas, it was not to be. Maybe another time. At least I didn't have to worry about how Dave would adjust to Boulder if I had gotten the job.

Then I lost my job. It still stings, but severance and unemployment insurance heals all wounds. My take on what happened is not fit to be discussed in a public forum. If you really want to know then email me and we'll talk, otherwise leave it be. Besides that, I am grateful to all my old coworkers and clients who left wonderful recommendations on my LinkedIn profile. It is yet another reason why the internet is wonderful and that you will hardly ever find a place that is 100% bad.

Since then, I have interviewed at two other agencies and am looking eagerly for more. I'm hoping that I can hold out for the perfect position. A lot of the feedback I'm getting is that I seem great, but they really wish I had broader full-service agency experience. A friend of mine wants to submit me for a job at a digital shop, but I don't think that it would set me up well for the kind of larger planning jobs that I eventually want. He's asking the hiring manager if they're willing to take me on as a freelancer instead. I hope they do.

If anyone asks, Tara Frabotta at Ad+One and Lee Weil have been amazing recruiters. They are both personable and work devilishly hard. I have little doubt that I will be able to find my next job through them and recommend them highly.