Getting my feet wet...

I've been meaning to start blogging for quite some time but several things prevented my initial leap, the primary reason being lack of interest from anyone aside from myself...apparently my narcissism won out.

Ever since I've moved to Raleigh, I've been learning a lot of interesting things that I thought might be worth sharing - or at least getting out of my head for me to chew on with a bit of detail. I'm sure with time this blog will morph into a different kind of beast with several different heads - but it is my hope that, if anything, I learn to tap into the creative side of my brain a bit more. And it is with this mention of creativity, that I jump into the 9 things I've learned since moving to Raleigh. As I have a tendency to ramble - I plan on taking a few days to discuss these nuggets in a bit more detail. In celebration of a dreary Monday, I'll start with some work-related learnings:

1. My creativity gauges far, far below that of my colleagues.
I work with some smart, insanely creative people! Mind you I fully realize I was hired to manage projects - or, as my title states, interactively PRODUCE all this creativity these people are churning out. But even so, there are some sharp tools in this shed. (more on my obsession with the word 'tool' at a later date...) They work on designing outfits for Sponge Bob, they create interactive games for Monsters Vs. Aliens, they improve email layouts and design flash banners that have all sorts of visual effects - all of which contribute to more clicks for our clients. It's absolutely fascinating to me the things that the designers here can create on a computer.

And then there's more. The creative director here maintains over 6 websites - my personal favorite being his video frozen food blog - Freezer Burns. Here I thought "micromeals" were Kristin and I's quasi-lame attempt at eating healthy and saving some $$ by not going out to eat at RoCo - and now I can find REVIEWS on some of the very meals I purchase on the reg, as well as other stuff all up and down the frozen food aisle. Another one of my co-workers has a food blog as well, one is a romance novelist, and another designed the invitations I'm using for my October wedding.

2. The agency life is a good one.
I should also add that I am an ardent supporter of small companies. I get frequent face time with some smart people and my interactions with our clients have helped me immensely in my professional development. We've recently been watching some thought-provoking lectures on things like lazy innovation and serious play and their usefulness in the workplace. We listened to an author by the name of Elizabeth Gilbert who wrote 'Eat, Pray, Love' talk about the concept of creativity being a separate being - it was very interesting. And if she's correct, as I previously mentioned in #1 above, that being hasn't graced me with its presence um...ever. You can check out some of these lectures and other talks by some extremely innovative people at TED: Ideas Worth Spreading.

The laid-back, creativity-driven atmosphere is the landscape for a level of productivity that I had previously not experienced, and where extreme sarcasm and wit are prevelant, they are in addition to intelligent conversation about topics ranging from client revisions and industry best-practices to Twitter updates, the Bachelor, and homebrew. Then there's the snack closet that stays full as long as we hit our revenue goals each month - the football tossing, the washers game, the coloring pad, and the Wii room.

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That's all for now. I'm listing to Ryan Adams and it's making me quite excited for my weekend in Richmond coming up in about a week and a half! Interactive producing and project managing are both calling - till next time...