Fast as a New York Week...

Just a couple weeks ago a group of students representing the UO Ad program packed their bags to terrorize New York, the city. On last year's trip I was extremely busy working on a client pitch for the student competition and a detailed presentation to BBH. This year, I decided to get the dirty work out of the way first (one presentation to BBH about SXSWi takeaways) and otherwise hit the city and see what it would come back at me with. Upcoming UO Ad generations [take heed], magnanimous readers and my one follower [ I salute you], here's my take on one New York week:

a—Top three pieces of advice
You’ll be defined by your last greatest feat, make sure it’s something you’re proud of.

Play in analog. It will make you stand out.

When you move to NYC, it never stops. It’s like the responsible Vegas.

b—Top three experiences
Jazz, baby. This time around, I made sure to save some time for the things I am passionate about, like live jazz. There’s a fine line between shirking your responsibilities and striking out on your own: toe it. Don’t be afraid to abandon the safety of the group for something that’s really important to you.

Making friends outside of my immediate group. I know it sounds cheesy, but really! It feels good to know that you’ve got different people you get along with and you’re not stuck anywhere. The trip is a great chance to make connections with other students as well as professionals.

Gleaning a few twitter nods from established professionals by tweeting about connections I saw during the UnConference. You just have to think, and put it out there. If you’re on to something, people will notice.

c—What do you know about agencies now that you didn't know before
Agency leadership goes to a lot of conferences, adult learning summer camps.

A lot of places want to know if they are a good fit for you. The more personal the recruiting process gets, the more agencies start to care about you as a person. One of the first things recruiters or job leads would always ask me was, “where do you want to work?” I couldn’t tell them “anywhere” because that would sound lazy, and since they were taking the time to get to know me, I should make it worth their while. So give it some thought before you’re ready to approach people.

Sometimes it's a bother for students to show up at their office with presentations that are irrelevant to their immediate jobs. This is something you could guess, and I’m not saying it’s everybody, and big-thinkers are always open to new ideas, but I heard it while walking through a revolving door into the building.

d—A couple of beautiful moments
Riding on Gabe’s shoulders.

Reconnecting with a Swede who beat me out last year. Great guy, Rassmus. He insisted I email him this time.

Presenting at BBH. Admittedly, we didn’t bring it like last year but sharing your original perspective and getting feedback is what being a student is all about. I wouldn’t have felt comfortable going off and pursuing jazz shows until I knew that I had contributed to the task at hand.