May 20, 2004
bad ideas

If you work in an advertising agency, you have a 90% chance that within five years your job will fall into one of two categories.
1. Non-existant.
2. Overworked, underpaid, schleppy slave-labor etc.
I know it. You know it. Seth Godin knows it.
I’ve got a plan. Do you?
"Hugh's Daily Cartoon" Newsletter.
A new cartoon sent out every weekday morning to your inbox [RSS version here.].
A wee chuckle to start your day off right etc.








Does that mean that good ideas never live?
I like the cartoons, have you ever experimented with business comic letters? if so, did they work?
John
Good ideas on TV?.… Naaah. Can’t be done
The current breed of advertisers will be redundant because…
1. their ads are Lies (bigtime lies, the type pharmaceutcal ads contain)
2. their ads are full of lies (smaller, less easily identifiable lies, lies nevertheless)
3. their lying is deliberate
4. their ads contain lies and half-truths mixed together, to manipulate
5. their work has no Purpose behind it other than prostituting their creativity to push products they probably wouldn’t buy themselves. In many cases, products of dubious real benefit to consumers, and harmful to the survival of the planet.
6. those on the receiving end hate the result of their work, and would rather live in a World without their polluting lies and patronizing manipulations.
7. they think advertising is some magic formula that can sell anything, but don’t face up to the simple truth that if people (in ever greater numbers) turn away from manipulative, patronizing ads (because of reasons above), everything they do is worthless.
I am generalizing, and hope I am offending.
Evolution is on the side of Purpose and authentic passion.
Those without Purpose, without authentic passion for their Purpose, are walking out on themselves. No one is “doing” anything to you if in a few years time you find yourself jobless. You are simply going against the evolution of humanity, and thus are incompatible with the scheme of things if YOU don’t change.
The good thing is, we all can discover our Purpose, and break free from drudgery and slavery. But, dear reader, you wont yours if you stay stuck as a cog in the soul-less machine called “mass advertising”.
Take the step… the path will meet you as your foot strikes the dusty ground.
Enterprise purely for the sake of profit required mass advertising to deceive or manipulate. But with people waking up more and more, and with the power of the Internet to cut through corporate doublespeak, the profit motive as the only motive will be the death of profit. Delicious irony.
(Promote what you deeply believe in for a change. Who says you can’t be rich by doing what you care for?)
But Morpheus, what do you REALLY think?