On "How Pixar Fosters Collectivity"

During the summer, I was lucky enough to be given the opportunity to intern in one of the top advertising agencies in the country.

In my brief stint in the company, I worked mostly in Creatives - the department that handles the idea generation, conceptualization, and execution of the agency's accounts. In other words, it's the department that brings the actual advertisements into life. I think it's kind of a no-brainer to say that to be able to survive in a department like this, one needs an unlimited supply of creative juices. Ideas should constantly be flowing from your head to your work station 24/7. There is a constant pressure to make each account as good as, or even better than the last. The culture that is brewed within the industry is highly competitive.

This is why I admire advertising people so much. Their daily routine of keeping up with the demands of this cut-throat industry is definitely not an easy feat. We all know what it means to run out of creative juices sometimes… You can't be inspired all the time, and creative mental blocks are inevitable. That's why for creative companies like advertising agencies, it's very important to foster an environment that is conducive to bringing out the best kind of work from its people.

In my internship program, we were grouped into teams of 5 and tasked to work on real accounts. Most of the people in my group were complete strangers before that summer, so in the beginning, we were kind of stumbling. People were shy to contribute ideas, to speak out, to initiate conversation. It was hard to get through that barrier, so it was a struggle for us to generate good ideas at first. Thankfully, however, we had a mentor (the Executive Creative Director of the agency) who gave us great advice not only regarding creating killer ads, but also about working in groups. One of the things he taught us that has stuck with me till now is how we should never be idea killers. This principle is actually the same as what is always taught to us in class by Sir Mark, that is, always be open to new ideas, no matter how crazy they may be. This is also one of the main points in the Pixar article. Openness to experiences, to people, to ideas, helps a lot in giving a person that much needed inspiration. Also, freeing up communication among people, in turn, empowers the group and gives them the confidence they need to push their ideas further.

From this, we can see that what is said in the Pixar article is true. Ideas are important, but what's more important are the people who will generate those ideas. So companies should take note to invest in their people. They are their most valuable resource, after all.