Maquinna's Poop du Jour

When a Creative Job Really Isn't

Sometimes people ask me what I do for a living, and when I tell them I'm a marketing director at a university, they always respond with something like "oh, cool!" This immediately makes me feel like I must burst their bubble, because what seems, on the surface to be a funky and creative gig in a young, energetic environment, is anything but.

People hear 'marketing' and they think I get to wear funky purple shoes, and spend my days designing gorgeous brochures and giving free reign to every spark of ingenuity that runs through my head. What little people know...

I work for the man. I don't get to design things the way I want or the way I think they should be. I frequently have to make things that I despise. I write a lot of copy...saying the same thing a hundred different ways, constantly in search of the magic words that will bring students running to the door...because remember, this is all about the bottom line.

I crunch a lot of numbers - yes, you do that in marketing. I run statistical analyses of campaigns, create and deal with budgets, deal with unruly databases, and write proposals justifying my need for more money.

Budgets and money - there's never enough of either. This means that I have to create crap because I can't afford to do anything really truly cool with enough cash to make a real impact. The idea that you reap what you sow still falls on deaf ears with our administration, which has a great distrust of marketing. As far as they're concerned, people should just flock to the school without any advertising at all. They think this place is hot shit and that everyone feels the same way.

Mostly, I have to sell an idea that I don't believe in. That's the worst of it. I spend 25% of my time dealing with administrative stuff, 50% trying to make silk purses out of sows' ears, and another 25% just buggering off and doing whatever. The sad truth is they think I walk on water but I'm so jaded and uninspired that I'm not inclined to put any real effort into it - especially since I'm not pressed to.

What's good about the job? A stable paycheque, decent benefits...that's pretty much it. I have a great deal of autonomy and I have the best boss I've ever had, who just leaves me alone and trusts me to do my work. And yes, I do get to wear whatever shoes I want. I suppose I should be grateful - a lot of people never get a gig this good. For someone else, this might be a dream job. For me...well...the day can't come fast enough when I can leave it behind and really let my creative juices take reign.

I'm not so naive as to think running my own photography business won't be a hard slog too. I know there'll be sucking up to do, and some photography jobs that get done just for the money, and a heck of a lot of marketing...but I'll get to call all the shots and if things aren't working, I can't blame anyone but myself.

Anyway, the next person who suggests that my job is cool is going to get an invitation to follow me around for a day and see if they can stop themselves from opening a vein before 5:00.

posted by Maquinna @ 10:37 a.m.