Ageist and proud of it

(Guest Post by Bill Kellett, pictured, President of Kellett Communications in Yellowknife)

TCAAN recently gave me a Master Advertising Practitioner <<random Dora shout out: “I’m a map, i’m a map, yes i’m a map!”>> designation. It opened my eyes and I am appreciative but I have to ask, based on what did I deserve this designation? Success? No. Mentorship or leadership?  Not that either.  Just experience. Therefore it has to count for something right!

A lot of talk about this being the age of the consumer, at least in the digital sense, leads me to wonder what do I have to offer them? As I write this I know my eyes don’t want to stay open and the glare of a computer screen after 16 hours is bad both for me and my marriage.  And yes, younger members of our team can totally do the late nights (and kudos for their doing so) they way I can only remember.  But the kicker is, my eyes may not see what’s being typed (insert sp. mistake here) but I know what I want to say.  Moreover, I know what I’m saying has value because it has experience and insight ingrained in it.  This isn’t just a cliché about doing it with my eyes closed, I’m really doing it.

So let the team walk in bright eyed and bushy tailed. Let them burn the candle at both ends and let them bounce around the room without the aid of caffeinated substances.  We’ve got it going on us old timers.  We know what worked yesterday. And without us, you wouldn’t know which pot to piss in. Booyah!

This is me in my 30s. What does that all sound like? A load of shit from a guy that wants to stay relevant.

It’s a young persons game. What we’re learning new is second nature to them.  They are the new consumers, the influencer and the target audience all rolled up into one.  Don’t forget it or you’ll get a MAP too.