To commemorate our decade-long journey, we've compiled a list of our Top 10 Lessons from 10 Years in Business. Let’s talk about talent.
Talent is undeniably valuable, especially in a creative industry. It can open doors, attract clients, and set an agency apart from its competitors. There’s no question that it elevates our work; each and every Camper brings loads of it to our team across different disciplines. Yet we know it’s not enough to get us where we want to go.
There is a great Under Armour ad that aired in the lead up to the 2016 Summer Olympics. It’s a Michael Phelps training compilation; a 90-second montage of him lifting weights, eating thousands of calories, using a resistance parachute, et al. Throughout, we keep coming back to a shot of Phelps swimming, alone, in a darkened pool that goes on forever. He’s still swimming as the shot fades out and a line comes up that reads, “It’s what you do in the dark that puts you in the light.”
The training regimen was unsurprising. Phelps had already garnered 18 gold medals by the time he was headed to Rio; the importance of leveraging his physical advantages and putting in the work to prepare his body obvious. What made the ad resonate was the endless pool. Pushing himself beyond the limits of his talent, swimming against himself. Mental fatigue and the wrong mindset were the real threats to his success.
So much advertising is done in the pursuit of medals (we can talk about award shows another time) and, when that is the measure, talent often carries the day. But when the rewards you seek are sustainable growth and long-term success? There’s not really a finish line. Talent gets you off the starting block, but then the pool just keeps going. The battle becomes internalized. And you need resilience, determination, and adaptability to keep you swimming along through the darkness, toward the light.
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