Last time, James challenged Sophie to share a recent book recommendation.
I’ve always had a soft spot for the gothic. Shirley Jackson’s We Who Have Always Lived in the Castle has been one of my favorite reads this year. Sly, unexpected, full of bewitching descriptions of rural America and featuring a very endearing black cat, you’re in for a treat.
I am challenging myself to create a garden.
I do not have green fingers. At home, my husband is ‘head of plants’. But I love flowers and gardens and more generally, being outside. Buoyed up by enthusiasm and propelled by stubbornness (because I said I’d do it, I will), I’ve designed a plan for our garden that’s slowly coming to fruition. First the beds, then the soil mix. Next up: planting.
I am challenging my colleagues to build value into our process.
For as long as I’ve worked in this industry, there’s been a conversation around pricing models. Broadly, we seem to recognise that charging clients for work by the hour – the industry norm – devalues our work. The solution is not so simple. Recently, I vibe-coded a tool to measure and analyse success, which links our process with outcomes-based pricing.
I am challenging my clients to lead with emotion.
I was heartened to read that, in ANA B2B Marketing’s report from this summer, B2B Creativity: Busting Myths, 98% of marketers agree that creativity is extremely or very important to B2B advertising and marketing. Less pleasing was the discovery that the majority of respondents (56%) think that emotional connections and functional benefits matter equally to brand building.
I am challenging the industry to keep our heads.
For many, the threat of AI outweighs the benefits: everyday efficiencies are being undermined by existential fear. In the last year, I’ve read articles shrilly predicting the death of every role within creative agencies, while individuals staunchly defend their titles. AI can do many things well. Fundamentally, it is not creative or original. Let’s back ourselves and each other.
I am challenging you to think about your value proposition as a human brain.
I was fascinated to hear a client talking about how, as AI-generated content (slop!) fills our web pages, human-generated content will become a minority and therefore scarce, valuable data source. One way of combatting the AI overwhelm is to consider its most valuable use cases and, conversely, where our human brains are infinitely better and smarter.
