The elevator pitch
I am a content producer with a talent for team building and project management. I like to speak to people’s hearts with authentic messaging. I like to provoke thought, drive consumer choice, and make people laugh.
I help businesses become brands, and I try to tell meaningful stories to further causes I care about.
What I Love To Do
Learning How to Work
I started my career with a passion for storytelling, editing TV commercials at a local TV station. I moved on to do agency work, and from there I moved to Paramus, New Jersey, which is close NYC, to but not in any way shape or form anything LIKE NYC.
I worked hard in New Jersey at a tattoo ink company as their in-house creative producer. We told stories through video, we made disruptive and inspiring ad campaigns. We made people famous, we praised the older generation, the legends of tattooing. In so many ways, we were shaping tattoo culture, and elevating the art form.
We produced large international conventions from scratch – from an idea to a fully branded event with celebrity guests and tens of thousands of visitors – and I was part of that logistics process for 4 years.
We launched a tattoo studio / nightclub – as crazy as it sounds – in the Mirage in Las Vegas, Nevada. We created a documentary video series about tattoo legends. We put together an art class in Florence, Italy for the best tattoo artists we could find to go draw and paint.
Above all else, I learned how to be resilient, hard-working, fast, and effective. Watercooler chat and browsing the internet was for interns. This was real work, and I am forever thankful for that job teaching me how to make dreams and ideas turn into real products, places, and events.
Live from Studio 20
I came back to my hometown a more seasoned creative professional. I knew how to produce quickly and under high pressure. I had worked with top notch freelancers in NYC and the West Coast. I was ready for a new challenge.
I wanted my old studio back because I knew I could make it great. I loved Studio 20 – I missed the way it smelled. I missed the backstage clutter. I missed my desk.
Timing of one director leaving worked out and I was invited back to run the Studio again. I was lucky to find talented people I could convince to spend some time working with me, people I couldn’t afford who didn’t have time would still find their way to Studio 20.
In three short years with amazing support from the family that owned the station, we went from a $0 revenue ‘service department’ to being scheduled to make $250k in annual production revenue when I left.
We also won a bunch of awards. But most importantly, we helped a ton of organizations like the United Way, YMCA, and the Wellness coalition to do good things in our community. Never underestimate the power of a good story.
A Leap of Faith
I was sought out by “Hangout Hospitality Group” to be their Director of Marketing. My wife and I had just learned we were pregnant – and this was a big change we had to consider.
This job was at the beach! There was an ocean view from my office! They ran an entire music festival! We knew we had to rise to the challenge or we’d forever regret not taking the opportunity.
The energy at the HHG was electric – inspiration everywhere, high-pressure tourism challenges, and not a lot of sitting down to be done most days. I spent six months learning from brilliant people – both at the corporate office and those on-site at the restaurant properties.
I worked to save the organization money by bringing in-house many creative services, and drive revenue through consistent branding and engaging live events.
All that would change though, when our first son was born. It was obvious to me right away that I couldn’t spend nights and weekends away from home like I used to. That’s about the time I received a LinkedIn message from a contractor recruiting for BBVA.
Corporate Education
Having worked for so many medium and small businesses, I had no idea what corporate culture was like. I grew up thinking of corporate jobs like the movie Office Space.
Little did I know working as a copywriter for a bank would be one of my favorite jobs ever. I learned Behavioral Economics principles in dedicated workshops. I learned the Agile methodology for project management. I learned how to write for demographics I had never even thought of. I learned about email marketing to hundreds of thousands of customers at once.
I learned about money, and how to be better with my own – and I used that knowledge to hopefully help others do the same.
Also, the team. I learned from experts, and people who have been in the financial industry for decades. I work with people that are there to do their best possible work and to do more than is asked of them. I learned how to contribute outside my immediate team during a country-wide rebranding initiative.
I also learned a lot of time management skills as discussed on the next slide. Ahem.
Collaborating and Chemistry
I have never wanted to be one thing. I’m fortunate that I have had wide and deep experience in various industries. I’ve been a team builder, and I’ve been one man creative agency.
While I am at home in each of these various roles, I prefer to work with an energetic and skilled team where mutual respect for subject matter experts helps everyone do a better job. Teamwork is the bedrock of it all – whether I’m a project manager or a video editor. My freelance work involves everything from digital marketing for a surgery center to writing blog content for a streetwear brand.
I believe in doing a great job no matter what the task is at hand – we can all bring our A-game if we start from a place of support and teamwork.
Working from Home Before Back When It Was Cool
On October 1, 2017, Kellie Newsome and I became parents. On October 31st, 2017 I started working remotely for BBVA as a copywriter. I have never been more productive and focused in my life.
I have always considered myself entrepreneurial – but when you have kids and work from home, your life becomes one integrated experience of getting things done when you can and being on top of things, both full-time employment and client projects.
I love it. I love that I get to take my kids to daycare, and then write a project proposal at 10pm. I love that I get to read books for 20 minutes at naptime, and then have an important phone call.
Loving what you do means you find the time to do it. We can always accomplish what we decide is the most important thing. I love my family, I love challenges, I love problem-solving, and I love working with people. I find time every day for all of these, and that makes me a lucky guy.
However, it should be noted that (in life after COVID-19) I’m ever needed at a three-day business planning meeting or production shoot, I love getting to spend time face to face with my teammates and look forward to that opportunity!
