Trending from G/L: Important Lessons on Higher Education We Learned from a Spelling Bee

Shawn Maher
Copywriter

Trending from G/L: Important Lessons on Higher Education We Learned from a Spelling Bee

The Scripp’s Spelling Bee is a long-running annual tournament that pits the nation’s best elementary school spellers against each other in a tension-filled contest to crown the champion speller. Or at least that was what it was designed to do. In this year’s tournament, somehow eight students all tied for first place… and that’s not even the worst part.

One participant managed to circumvent the system and buy his way in without actually earning a spot. For the second year in a row. The student’s parents blamed Scripps Spelling Bee for a lack of oversight while spelling bee officials blamed the parents and school for a lack of supervision.

His parents said they knew their son hadn’t won the school bee. They claimed, however, that he sent the application on his own, and they merely paid fees and made travel arrangements with no suspicion of any wrongdoing whatsoever. When contacted by the Palm Beach Post, his father told the reporter,  “We are busy. We have three kids. We have a job. Unless we have a letter from the school, unless I have to take him somewhere or pick him up, we are not that involved.”

What is lost in the blame game, however, is a lack of understanding about why we strive for academic achievement in the first place. Between this snafu and the recent headline-grabbing, celebrity-laden college admission scandal, whatever happened to the idea of education as a tool for lifelong success?

The value of academic achievement, all the way from elementary school through higher education institutions, is found in obtaining knowledge and mastering skills. Not just framing a certificate or diploma to hang on the wall, but also utilizing your achievements to become successful in all of your future endeavors.

The more difficult the journey, the more rewarding it will be when you finally reach the summit. A diploma may get you in the door, but the invaluable skills that you have gained on the way to obtaining that diploma are what set you up to achieve your life goals. And that is the lesson that seems to have been lost in these recent incidents.

At the heart of these sentiments is what helps foster true success for institutes of higher learning. It is not an appeal to those searching for a shortcut or a transactional relationship. Instead, higher learning is an appeal to a lifelong hunger for knowledge, a quest for self-improvement and an aspiration to become something better, leaving the world a better place than it was before you entered it. It can be tempting, especially in such a fast-moving society, to seek out the path of least resistance. However, if there is anything we have learned recently, it is that the ability that results from a good education is a far more important predictor of long-term success. It may take more time and hard work, but the reward is definitely worth it.

4 Essential Truths In Advertising That Haven’t Changed in 30 Years

Geile/Leon Marketing Communications

4 Essential Truths In Advertising That Haven’t Changed in 30 Years

Throughout 30 years, massive changes are inevitable for every industry, and advertising is no exception. New research, changing demographics and media landscapes and more have made the best practices of old almost unrecognizable from the best practices of today. But through it all, there are concrete and essential truths that have never changed about this industry. Here’s just a few…

Good Creative Wins

While the mediums and the platforms have drastically changed over the years and continue to evolve every day, good creative has always been what matters. From print ads in the 80s to social media ads today, the most important component of success has been and always will be good creative. Agencies that have continuously invested in big thinkers and talented designers and writers are the ones that have survived year after year. At the end of the day, no matter how good your execution and targeting, it’s the idea that matters most.

Relationships Matter

Maintaining strong relationships with our clients, vendors and partners has been paramount to our success as an agency. Printing and hand-delivering production pieces in the old days helped us form great relationships with everyone we did business with then, and that continues now with digital transfers, conference calls, working lunches and emails. Forming those strong bonds have made an immeasurable difference during tough times and bumps in the road. The power of good relationships can’t be overstated.

It has to mean something

Our motto at Geile/Leon is “Make It Mean Something.” At advertising’s core, this is what our work is about. David Ogilvy once said: “It’s not creative if it doesn’t sell.” Playing off of David Ogilvy’s words, when your message and your advertising means something to your target audience, it’s going to sell and it’s going to make a difference. The greatest strength that advertisers can have is empathy – if you can put yourself in another person’s shoes and understand what kind of message will truly mean something to them, you’re going to produce impactful and brilliant work.

You have to love what you do

Advertising is not a business for the thin-skinned or weak-willed. If you don’t love what you do, the crazy schedules and client requests will quickly become overwhelming. But if you’re like us, you just may find yourself enjoying this rollercoaster that we call a career.  No matter how things change over the next 30 years, the quality of your work will depend on how much you love doing it and how much passion you bring to the workplace. As long as you’re passionate, and maybe just a little bit crazy, you’re going to have a place in advertising.

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