Once upon a time (almost one year ago), at a Starbucks far far away, I met Anne. It really wasn’t that far away, I guess. We met at the location in Ballwin. Anyway, the two of us sat down together at the end of a long day and got to know each other over foaming cups of something-or-other.
Anne originally wanted to be an art teacher, but she is now a politely opinionated professional working for herself. Here is how she found herself in a different creative field than she expected and the hobbies that keep her creative juices flowing.
Anne originally wanted to be an art teacher, but she is now a politely opinionated professional working for herself. Here is how she found herself in a different creative field than she expected and the hobbies that keep her creative juices flowing.
That’s A Bong!
Anne had completed a fair amount of her education to be an art teacher. She’d always been crafty, still is, but she was looking forward to showing students how to channel their own abilities. Then she started student teaching and suddenly realized this wasn’t going to work.
Because art is meant to be interpreted, it made Anne’s job as a student teacher substantially more challenging. How would parents react to the projects she designed? “I didn’t know if I wanted to deal with some of the parents telling me what I can and can’t teach their kids.”
Even worse, she was teaching high school so the students occasionally took things in a direction she didn’t expect. “In ceramics class I might have a student tell me their piece was a flower pot and I’d have to say ‘guys, it’s not a flower pot, it’s a bong’. I just wanted to teach art!” That was enough for Anne to change her major before she wrapped up her degree in education.
A Marketing Celebrity
Once Anne realized teaching art wasn’t her thing, she spoke to one of her professor’s at Webster University who pointed out Anne’s aptitude in writing and asked why she had given up. Answering bluntly, she responded, “Well… I can’t really do that. That’s not a job.”
Her professor set her straight and then sent her to the marketing department. That’s how she graduated with a degree in marketing and began channeling her creative abilities into the business world! And she has continued to keep herself very busy with work and outside projects, despite thinking that writing wasn’t a viable career path.
One of those outside projects was writing for a local marketing publication called AdSaint, where she created a column called The AdGitator. It became a phenomenon in the industry and soon Anne was a marketing celebrity. “At events people would come up to me like, ‘Oh my gosh, you’re the AdGitator’ and I’d say, ‘Yes, actually I am’.”
Knowing the ins-and-outs of marketing set Anne apart from most of the other students in her class, to the degree that one professor often joked she could teach the class. At that point, she was only in it for the piece of paper at the end, because she understood the value her diploma would hold in the eyes of future employers.
Anne had completed a fair amount of her education to be an art teacher. She’d always been crafty, still is, but she was looking forward to showing students how to channel their own abilities. Then she started student teaching and suddenly realized this wasn’t going to work.
Because art is meant to be interpreted, it made Anne’s job as a student teacher substantially more challenging. How would parents react to the projects she designed? “I didn’t know if I wanted to deal with some of the parents telling me what I can and can’t teach their kids.”
Even worse, she was teaching high school so the students occasionally took things in a direction she didn’t expect. “In ceramics class I might have a student tell me their piece was a flower pot and I’d have to say ‘guys, it’s not a flower pot, it’s a bong’. I just wanted to teach art!” That was enough for Anne to change her major before she wrapped up her degree in education.
A Marketing Celebrity
Once Anne realized teaching art wasn’t her thing, she spoke to one of her professor’s at Webster University who pointed out Anne’s aptitude in writing and asked why she had given up. Answering bluntly, she responded, “Well… I can’t really do that. That’s not a job.”
Her professor set her straight and then sent her to the marketing department. That’s how she graduated with a degree in marketing and began channeling her creative abilities into the business world! And she has continued to keep herself very busy with work and outside projects, despite thinking that writing wasn’t a viable career path.
One of those outside projects was writing for a local marketing publication called AdSaint, where she created a column called The AdGitator. It became a phenomenon in the industry and soon Anne was a marketing celebrity. “At events people would come up to me like, ‘Oh my gosh, you’re the AdGitator’ and I’d say, ‘Yes, actually I am’.”
Knowing the ins-and-outs of marketing set Anne apart from most of the other students in her class, to the degree that one professor often joked she could teach the class. At that point, she was only in it for the piece of paper at the end, because she understood the value her diploma would hold in the eyes of future employers.
A Few Creative Hobbies
I’m a collector of programs from all of the musicals I’ve seen, but Anne collects something more interesting. Antique toys. Her collection is eclectic because it just depends on what catches her eye. It MAY be getting out of hand though. She’s running out of room for all of her toys. “So… I need to dial that back…” she laughed.
She has another creative hobby. “I guess you could say I’m a picker.” Anne loves salvaging old things and turning them into something new. She’s even made tables for herself. “It’s cool, I’m like ‘well nothing like this exists, so I’m just going to make it!’” Another example of her crafty nature is her birds (pictured). Made out of 100% upcycled materials, she's pretty proud of them.
And most impressive, is that Anne is currently working on a book about her dating life! Comparable to Bridget Jones, only “more unfortunate”. After she’d shared several of her stories with friends, they encouraged her to put pen to paper and tell the world. Much of the work is complete, but Anne is revising before she shares.
Conclusion
So there it is. Anne and her creative abilities! We exchanged numbers, said goodbye in the golden glow of the Starbucks windows, and resumed our routines.
I’m a collector of programs from all of the musicals I’ve seen, but Anne collects something more interesting. Antique toys. Her collection is eclectic because it just depends on what catches her eye. It MAY be getting out of hand though. She’s running out of room for all of her toys. “So… I need to dial that back…” she laughed.
She has another creative hobby. “I guess you could say I’m a picker.” Anne loves salvaging old things and turning them into something new. She’s even made tables for herself. “It’s cool, I’m like ‘well nothing like this exists, so I’m just going to make it!’” Another example of her crafty nature is her birds (pictured). Made out of 100% upcycled materials, she's pretty proud of them.
And most impressive, is that Anne is currently working on a book about her dating life! Comparable to Bridget Jones, only “more unfortunate”. After she’d shared several of her stories with friends, they encouraged her to put pen to paper and tell the world. Much of the work is complete, but Anne is revising before she shares.
Conclusion
So there it is. Anne and her creative abilities! We exchanged numbers, said goodbye in the golden glow of the Starbucks windows, and resumed our routines.
