Designing Your Life: The New Advertising Landscape

Adrian Gesky

Introduction

With the world economy being more reliant on remote work, professionals around the world are presented with a unique opportunity to redesign their work life. No longer does your work determine your geographic location and after work activities. This new found time and mobility opens up a world of possibilities for what your life could be no matter what you do. 

Income: Absolute vs. Relative

A key component of designing your life in this new era is the perception of income. Throughout history, income has been measured in terms of salary. This is the absolute income that puts the importance on the dollar amount that you make on a yearly basis. This does not take into account the amount of hours worked per week, only the amount of money guaranteed after a year of hard work. The problem of this perception is that it does not take into account other freedoms gained from the remote nature of today’s work. Time and mobility are the new keys to the game. By factoring these in, you can figure out your relative income. 

What does this mean?

If you think about your income in terms of the time and mobility you have relative to the hours you work, your perception of wealth will be changed forever. Controlling where and when you work gives you a freedom that money can’t buy. Earning $50,000 a year working less than 10 hours a week and having the ability to be anywhere and do whatever you want with your time becomes the equivalent of earning $100,000 a year working more than 80 hours a week. You might think that this doesn’t quite make sense because your purchasing power is far less earning half the amount of money. For those who want the traditional suburban lifestyle, this may not be for you. The idea of relative income is earning enough money to support the lifestyle you desire. There is no pressure to climb up the professional ladder, only to go and do whatever you please with the time that you gain from this new lifestyle. Whether it’s travel, learning a new skill, or immersing yourself in a new culture, the opportunities are endless with the new found freedom you will have.

Opportunities in Advertising

You might be wondering what opportunities are out there for up and coming advertising professionals in this new remote market. For creatives, there is an abundance of opportunities in both freelance and contract positions that will give you the freedom to work on a variety of projects and not be tied down to a single agency or location. From writing to art creation, there are jobs popping up everyday with employers looking for creative minds to help them get through projects without the commitment of taking on a full time employee. This freedom to bounce around from different projects diversifies your portfolio for future positions and gives you the freedom to live the lifestyle you want. As for account managers, the positions may be slim pickens. Since this position requires a lot of leadership and organizational skills, it is difficult for an organization to fluctuate between different people. In the middle of creative and account directors are the media planners and research directors. The opportunities may not be as plentiful as creative, but being able to understand a brand or organization quickly will make you a commodity for these types of remote positions.