Back from the dead

So, it's been about a year since my last post. Needless to say, it's been a pretty busy year with work and living life (yes, I did run a marathon while not writing my blog). This, of course, has resulted in my choice to almost exclusively use tumblr to post quick videos and comments on things I find interesting.

However, lately I've found myself thinking about the idea of mentorship, professional development and the workplace. Throughout my career, I've had different mentors at different times. In one job my boss was a mentor. In other jobs, my team members were. And, in several cases, my mentor has been someone working in the industry but not at my company (this can be refreshing because it allowed me to be truly open and honest about situations, concerns and questions). Traditionally, the belief is that your boss should mentor you. However, this is not always the case and frankly doesn't always work (even though it can be great when it does).

As my friend, Anya Kamentz, states in her Fast Company article, A Case for Changing the Way We View Mentors: "We need a new model of mentorship. We're living in an age of networks, not hierarchies; knowledge and wisdom is distributed, rather than concentrated among the gray hairs. Moreover, we're bringing more of ourselves to work and we're often chasing meaning over profit. The new model has to be more flexible and forgiving, to allow for the fact that mentorships, like any relationship, come in different flavors and change over time."

Thanks to digital communications, we can connect and learn from people all over the world in meaningful and effective ways. Blogs, conversations on LinkedIn (both personal and within groups), Facebook groups and Twitter are opening doors that previously weren't visible. That being said, there are currently a few blogs I look to for industry advice and growth within the planning discipline. Additionally, I have also connected with some of the writers via LinkedIn and Twitter, allowing me to continue the conversation in a more meaningful way. Here's a list of some of my favorites, in no particular order:

• Gareth Kay's Brand New: Head of Planning at Goodby in San Francisco
• Carlos Henrique Vilela's  BR Planning: Planning Manager at Filadelfia in Brazil
  He has a really awesome series in his blog that any aspiring and junior to mid-level planner should check out - Advice for the Next Generation Planner
• Mark Pollard's Life. Then Strategy: Strategy Director at McCann Sydney in Australia. *He just became the SVP, Global Planning Director at Saatchi & Saatchi in New York as of May
  One of my favorite posts is his post, "Why the World Doesn't Need Another Digital Strategist."
• Heather LeFevre's Buy Me, I'll Change Your Life: Head of Planning for Strawberry Frog in Amsterdam
  She's also the mind behind The Planner's Survey, a great tool to assess what's going on in planning around the world, what salary ranges are in different locations and in different positions, etc.
• Ana Andjelic's i [love] marketing: Senior Planner at Huge in New York

Who are some of your favorites?

Who are your career "heroes?"

Last night, I attended an event for the Minneapolis chapter of the Interpublic Group's Women's Leadership Network. A panel of three senior-level women, Nancy Knutson, senior marketing communications manager at Jack Link's, Maureen Bausch, executive vice president for Mall of America and Sona Mehring, founder and executive director of CaringBridge, shared the story of their career trajectory and advice for others wishing to benefit from their expertise. It was moderated by KMSP anchor Robyne Robinson.

In addition to getting multiple packets of Jack Link's beef jerky (a definite plus!), the event got me thinking about my career role models and mentors. One consistent theme among all four women was the role that mentors and their professional heroes played in helping them realize their goals. So, naturally, I started thinking about who my "heroes" are.

The list I came up with surprised me a little. One of them was an obvious choice as a leader in the advertising industry, but the other three were people I know personally who have inspired me - definitely not a conclusion I expected. The list below is in no particular order.

1) David Droga (the obvious choice): David Droga, the founder of Droga5, runs an advertising agency that consistently comes up with some of the most fun and engaging work in the industry. He's smart, creative and uses his influence for positive change (not something that is common in advertising). I love his work for the Tap Project.

Also, love the awesome viral stunt, "bike hero."
Plus, we can't forget the latest Puma website, which I just ran into today - Puma Lift. It's brilliantly fun.

2) Nick O'Neill, creator of AllFacebook.com and the Social Times: I met my friend, Nick, when we both worked at Fleishman Hillard Digital in Washington, DC. At the time, Nick was always talking about how he was starting his own company - not something you usually hear from someone in their mid-twenties with no expendable income. Nick went out, found funders and did it. Two years later, he's a successful entrepreneur.

To directly quote his profile on Facebook, "being highly active in the web and entrepreneurial communities, locally and nationally, Nick helped to bring the first Tech Cocktail to Washington, D.C. With the opening of the Facebook platform, Nick saw a huge opportunity and has become fully dedicated to covering the social networking phenomenon and developing creative applications for clients looking to gain exposure. Since the launch of the platform Nick has been featured on NPR, Fast Company, Practical Ecommerce, The New York Times and multiple other national publications." Nick sets goals and finds ways to accomplish what often doesn't seem possible.

3) Mark Clark, Deputy Program Manager at SAIC: Hands down, Mark is the best boss I've ever had. I worked with him originally at the Fund for Peace. There, Mark developed the Conflict Assessment System Tool (CAST), a computer-based model to assess vulnerable, failing and failed countries. Even though, I was only an intern, Mark included me in the work, which ended up providing the background for my Master's thesis. When Mark moved on to his next job at SAIC, he brought me with him as a short-term contractor.

Mark is one of the most intelligent people I've worked with and inspires intellectual curiosity in his coworkers. In addition, Mark has been consistently supportive throughout my professional growth. He is a friend as well as a mentor.

4) Grant Eull, Senior Interactive Art Director at Colle+McVoy: Grant's passion for all things interactive is amazing. It inspires me and excites my passion for the digital field.

Grant was one of the best teachers I had in my time at Brainco. He brings excitement both about the field and his students' work to each class. He is an instructor who truly cares about his students. And, he's a creative who truly loves the interactive field.

I'd love to hear who other people's career "heroes" are. Who are the people that inspire you?