We are one in a million.
One in a million is how our principal is described.
Growing up and going through public school, creativity and individual thought were, often times, stifled. The diagramming of a sentence was far more important than the content. Believing I was not creative or able to write, I buried myself in the sciences and entered Brandeis University as a Biology major.
Despite my scientific bent, I was required to take certain non-science “paper” classes (i.e., Humanities, etc.). The professors loosely proscribed by the length of papers, but not the style and level of creativity. (e.g., Comparing and contrasting Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness, The Doors’ The End, and Apocalypse Now). It was through these papers that I understood I had a voice, style, and tone that was all my own. I wound up becoming a Philosophy major, researching, writing, and arguing my way through college and into law school.
In law school, I became a thorough researcher, a clear and persuasive writer, and a meticulous editor. As an attorney, my writing had to be grammatically correct and measure up to the critical eyes of Federal judges while espousing creative and persuasive arguments on benefit of my clients. However, perhaps the most-important skill I learned was how to “translate” complex and technical laws and concepts into plain English for my clients.
When I transitioned into business consulting I was, often, my clients’ voice. I devised their marketing strategies for both digital and traditional media. Moreover, I learned to adapt my writing to speak to an audience of diverse educational levels and socioeconomic backgrounds.
For reasons I cannot explain, I look at the world differently than most people. (e.g., How do critics of Fitzgerald KNOW what he meant in Gatsby if they did not actually speak to him? How do they know that pet food has a new and improved flavor?). I process information in a very unique fashion and think outside of the box (and some would say the warehouse that the proverbial box is stored in) which allows to me to solve complicated problems in imaginative and clever ways.
When I take on a client, I learn everything I can about their business and industry. How else can I hope to solve or resolve their marketing issues? Anyone that does not take the time to get to know you and your business is incapable of developing an effective marketing strategy. I’m not sure if that makes me evolutionary or revolutionary, but I know it makes me one in a million.