Think tanks

Ever wonder why every agency you’ve ever been to has an enormous fish tank in the lobby? Because nurturing creative minds is a lot like caring for exotic fish. You can’t feed them food inside rusted out Schaefer cans, still razor-sharp from the days when tetanus was a veritable rite of passage for every girl and boy. The one chum to have when you’re having more than one…

No, they want a multi-course meal with new place settings and silverware after each palate cleanser. They want the nominal corkage fee waived for good measure. And they want it all just for the asking. But even saffron, gold leaf and caviar get old after a while. It’s why, when nervously inhaling a literal footlong pre-interview in a Barcelona Chair, the lobby fish stare at you. They instinctually sense that there’s more out there. They’re not dumb, nor are they bored. They’re hungry. 

They also happen to be wrong. Because while they’re staring at us, we should be staring at them. Every office should have four to six creative think tanks. When cleaned regularly, they’ll appear open enough. Tanks would give creatives a place to relax and ideate. Washington, DC has no shortage of so-called “think tanks,” which I figured would utilize this glorious tank concept with the sole purpose of answering the most difficult questions. But apparently, they prefer staying dry, Windsor collars and all, to getting wet and wild. Since employees of supposed think tanks aren’t going to hop inside a glass box full of water, it’s time ad folks controlled the narrative and did so. Frankly, we don’t bathe enough as it is. 

The trouble is, when you’re not in the office, epiphanies can arrive unexpectedly and at any moment. So you must be ready to accept a new idea. This starts with taking some time to reflect on your place in the world and industry. Reflection comes naturally to us, often done after a shave or shower in the bathroom of our dreams. 

This is wrong and it needs to stop.  

Don’t waste your time looking in the mirror when reflective surfaces are everywhere. Try gazing into a stranger’s sunglasses as they pass you on the street, an exposed air duct with that perfect metallic gleam. Or, speaking of fish, a tranquil koi pond if you somehow find yourself randomly behind the gates of a walled garden. 

The best reflection is done as far from the bathroom as possible. 

There’s more than reflection to be done out in the wild, miles from the workplace. Those who only look in the obvious places for inspiration will obviously create obvious ads. They’re looking at the work of their peers and within advertising periodicals, when they should be venturing into the unknown.

Whether in the appendix of a comprehensive book on the history of Bronx street names or ripples in a birdbath, I find insights wherever I look for them. Whether in between dusty bottles of wine or a tray of escargot during a free and easy Bastille Day celebration, I find insights whenever I look for them. 

I see them clearly now that the foie gras is gone. Insights are only insightful if they’re in sight.