Why Advertising?

I’ve always been asked why I want to work in advertising and more specifically, why creative? Getting into something that my parents would worry about is what I’ve done most of my life. “Which universities have accepted you? Why aren’t you studying law? Who’s that boy? What’s so good about advertising? What’s that rabbit doing here? Why are you wearing that? Where are you going?” I wouldn’t say that I was a problematic child looking for trouble; I just had the thirst to do something different. When everyone was going for red and purple highlights, I dyed my hair jet black, when people were going for the more grown up look, I was still engrossed with powerpuff girls, pink leopard prints and Sailor Moon (I still am actually). I studied French at a Chinese high school, I watched Korean dramas religiously and in my spare time I read up on Greek mythology, philosophy, Chinese history and Egyptian civilization. There are so many things in the world that I want to learn about, especially different cultures and languages so I can be a fountain of interesting (and random) knowledge.

Being a creative is more than just imagining fantastic creatures or crazy ideas, wearing artiste glasses, carrying a moleskin everywhere for random spurts of inspiration or chain-smoking. There’s intensive thinking and re-thinking, digging through your mind to find your weirdest experiences partnered with this huge challenge of not thinking big enough, not owning the idea, not making it money. But the great thing about advertising is that you don’t have to do it alone, there are people who can help guide you in the right direction. Every day I can come to work with simple directions and go about sculpting something amazing out of this block of idea clay. There’s so much human interaction and so many challenges when it comes to concepting and I love it. It’s in advertising that I can do exactly what I love with unlimited creative freedom and infuse a little me into it. In this give-take relationship I have with advertising, I offer a fresh, sharp mind filled with ideas and cultural experiences and a never-ending supply of bubbling energy.

Besides, it sounds really good when you say “Ellis Luk, Creative Mastermind and Professional Pictionary Player” out loud. Whenever others ask me what I’m doing, I can say “sorry, confidentiality clause” with an apologetic smile or draw some abstract illustration they wouldn’t understand and maintain an air of mystery.

But back to the story about why advertising, I want to use my passions to illuminate this unfamiliar territory to those around me and the ever-changing atmosphere will keep me in constant self-improvement. Advertising might just make me a better person: committing to pro-bono work and doing things outside my comfort zone.

And of course, being the filial daughter, I did end up taking a business minor to ease their worries a bit.