The Rant: Who Can You Trust?

By / June 2, 2009 /

Volume 29 In a Series By Felix

I’m still compiling part two of my “great client” article, but it’s been too long since I aired a grievance here on The Denver Egotist. And today, I am presenting you a question that I’ve been asking myself over the last few weeks – who can you trust?

This pertains to your working life, of course, I really don’t want to know the details about questionable members of your family or CIA wiretapping. But when it comes to your place of work (or your temporary place of work, freelancers), who around you do you think is rock-solid?

If you’re in a cubicle farm, pop your head up like a Prairie Dog and take a long look around. If you’re in an office, take a stroll. Eye up your co-workers.

You’ve got a few good buddies, right? Sure, there are some oddballs, a few people you pass in the hall and rarely talk to, and people you downright despise. But those few you can really count on, well, they’re gold. So, count ‘em up. How many people can you trust? Here’s the answer…none of them. The only person you can count on is, well, you.

If you’re a fresh-faced graduate or intern, no amount of my preaching will get this to sink in; this is something you’ll need to experience for yourself. If you’ve been in this game as long as I have (or God help you, even longer) you’ll already know this, but will most likely be nodding along as you read.

I first found out about the cutthroat world of advertising the hard way, as a junior in my first job. My AD and I were working on a major car account and the account director was as friendly and good-natured as they come. A few people had warned us about “Graham” but we couldn’t work out what the fuss was about. He was a genuinely nice guy.

The work we did on the account was always well received, and Graham congratulated us in every meeting. Then, a few weeks later, we were called into our Creative Director’s office and he presented us with the list of complaints and out-and-out lies that Graham had given him. We were shocked. He must have made a mistake.

But no, it was nice Graham. It turned out he had briefed us incorrectly on the job, and decided to reverse-engineer the whole mess on us. As we were juniors, no one would doubt that we were in the wrong. We got our asses kicked around the office and we were taken off the account. A few weeks later, we passed Graham in the hall and he told us he had nothing to do with it, and he was really sorry to see us leave the account. Prick.

Now, OK, I hear some of you already saying that it’s natural to have some doubt about account managers and marketing peeps. But what about fellow creatives? That’s where things get a little different…in no way whatsoever.

Your creative co-workers will fuck you over any chance they get if it means they get something good out of it. Case in point; a few years later my AD and I were set to work on a killer account. It was the kind of account everyone drools over when they see it on the traffic sheet. We talked to our CD and asked to be considered for it. He said he already had us in mind, so we naturally went to a bar to down a few celebratory drinks. The team we were best friends with at the time congratulated us and told us we’d do a great job.

A week later, the job got handed to our teammates. They’d been working over the weekend to do spec work on that account and gave a full presentation to the CD the day before we were due to get it. He loved their enthusiasm and handed it to them. We were floored. They just looked at us and said “that’s the ad game guys.”

Make no mistake about it; in the environment in which you have placed yourself, that of marketing and advertising, you are swimming with sharks on a daily basis. And in this economy, when jobs are scarce and bankruptcies are at an all-time high, the game is being played harder than ever.

People who laugh with you and buy you drinks at lunch will be in closed door meetings with the boss stealing your account, your promotion, hell, they’ll even have a crack at getting your ass fired if you’re a threat to their career and their salary. And they’ll smile the whole time they do it. They may even wonder why you’re so pissed at them when you find out, with a shrug of the shoulders and a casual “what, what did I do, what’s wrong with your face?” as they celebrate their victory over you – the schmuck of the century. There’s a terrific quote from an awesome movie, Goodfellas, that sums up this mentality…

“If you’re part of a crew, nobody ever tells you that they’re going to kill you, doesn’t happen that way. There weren’t any arguments or curses like in the movies. See, your murderers come with smiles, they come as your friends, the people who’ve cared for you all of your life. And they always seem to come at a time that you’re at your weakest and most in need of their help.” – Henry Hill

OK, so you ain’t gonna get whacked, but the principal is the same. This is cloak and dagger territory, my friends. You either learn it now and keep your guard up, or become another “goodfella” who finishes last.

Now by all means, make friends. Have buddies. Play golf with them. But don’t ever think, for one second, that you can trust them. Any of them. Ever. When it comes down to it, they’re all looking out for number one…and if you’re not, you’ll be flushed down the crapper as number two.

Before I get back to watching my own…umm…back, I’d like to throw the question out there to you; how were you screwed over by people who you thought you could trust? What surprising and nasty shit took you completely by surprise, and what was the fallout? Better yet, did you get your own back, and if so, how?

The best answer will get the latest Denver Egotist T-Shirt – a target on your back to remind you never to forget the world in which you work:

But don’t leave anything to chance, put your hand into your deep pocket and buy one for $14.50 (or more if you change the t-shirt stock). All the proceeds will go towards the next evolution of TheDenverEgotist.com. You can order straight from Zazzle right here. Just pick your size and t-shirt style, and you’re good to go.

I’ll leave you with a quote that’s been passed down through the centuries, and is always good advice; “Do it to them before they do it you.”

Watch your backs, people.