Over 40 in Advertising

I spent almost 20 years at agencies. I got laid off last year and took a consulting role at the manager level in Big Tech. I’m paid enough to be comfortable and have little stress because I’m doing a … more

How much wine/alcohol do you drink in a week & your age? I will start - 45/M & on an average 1 bottle of wine weekly.

Today is the first day Millennials turn 40! Welcome to the club.

Seems like the silly season for predictions, so why not? Got any you want to share? Extra gold stars if they relate to this bowl and are, even moderately upbeat. Okay, that may be pushing it.

I'm close to burning out, but I've just been given a new massive project to staff and roll out in a very short timeframe. It's going to take a series of miracles to pull off and represents a signific… more

Will be turning 50 this summer and there’s a good chance I’ll hit 700k in 401k valuation before the end of year and it’s probably the thing I regret least in all the years put into this industry...

Need to give the website a refresh. Anyone have a preferred site with simple templates? Is it SquareSpace or bust?

I’m more than a smidge taken with McKinsey’s phrase, “the next normal”—while it doesn’t change my opinion of their impact on things (having lived with the backwash of their “whatever you were doing, d… more

Does anyone in Connecticut have any recommendations for safe frozen meal delivery services for elderly parents? Looking for something healthier and more sustainable than DoorDash or pizza delivery.

Have you started taking dates of jobs off your resume? Just leaving off the older ones? Or just listing it all?

Ogilvy just laid off several great creatives 40s-early 50s. Only ones left are under-30.

Writers, I am partnered w an AD who asks me to get my copy approved before he'll put in layout. Banners, etc. Then I only get to see it minutes before we present to the project leads. The AD is no… more

At that age now that the time I started my career in advertising was when some of my colleagues were born. 😳

My experience in a nutshell:
-Joined agency before 40
-Stayed over a decade, the money was good
-A divorce kept me dependent on a significant salary/benefits
-Lost job during Covid layoffs in spring

Now … more

Partnering with a less experienced AD whose ego is gigantic, and he is not at all collaborative. Our work shows that we are not working together. I admire the CD we are working for so it's extra..… more

Parents, any tips for working in quality time with kids during the work week? My calls usually start before mine are even awake, and by the time I emerge from my home office at 6pm I’m exhausted, irr… more

I was just bitched out by a PM who (according to his LinkedIn profile) was a student four years ago, while the people pleaser baby ACD nodded and placated the PM. Some jobs you earn the bucks...

You guys ever feel like creatives used to be crazier? Like, more jokes. More laughing. My hilarious jokes are lost on the Millennials. It's like working with accountants.

I got through 4th round interviews where every interview was GREAT, but the day after the 4th they cut me. I was devastated, but the next day started a new round of interviews with another exciting op… more

This one is the perfectly horrible storm: as a result, Forrester is predicting advertising will shed 52,000 jobs through 2021. Meanwhile, this bowl is seeing increased numbers of unemployed +40 folks… more

Anyone else going on 6+ months unemployed due to COVID? If so, how are you staying positive and hopeful for the future?

What do you have saved in your 401k + retirement accounts and what’s your age? What are your “getting older” career plans?

The good news is that just when I had given up hope of a full-time job being in my future, I get a response from a pretty good agency, followed by three interviews in 48 hours, all just PERFECT. The … more

Did it cost anything to be placed on Campaign’s 40 over 40?

"Can a man of 81 be good at anything in advertising, or is it ipsofacto that you're useless at 81? They're out there saying, for God's sake, get rid of that old codger. But I've h… more

Done faking it. When people ask how’s it going I now say, It’s shit, stressful and anxiety producing. How are you?

Anybody here old enough to have gone through the colonoscopy process? Any advice for getting through the prep stage?

Made it to 49 and employed in this biz without any layoffs but didn’t make it past the Pandemic and currently contracting while I figure out what’s next. Would rather continue contracting than work fo… more

Just wishing everyone who can use it a happy new year