The Worst Self-Marketing Strategy Ever
Devised …
and Why It Fails So Spectacularly
“Any fool can criticize, condemn, and complain and most fools do.”
Benjamin Franklin
Many years ago, I taught a class at the Learning Annex in New York City on how to make a six-figure income as a freelancer. One student, JR, wanted to break into writing TV commercials for Madison Avenue, and he had devised what was (according to him) a brilliant self-marketing strategy for getting hired.
In actuality, it was the second-worst self-marketing idea I’d ever heard in my life.
JR told the class that he had written some “brilliant” TV commercials.
The Super Bowl was only a few weeks away at the time. JR’s strategy was to show up at the offices of Madison Avenue’s biggest ad agency and show the copy for his commercials to the creative director.
