Check out the work of Joel Chu, Creative Director at Communion W.

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So you’re looking for strategic thinking?

To be honest, I’m looking for attitude. I can’t say I know someone completely after meeting them, but I will try to meet with them for one or two hours and I will sense something about their character. The portfolio can demonstrate skills, but it’s hard to get a sense for their attitude from it.

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I don’t want regrets. Some people just want it to be done. But I want it to be as good as it can be. And I want to find other people with the same thinking. Sometimes I try to push them. But I really want people who will take action by themselves. When you love the job you don’t think it’s a job, it’s more like a hobby; and hard work isn’t a hardship—you enjoy it. I want people who love the job.

Do people bring you work that isn’t advertising? Like personal projects?

I like it. But advertising must have an objective. I want to see a balance. I want to see someone’s artistic passion and personal point of view, but it must be applied to your job. And you must be concerned about society and what happens in the world, not just yourself and your own interests. I want people who are open minded. Advertising has a responsibility to educate society. It presents options to people. I used to see ads and think, “This is beautiful and different from my life. Maybe I should improve my life like this.” I don’t mean to say that advertising is so important. But advertising can be more than just getting people to spend money. It can have a good message.

I like creativity. I don’t try to define what is advertising and what is design and what is book design. But advertising trains you to have balanced thinking. It must be logic and emotion combined. That is necessary to convey a clear message. It is good training for anything.

So it’s the attitude and the thinking that are important, because they will come through in your work. These are real things from your heart that will be reflected in your writing, painting, and even in advertising.

Is there anything else you want to say to students or juniors?

Read more books. Read more newspapers. Be more concerned about the world. You will become better not just at advertising, but you will become a better person.

You can tell lies to other people, but you can’t tell lies to yourself. Even if people tell you something you did is good, it might not be. You will know in your heart whether it is good. You will know when it is not good enough. And if you lie to yourself, you can’t improve.

When you work you have to apply your whole self. When some people work their thinking is far away. When I am making things I am very focused. Not just for advertising. For everything. And that is the kind of person I am looking for.

Joel Chu