Young Innovators

Cool agency setting, swanky snacks, all the stars of [young] Madison Avenue in attendance... Black-tie affair? Upper-crust Manhattan-nite event? No mam, it was none other than the Power of Ideas, Young Innovator event.

I am sort of a nerd (as most of you know) and so I love being involved and attending events like this. As a "young" person with high hopes and big dreams, I (along with my peers) often get excited about advertising celebrities from legendary companies in the industry. It's a classic marketing ploy and it works...important people = high attendance. This event was much different. The people on our panel were no less important than the CEO of P&G, believe me, they just had a fraction of the "experience".

Our panel was made up of four people, all under 30, who have done amazing things by being innovative in their daily lives. Jessica who invented a soccer ball that harnesses energy as you play with it, Josh who built a video game, Elandria who works with schools to teach about creative advertising, and Todd who started his own video production company...all in addition to their "day" job except for Todd. But in his own words, he lives, eats, and breaths the company. Oh and we can't forget the moderator, my co-leader of the young professionals, New Business extraordinaire at Universal McCann, and now owner of a cool ice cream cart business...Ori.

It was truly inspiring to see all these...peers...doing such amazing things! I mean, I am the Co-Chair of a Career Conference put on by the Advertising Women of New York and the VP of the Young Pros in Ad Club NYC, but these people have gone so far beyond that... They excel at their jobs and use that forward thinking in every aspect of their lives. They are marrying their passions with their careers and doing actual good in this world. Motivation and drive aren't even the beginning.

The event was a great success and I wasn't alone in my awe and deep appreciation of these panelists. I chatted with several starry-eyed young execs and felt happy to be part of such a wonderful network of people. It reminds me (and us all) that we really can do anything we want to. Resources and success are measured by your own motivation to make our dream into a reality.

To use a cliché, Paul McCartney was told he had no musical talents. Good thing he didn't give up on his dream or where would rock music be without the Beatles?