Let me take you way back. Kinda like the picture. Before I knew what marketing communication was.

When I was growing up in Hales Corners, Wisconsin and my two older brothers were playing every sport imaginable, all I wanted to do was play violin, sing in every school ensemble, take dance lessons and audition for the next school play.  

Let’s face it,  I was a ham who loved the arts and enjoyed having my moment in the sun.

As I put together my brand new website, I pondered this. Performing has always been a part of my life (albeit at different levels during different times of my life). Sure, I wrote a little fiction in elementary school and even some plays, which is the essential bridge from writing to performing, as a young adult. But is it strange that a triple threat like me (which is what I considered myself to be at 10 years old) ended up writing for a living? Was there a connection between my writing and performing?

Then I realized that every experience I had in the fine arts ultimately made me a better marketing communication specialist. Whatever I was doing, whether I was singing a song, playing a sonata, doing a dance, bringing a character to life on stage or writing a short story, I was expressing myself and trying to evoke a feeling from my audience.

Recently, our school district fell under the threat of budget cuts for the arts and formed an organization called ArtSpeaks, which has a mission to inspire the community to value and advocate for a quality Arts education. The Facebook page is filled with lots of articles espousing the virtues of an arts education and the beautiful effect that the fine arts has on body and soul. And I guess I’m just  another testament to it.

Just as I loved the spotlight in the past, my love of marketing communication stems from my desire to give clients that same thrill, their very own moment in the sun. It’s not on a stage and  I don’t teach them to sing or dance; I help them win their starring role in the marketplace–in the form of a beautiful website, an award, great results for a marketing campaign, a media placement, or an effective piece of content.

For various reasons, I never followed a career in the performing arts but have instead worked in marketing communications all my life. After college, I started down a career path that took me from small agency to small agency where I honed my skills, earned my stripes and finally, got my wings and opened Big Ideas Writing in Chicagoland, my home for two decades.  

I love what I do and in case you’re wondering, yes, I still sing a little and play a little violin, guitar or piano, but mostly in people’s basements, where my level of skill belongs. My dancing is only permitted away from the rolling eyes of my children,  and occasionally with my closest of friends when a live band is present.

At Big Ideas Writing, we want to put you in the spotlight with marketing strategy and branding, website content, content marketing or even ghostwriting. Give us a call today at 630.778.6182.