Just got back from my daughter’s Dean’s list luncheon. She’ll be graduating from Loyola University in a month with a psych degree. She’s a bit nervous about what’s next.
When I graduated from Rollins College with a BA in behavioral sciences my love was anthropology. “What are you going to do with an anthropology degree?” everyone asked. “Be a teacher? Work in a museum?” Anthropology is the study of people, adaptation, culture and patterns. Who’d a thunk digging through dirt and southern hemisphere ethnographies would have prepared me for a job in advertising and marketing? Not me. But today my interest in people, behavior and patterns generate ideas that position and sell products from engagement rings to web services. Account and brand planners with similar backgrounds often have an edge over B-school grads these days.
In a meeting recently, I mentioned my love for NYC. How the diversity of behaviors and cultures offers great inspiration for selling insights. “I can find selling ideas in people’s parked cars.” Patterns. The absence of patterns. Observation and a functional understanding of behavior are what good account planners bring to creative teams. New, meaningful ways to see things.
Everything matters: What you study in school. What you study thereafter. So Princessa, “What are you going to do with your psychology degree?” The sky’s the limit! Peace!
