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2. CREATIVITY
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3. IS CREATIVITY A TALENT?

4. Creativity is our survival instinct. It is as old as
fear, and as new as the first lie told by a
three-year old child.
!
Creativity is a rewired brain. Evolution. Mutation.

5. HOW TO UNLOCK CREATIVITY?

6. Embrace the ‘mutant’ in you.
Know how you think.
Pollute your mind.
Do the unfamiliar.
Be informed.
Be sensitive.

7. CAN CREATIVITY BE IMPROVED
THROUGH PRACTICE?

8. You need to be honest with yourself before you
can improve on it.
You need to learn how to love pain before you
can improve on it.
You need to be fearless in your heart and mind
before you can improve on it.

9. HOW HARD IS IT TO BE CREATIVE
IN THE WORLD OF THE CLOSE-MINDED?

10. It is not meant to be easy.
There are two challenges.
Your own internal challenge to create fresher and
better work than before.
And the challenge of understanding how to make
others see the logic behind the creative work.

11. CREATIVITY
IN PLANNING
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12. HOW TO BALANCE CREATIVITY AND LOGIC
WHEN WRITING A PLAN, CREATING A STRATEGY,
AND MAKING A PRINT AD?

13. Every creative idea has to be anchored by logic.
Your idea is informed by an insight.
And you arrived at that insight through a filtration
process.
It is all very logical.

14. CREATIVITY
OVER FUNCTION
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15. HOW TO START THE PRACTICE OF
‘CREATIVITY OVER FUNCTION’
IN VIETNAMESE ADVERTISING?

16. Start a local award show.
Prove to client creativity works.
Create work that the public will talk about.

17. COPYWRITING
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18. HOW TO TRAIN OURSELVES
TO BE BETTER AT COPYWRITING?

19. It is not just about words.
To write better, listen.
If you can say it in five words, don’t use ten.
Make it human.
Make smart decisions on word choice.
Writing is thinking.

20. WHAT DO I NEED TO DO TO SWICTH
FROM BEING AN ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE
TO A COPYWRITER?

21. Be honest with your skills.
Create your portfolio.
Use your work experience.
Never look back.

22. IDEAS
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23. HOW TO CREATE UNIQUE IDEAS?

24. Look beyond advertising.

25. HOW CAN I TELL THE DIFFERENCE
BETWEEN BIG AND SMALL IDEAS?

26. Did something ‘pop’ in your head when you
thought of it?
Was there a ‘look’ on everyone’s face when you
said it?
Did the room go from ‘cold’ to ‘hot’ when you’re
talking about it?

27. WHEN TO ACCESS
THE FEASIBILITY OF AN IDEA?

28. Exploration stage: Client’s capacity to spend
on the idea.
Execution stage: People’s capacity to
understand the idea.
Presentation stage: Client’s capacity to
accept the idea.
Production stage: Partner’s capacity to
deliver the idea.

29. HOW DO WE COME UP WITH IDEAS
WHEN WE START A PROJECT?

30. Don’t think of ideas first.
Think of insights.
Reject old and used insights.
Interpret the insights.

31. HOW TO MAKE IDEAS COME TRUE?

32. Make sure the idea is supported by an undeniable
insight.
Be realistic on budget and technology.

33. HOW CAN I KEEP CREATING NEW IDEAS
ON OLD TOPICS
WHEN THEY START TO BORE ME?

34. Don’t think advertising, think solutions.
Get out from the same media space.
Set condensed thinking time.
Work with different partners.
Get out from the office.
Find fresh insights.

35. CONSUMERS
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36. ARE PEOPLE THE SAME AS CONSUMERS?

37. Of course, consumers are people.
Most importantly, client and agency are
consumers too.

38. GETTING
ATTENTION
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39. HOW CAN I ATTRACT MORE ATTENTION
TO OUR BRAND?

40. Discard generic and used insights about your
target. Look for fresh insights.
Explore beyond the same media space. Create
new media (if possible) where other brands in the
same category have no access to your target.

41. GETTING
THE JOB
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42. WHAT ARE THE REQUIREMENTS
THAT AN EMPLOYER EXPECTS
FROM A CANDIDATE?

43. During Interview: Honesty. Insights. Ideas. Skills.
During Probation: Never-say-die attitude. Proof of
ideas and skills.
And always be nice.

44. HOW CAN I MAKE A GOOD IMPRESSION
DURING THE INTERVIEW?

45. Do some research about the agency, and the
advertising business in Vietnam.
Show work that reflects the job you want.
Be selective what you show.
Have an opinion.

46. Do not be afraid to ask questions.
It’s a competition. Be competitive.
Be nice.

47. HONESTY
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48. HOW CAN I PERSUADE MYSELF
TO SELL A PRODUCT OR SERVICE
THAT I DON’T BELIEVE IN?

49. Think of that salary at the end of the month.

50. AFTER MANY YEARS IN THIS INDUSTRY,
WHAT MAKES YOU FEEL GUILTY
THE MOST?

51. All those times when I can’t give attention to my
family. Or when I was nasty to them when I
brought my work home.

52. MY JOB
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53. WHAT DO YOU DO AT Y&R?

54. I play.

55. LEADING
CREATIVE TEAMS
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56. HOW TO LEAD CREATIVE TEAMS?

57. Fix yourself first.
Be transparent.
Protect them.
Know their strengths and weaknesses.
But make them feel they can do anything.
Be sensitive.

58. MOTIVATION
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59. HOW CAN I
KEEP MOTIVATING MYSELF?

60. Be aware of your mortality.
Be ambitious.
Be selfish.
Be famous.

61. SOCIAL BUZZ
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62. WHAT IS THE MOST EFFECTIVE WAY
TO CREATE BUZZ IN SOCIAL MEDIA
WITH LOW BUDGET?

63. Take a step back to observe what is social media.
Reject all used and tried ideas and insights.
Find a new ‘experience’ for people.
The smaller the budget, the bigger the idea.

64. SAME QUESTION.
DIFFERENT ANSWER?
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65. FIRE

66. How do we make it burn brighter?
How can we make it last longer?

67. HORSES

68. How can we breed stronger and faster horses?

69. FOOD

70. How can we hunt better? Where do we go where
there are plants we can eat?

71. ILLNESSES

72. Which evil spirit needs to be cast out to rid this
person’s illness? What witchcraft do we use to
fight these curses?

73. THE ‘RIGHT’
QUESTIONS
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74. The Herd-approved question versus the ‘stupid’
question from The Individual.
The question that focuses on the brief but blind to
a ‘bigger’ problem.
The question that you ask to get to the answer
that you want.

75. The question that is not sensitive.
And the question you do not ask when you feel
the brief is wrong or the brief is unnecessary.

76. THE ‘WRONG’
QUESTIONS
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77. The question that asks if what the client is asking
the agency to do is correct.
The question that asks if there is another problem
lurking behind the brief.
The question that shifts the focus from a target
group to a target person.

78. The question that lets us see that person as a
person not a consumer.
The question that challenges the same old used
insights.
The question that is honest rather than politically
correct.

79. WRONG’ QUESTION
CASE STUDIES
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80. COLGATE ‘SQUEEZEE’

81. The Brief: The client wanted a toy for its
promotion of children’s oral care products.
The Right Question: What is the budget for the
toy? What kind of toy? How many toys? When do
we need the toys in market?
The Wrong Question: Why a toy? Can we make
something fun that makes use of the product?

82. LEE ‘120 YEARS’

83. The Brief: The client wanted people to know it’s
been around for 120 years.
The Right Question: What are the milestones that
the brand has achieved?
The Wrong Question: Why would people care
they’ve been around for 120 years?

84. THE NORTH FACE ‘CONQUER CHINA’

85. The Brief: The client wanted to encourage people
to explore the outdoors.
The Right Question: What is the difference
between The North Face and its competitors?
The Wrong Question: The new generation is so
materialistic, why would they want to explore the
outdoors?

86. THANK YOU.
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