The Decision to Retire

I had achieved all I wanted to do in the Army plus a whole bunch more.  I never had any desire to be a general.  People I had met at different companies advised me that I should retire from the Army while my marketing experience was still fresh.  So, being a good little Soldier I submitted my retirement papers a year before I wanted to retire, just as the Army requests.  What I hadn’t planned on was a recession.  OOPS!

I went to Minneapolis to help my family (Dad had passed away earlier in the year).  What a great city to come to after my experience with the Army.  There is a great social media community there with lots of free events.  At one of these events I was sharing some ideas (over coffee no less) when someone made the suggestion that I should stop giving ideas away from free.  As a result DAL Social Marketing was created.

DAL Social Marketing

Project Outbrief at clients HQ

I am fortunate because my business came to me via word of mouth.  My clients ranged from small start-up companies, international consulting services and a few advertising agencies.  The great part about consulting is that it provides opportunities to work with different people and to share many ideas.  I face the challenges of helping companies with very little money figure out how to get the most bang for their buck.  I’ve furthered my experience working with a company doing work in mobile as well as expanding my appreciation for marketing to the millennial generation by working with Neil Howe.

My most educational experience was working with Grey Group in New York City.

Grey Group

I had an opportunity to work with some amazing people at Grey from the Chief Creative Officer on down.  It was a great learning experience to see their creative process at work.  I gained some great experience that I hadn’t been able to as a “client” when I was in the Army.

Consulting ain’t doing!

However, as much as I learned, and as great as it was to meet some amazing people, consulting ain’t doing.  After a career of taking concepts through to execution it has been hard to sit on the sidelines.

“Be ashamed to die until you have won some victory for humanity.”

– Horace Mann (1859)

Following my passions

One of the benefits of no longer being in the Army is the ability to follow other passions.  In addition to what I do at work I also believe we need to improve education in our country and help veterans find employment.