#BehindtheSelfie with... Nikki Taylor

Nikki, in her "natural environment".

1. Where do you live, work and play?

I’ve always lived and worked in Joburg.

2. What’s your claim to fame?

An unhealthy knowledge of most Bonnie Tyler songs and early 2000’s RnB.

3. Describe your career so far.

It feels like I’ve grown up in this industry. I’ve met my best friends and my husband and become a mom somewhere in-between the crazy deadlines and the best and worst days.

5. What do you love about your industry?

I love the people and the fact that each new job requires me to be an expert in a new topic, from malaria to ballet to Basotho culture.

#BreakingBallet No. 8

TBWA\Hunt\Lascaris  13 Apr 2018

6. Describe your average workday, if such a thing exists.

Very unnecessary topics are discussed for an unnecessary amount of time, followed by coffee and then, depending on the day, making or fighting for an idea you love.

8. Who is getting it right in your industry?

Agencies that are creating unexpected solutions to their clients’ problems and coming up with ideas that transcend traditional advertising. This work seems to cut through, no matter how small the client.

9. List a few pain points the industry can improve on.

I think agencies could be braver.

10. What are you working on right now?

A little tourism campaign and a big MTN idea.

11. Tell us some of the buzzwords floating around in your industry at the moment, and some of the catchphrases you utter yourself.

I’m not on fleek when it comes to buzzwords, but the kids around here are saying things like ‘culture’, ‘platform hacking’, ‘disruption’, ‘meaningful change’ and ‘budget’.

12. Where and when do you have your best ideas?

At coffee shops.

13. What’s your secret talent/party trick?

Lip-syncing with passion, and people say I do a pretty good dolphin impersonation.

14. Are you a technophobe or a technophile?

Technophobe. I feel a sense of relief when I think I might have been pick pocketed.

15. What would we find if we scrolled through your phone?

Pictures of my son Dylan and screenshots of things I can’t afford.

Hurricane Dylan������

A post shared by Nikki Taylor (@nixtaylor) on May 1, 2018 at 12:08pm PDT

A post shared by Nikki Taylor (@nixtaylor) on Nov 10, 2017 at 6:19pm PST

16.What advice would you give to newbies hoping to crack into the industry?

I would say it’s a long game, and if you stick around you might just meet some of your best friends and eventually get a raise.

Simple as that. Be sure to follow Taylor herself on Facebook and Instagram, and keep up with TBWA\Hunt\Lascaris’ latest news via their press office.

*Interviewed by Leigh Andrews.