Meet the Author

I’m a terrible listener. I’m not just bad at listening — I’m really, really bad at listening.

Now you may be asking yourself, as the reader, why should you care? Maybe you shouldn’t. But, if you’re in a leadership role, or will be one day, you can potentially learn from my mistakes. If you’re not in a leadership role, then you can better understand why others don’t listen well. And if you can peek into their mental universe, maybe you can help them change.

In order for me to get to the root of my own listening issues, I need to focus on two questions: why am I a bad listener and can I change?

When the British government levied another tax on tea entering the new world, American colonists decided they’d had enough. Gathering in Boston Harbor on a cold December night, the protesters boarded an East India Company ship and hurled 342 chests of tea straight into the harbor.

Before there was an America, or even an American Revolution, there was a single protest and a catchy slogan: “No taxation without representation.” An emotion took hold and an idea took flight, spreading through the new world.

But this feeling wasn’t unique to the Boston Tea Party. In fact, most great movements begin the same way — with powerful messaging that we think of as PR and advertising.

Brendan is 16. He lives in a major US city. He’s thinking about girls and college. He watches football and soccer. He plays video games. He’d rather text than talk on the phone. He’s also exposed to about 5 million ads per year, which he completely ignores. He has a laptop, iPad, smart phone, smart watch, and an Xbox. He’s always connected to more than one device. He’s part of Generation Z. He’s optimistic, and the future is an ever-expanding place that he wants to explore.

He consumes most of his “TV” content across his many devices. He’s never clicked a display ad. He reluctantly has a Facebook profile, but lives on Snapchat, Instagram, and apps that connect to the things he values. He doesn’t trust advertisers or brands.

Instead, he trusts his friends. He doesn’t understand when his experiences aren’t personalized and he’s disappointed when thinking of the lack of offline and online convergence. He expects instant everything, a connected everything.

This year, Nebo turns 12.

Twelve is a number in space and time. The world’s greatest religions place significance on it. In Christianity and Judaism, there are 12 Tribes of Israel, 12 Disciples of Jesus, and 12 books of Revelations. There are 12 Stations of Life in Buddhism. Our calendar has 12 months. The list goes on.

And although every number has significance if you really think about it, the questions is: what does 12 mean to us?

We are incredibly proud to announce that Nebo has been nominated for the 2015 iMedia Greater Good Award. This award is particularly special to us, because it honors agencies committed to causes and nonprofits. Over our 11 year history, we’ve been incredibly fortunate to support causes near and dear to our hearts. It’s a crucial part of our business today, and a practice engrained in our very roots.