Greg Pecknold
Ideas big enough to be known by.
That early 2000s positioning line for The Garrigan Lyman Group was aptly coined by one of the best big idea thinkers I know, Greg Pecknold. Greg could very well have been describing himself with that line and he’s spent a career proving it. As co-founder of the seminal Seattle post-production house Flying Spot, co-founder of Modern Media with Barry Devenney, and a first-call freelance creative director for many years since, Greg has achieved larger-than-life status to all who’ve worked with him. When Sony Music Entertainment hired GLG to create a full-budget music video for Wyclef Jean, we had one number on speed dial; Greg's. Hold On remains a terrific piece. https://lnkd.in/gtAiFhmM
These days, Greg has found the only thing more satisfying than conceiving and developing big ideas; playing with his two grand kids in east L.A. where the Pecknold dynasty now resides. Greg (with more than a little help from his wife Lisa) has passed on his generous spirit and creative genius to his three offspring (Aja Pecknold, Robin Pecknold, and Sean Pecknold) who are all enjoying wildly successful creative careers.
Since my reconnect roadshow began, Greg has been on the shortlist of people to catch up with. I was thrilled when he was in Seattle recently and available for coffee, where we met at Preserve and Gather in Greenwood. Greg’s life and career wisdom could fill a book, but here are a few sample chapters.
1) Learn Continuously: Greg is relentlessly curious and is always checking out new trends, inspiring work, and cool techniques. He would routinely do this twice as much as creative peers half his age. In addition to creative stimulus, Greg also soaks up ideas that delve deeply. A few podcasts on his current heavy rotation are Honestly with Bari Weiss and Making Sense with Sam Harris.
2) Create Quickly: Greg is always a rush of ideas. He gets excited about creative possibilities and quickly comes back with strong ideas after an initial briefing. In our conversation, he got excited about the potential to turn this little roadshow of mine into a podcast. By the next morning, I had links to the best podcast equipment and streaming platform and a brainstorm of podcast themes and show titles. He’s unbelievably fast and prolific.
2) Surround Concepts with Evidence: By doing the due diligence on concepts to vet possible objections with supporting data and evidence up front, you can turn subjective concepts into objective truth. It makes presenting more successful and evaluating creative work more tangible for the client. Greg credits Bill Flora (CCO/Partner at Blink) as an inspiration and early innovator in this discipline.
I could go on and on but, ironically, I’d need a podcast for that. Greg will always be a mentor of mine and dear friend. He is a giant, for sure, and certainly big enough to be known by. Thank you Greg!
#inspiration #creative #podcast #careers #thankyou