A New Face at IDEAS

Do you ever think about the invisible “I”? The face that hides behind the Twitter account? The speaker in the blog post… When a post from a company’s page pops up on my Facebook most of the time I don’t really pause and think “Somebody wrote that. Someone’s job is to make sure I see this.” That is, I didn’t, until I became that person. So let’s break the fourth wall, just for a minute, I won’t tell anyone. Hello, my name is Olivia, I am the ghost behind this post. That’s right, I can craft a simple rhyme, I’m practically Shakespeare!

I am the Social Media Coordinator at IDEAS, and as such I am always writing about other people, speaking as the company. Today, however, I am here to talk about myself. Specifically, my experience as the newest member of the IDEAS team. IDEAS is a fun place in general. There’s a creative, playful atmosphere. It’s a place that knows how to get work done, but also has an extensive collection of funny hats. Honestly, if you don’t have at least one hat shaped like a fish in your collection then what are you even doing? My dad worked for Disney for 25 years but started IDEAS when I was 4, so when I say I grew up around the company, it’s quite literally true. That said, most of the folks at IDEAS have been there a lot longer so I’m the newbie.

I am a creative person, I have backgrounds in both art and theatre and I am a writer. I dream of writing novels. The thing is, you can’t just wave your hand in the air and say “Publish this right now with no questions asked, thanks!”. I mean maybe if you’re JK Rowling or something, but not me. But what do writers need to do to stay sharp? They need to write, and the fact that I am not currently a bestselling author does not mean there are no writing jobs available.

IDEAS is a company built around the importance of story, which is something I believe in. Everything has a story, a set of characters, an overarching narrative, including companies. I have been learning some valuable lessons about character construction since I started running social media. A company needs to have a voice, a real character that people can connect to, an interesting and engaging personality. It might sound strange, the idea of a company having a personality, but it does. IDEAS is a business, but their persona is quirky and playful. And, I think IDEAS is a fitting name for the company, because I keep getting more and more of them. When I go to meetings I don’t always have a lot to say. I’m new and I don’t know the details of all the projects. I’m typically gathering information and taking notes on things that would be interesting to pursue for social media, but it’s kind of amazing to hear everyone bouncing IDEAS off of one another. This company is full of creative people (I’ll be making sure you meet them all soon), and I am honored to do my part to help. So, next time you see a post from the IDEAS Orlando Facebook page, you’ll know who was behind it.