Part 1. Childhood and first steps

That said, I've always enjoyed fantasising about any topic, drawing new engineering solutions in my head and conjuring up storylines, and on public transport, I like to make up stories of random people I meet, where they're coming from and where they're going.

I also liked to invent unusual toys or things that I thought at that age would be useful to people for different tasks, like a ski backpack on my back or a cupboard with a million drawers for small things.

Since childhood, I have loved stationery shops, and I knew all the outlets in my town, including almost their entire product range. I also liked to visit various construction shops where I could buy spray paint and all sorts of repair supplies.

I didn't end up becoming a builder, but I was drawn into the world of graffiti. I didn't particularly share the desire of artists to "tag" everything around them with their "tags", where it crossed the boundaries of street art and vandalism.

Though, of course, I understand this inseparable part of this subculture, by which graffiti artists show in their milieu who is "tru" and who is "toy" here, and thus win the neighbourhood in the minds of similar artists.

I remember how guys could walk through all the neighbouring districts in one night and leave their murals on almost all the poles and houses, and then the next day the whole school was talking about them - advertising worked). By the way, I still like to read tags while walking around in whatever city or country I'm in.

In the world of graffiti I was more interested in another thing - how an artist managed to develop his level of fame by developing and popularising his style or fictional characters. By the way, some street artists have managed to achieve widespread fame and make their style into independent commercially successful art brands. They now do collaborations with other well-known brands and travel the world with exhibitions of their street art.

I always liked to watch such stories, and to invent my own characters too. You could say that I still like to play with fonts in my work, just like when I was a kid with graffiti sketches. But most of all I like to compose and develop unique and meaningful brand attributes.

I remember a period when my hobby gradually grew into my main activity.

Since the age of 16 I have already tried to work part-time somewhere in the summer holidays, and at the same time to study the industrial aspects, the service sector, commercial activities and the structure of business in general.

That's when I learnt about Oriflame's multi-level marketing and started to get interested in learning sales techniques. That's when I had my first ever sales training with Sergei Asimov. But then, in the future, I will also have a sales training from the "Wolf of Wall Street - Jordan Belfort" when he comes to Moscow.

New knowledge helped me to build a small mlm-pyramid of 10 friends and friends of friends, and to become a "beauty consultant" among all my girlfriends and mothers of girlfriends in the neighbourhood). This period was not long, but it was very exciting, and laid the foundations of commerce and negotiation principles in me.

Since those times, and in fact until now, I've been involved in commercialising and producing projects - in my understanding it's when you figure out what to sell and to whom, learn how to sell, learn how to create, and then teach others how to sell and create in the same way.

But if in a personal conversation a long and strong contact is possible with a precise understanding of the client in front of you, then everyone tries to switch to advertising quickly if it doesn't catch on in the first 5 seconds. That's why sales scripts in advertising don't work at first contact, the rules of the game are different here.

I started to question sociology and human psychology, how brands influence people's behaviour, causing them to change their ingrained habits and switch to new products.

That's how I got my first pointers on advertising industry leaders in my life, and I began to nurture my eye for creative ads that won at Cannes festivals and worked as they should.

At some point, in 2010, when my career ladder in one of the production companies was developing steadily upwards in the commercial branch, and I was giving the management high hopes of becoming the first face of the St. Petersburg branch, I realised that now was the most important crossroads in my life, where I needed to make a turn towards my dream of becoming a representative of the creative market, and I took the first step into a new life. And from the position of commercial top manager, I bravely stepped into the position of advertising manager, and started my new career ladder in a new industry from scratch.

Here began the first realisation of my dreams, and at the same time the first bumps. Because everything I dreamed of and looked at with admiring eyes seemed easy and understandable from the outside. But when you do it all yourself with your own hands and solve the tasks of management or clients, there is a huge number of nuances because of which not everything works out as desired. And here I really realised what titanic work is behind all the victories of successful cases.

It didn't scare me in any way, but was instead a driver for me to develop experience and expertise.

Almost on a regular basis I started studying everything I could get my hands on: the basics of design theory, advertising history, graphic design, colouring, calligraphy, marketing basics, branding, website building, internet marketing, PR technologies, social media marketing, viral marketing and all sorts of creatives in all related fields. I was constantly buying various books, reading industry websites and watching video lessons from well-known Russian and international schools in these areas, as well as studying cases from recognised advertising agencies and opinion leaders.

In my first company that believed in me and opened the doors to the advertising world, I tried all available advertising tools, redesigned my employer's online shop for the second time on a more serious engine, rebranded the company of my own first option for this company,
helped them launch and stay visually in the market, and decided to move on with my expert growth on my own in search of new clients and freelancing experience.

When I was in sales, and the team was already in charge of implementing what was sold, I would pump up one function and, accordingly, quickly get the expected result. When I became myself for everyone in my craft, and I have to look for customers and then fulfil their orders, then while one thing was done, the other stopped, from which there were cash gaps. That's why advertising and finding clients should always be done without stopping, no matter what you do, no matter how expert you are in any field.

But this process can and should be learnt to automate, so that while the work is being done, the advertising is running in parallel and collecting customers.

In 2014, I decided that I needed for my next major growth to understand the advertising market structure from the inside. That is, to become part of some strong team and in the spotlight so that I could continue to gain experience, work with big clients and at the same time develop my fame among other things.

And so I found myself in the very centre of the advertising industry - Sostav.ru, the main industry media resource about advertising and marketing in Russia and the CIS.

Here I had the most rapid experience of all-round development for 7 years. Here I reached great heights in my career, managed a team in the commercial department, won the first tenders for special projects, worked with the largest advertisers, got acquainted with international advertising holdings, and had many other interesting things. But the most important thing I gained was knowledge, my level of observation was growing by leaps and bounds every day. Because I was simultaneously working, socialising and reading every day about the best of the best advertisers and marketers.

In my work, I've had to come up with PR publications, special projects and infomercials for advertising agencies to get advertisers to pay attention to specific agencies, or to get all creators to pay attention to a new brand, a new advertising tool or an educational project.

Это была моя собственная школа роста на практике. Здесь я узнал принципы работы медиа, как создавать и развивать инфополе, как ловить тренды, как вирусить хайп, как общаться в кулуарах, да и в принципе, как устроен рекламный и медиа бизнес, как построены все рекламные услуги, что нужно брендам, как придумывать и развивать креативные идеи.

Another feature of that period was conferences and all sorts of industry events - I attended almost all of them! Every week there were educational or rating events, where you could learn something new and useful for your expertise, and at the same time expand your circle of acquaintances.

And in addition to all this set, I dreamed of getting a second higher professional education, which could set me not only the right and thorough foundation, but also teach me to put everything on a shelf by myself, and to learn to identify and create good ideas in this world, like Master Yoda in Luke Skywalker.

That's how I ended up at Wordshop, the country's most important advertising academy. It was set up by BBDO, the most titled international agency in Russia, and it teaches all professions in the advertising industry. Over time, Wordshop has become an independent business, and the academy's students are already collecting awards at the most famous international advertising festivals.

The system of studying at the academy allowed me to attend any lectures, but to defend only the chosen course. During the whole academic year, five days a week after work I would rush to all the lectures that day, Saturday was fully devoted to my course, and Sunday was devoted to homework. So, I graduated as a brand strategist and communications strategist, which included lectures on all strategies and marketing in general, and attended almost every possible lecture for creatives, advertisers, directors, copywriters and media planners.

After Wordshop, I didn't stop with my self-study. Though the foundation of knowledge as it was and will remain the same until people start walking on their heads. Advertising, as an engine of trade and progress, creates and picks up all trends, and from here there are new tools, and new fashion, new "black", and even if everything is in a circle - you still need to be always up to date. So for me, learning has become Lifelong learning.

I've noticed for a long time that basically the same foundation is served up everywhere, just on the side or under a new name, and rarely, but there are new tweaks related to trends or new tools - that's what I'm after.

In this way, I have had time to learn various other disciplines from Mads, Skillbox, Netology and many other online courses.

Over the years, my development in media started to bear fruit and I was invited to participate in conferences as a speaker and to jury advertising festivals.

My dreams as a young creative were coming true before my eyes. I was a jury member and chairman of the media commission at the International Minsk Advertising Festival "White Square"!

In addition to him, in my experience there were two other official juries of the "PORA!" social advertising festival and the Eventiada IPRA festival.

I also managed to be a lecturer and give lectures to students about advertising, marketing, branding, media, PR and special projects in famous Moscow universities RUDN and MPGU.

And, of course, my experience and expertise helped me to work together with the largest advertisers in Russia, and with international brands.

During my period of development and establishment of my expertise, I have managed to work with different clients in different niches: commercial banks, it-companies, educational companies, b2b services, telecommunication companies, FMCG brands, HoReCa, advertising agencies, event agencies, pr-agencies, creative agencies, production companies, international advertising holdings, mobile operators, industrial manufacturers, government companies, international logistics companies, clothing shop, sports marketing agencies, DJing school, repair and construction company, home appliances shops, financial institutions, flower and gift shops, company n

And also with individual experts: fashion photographer, psychologist, coach, decorator, fashion designer, Olympic champion, professional youth football player, massage therapist and swimming coach.

My goal is not only to be an expert in my craft, apply my skills to my clients and continually develop myself, but also to share my knowledge and inspire others, because by understanding the principles of advertising, branding, media and marketing you can help yourself and others with many business challenges.

I help aspiring marketers and experts from different fields learn how to apply advertising tools, creative techniques, marketing schemes and strategies to solve their personal problems, their clients' problems or tasks within their company to develop and promote brands, products, services or media resources.

In this regard, I appeal to you, readers of my story - if you have a dream, and you are not yet on the way to it, then now is the time to turn the wheel in its direction, and in your life will add a lot of happiness. And if you are already on the way to your dream, but the path is long and difficult, you should not be in a hurry to part with your dream, most likely there are solvable reasons for these difficulties, as well as opportunities to speed up and ease your way.

Perhaps in this you can help you to look from the outside, and tips that you, applying, will be able to move from the place, to rise a step higher, to get closer to your dreams.

Everything in our life is the fulfilment of our desires or the desires of others. If you combine both of these meanings in your life, and do everything to achieve your goals, solve your tasks and realise your dreams by your own efforts or by the efforts of those whose desires and dreams coincide with yours, or consist precisely in helping you to realise your dreams, then by combining your efforts the chance of success increases greatly for everyone at the same time).