Prose Poems Against The Machine

Over the past six months, I've written and shared about 20 new prose poems, all focused on career, marketing, advertising, and brand communications.

Many of the poems have appeared as Posts here on LinkedIn and I've enjoyed the feedback from friends and readers.

What started as a self-promo campaign fast grew into a manuscript that is now being organized into a chapbook.

Regarding the topic, "work culture" is a form of culture that we all take part in, and to me, a natural subject to explore with prose or poetry.

Here's my latest piece...

RUN FOR THE ROSES

Modern brands on a mission have jumped the shark. Today’s brands have a grand purpose. They stand for something larger than the flaky biscuits found inside all the destined-for-the-dump packaging. Modern brands that truly connect with people don’t pitch to win. Instead, they emit a rallying cry to unite their legions of fans. Not buyers. Nor consumers. Fans are people who do the brand’s bidding. Fans are people with influence who spread the brand’s messaging because it’s cool and they’re cool. Yes, I’m just making this up. Don’t take it too seriously. This is narrative content you can use to jam the machine. If jamming the machine is not your thing, take this pre-loaded information to your next meeting. You’ll seem smart when you ask the marketing director to define the word fan. No, you won’t. Talking about fans of the brand will induce eye rolls up and down the rainforest teak conference table. Don’t say fan, say brand champion. Every marketing professional on this side of the Ohio River adores champions. Just think of it…a new class of thoroughbred shoppers all adorned with rose garlands dangling about the neck. An ethereal vision from above, a riveting fantasy from below. We’re way past personas now. The thoroughbred shopper is a marvel and an inspiration to other shoppers—shoppers with space for lease in their canvas tote bags. On aisle nine, Janet Planet is loading up on French Bordeaux for the weekend. Her tote bag is a forklift. Swipe and swoon. Note that Ms. Planet has a strong preference for wine, but not a brand preference. It’s a regional preference and the region contains lots of lovely producers, all with brand names, logos, and a story to tell. Vive la France! On the way to the checkout, she sees another lumberjack wide-eyed and fondling fruit. She’s going to report him this time. Someone has to advocate for citrus. Someone has to keep it real in the natural foods parking lot. Sadly, the store manager, full of weighty sincerity, says it’s not against the rules to inspect the produce. He also says you can sit in the grass if it feels good. He knows a thoroughbred when he sees one. He knows to turn her loose upon the land.