24 hours with... Hayden Scott

Ever wondered what an ideal day in the life of someone from advertising/marketing/media is? We're here to spill the beans on it.

Every Tuesday, we'll have a person from the advertising/marketing/media industry profiled in this section.

Name: Hayden Scott

Job: Creative head, Virtue India 

Professional and personal mantra: Don’t be boring

7am: I start my day with prayer and half an hour of yoga and meditation. I’ve been practicing yoga on and off for about 10 years now but these days thankfully, it’s more on than off. I find being spiritually and physically centred keeps me going through the toughest of days.

8am: A light breakfast and conversation with my wife. This is my favourite part of the day because we catch up on the news, and discuss art and food. Everything but work – perfect since both of us work in advertising!

9am: I use this one hour right before work begins to plan my goals for the day. What’s urgent, what’s important, what makes it to the top of my to-do list and what I should say no to. Whether I’m working remotely that day or making the hour-long drive to the office, this time is always reserved for goal setting.

10am-12pm: This is the time I use to catch up with teams across creative, strategy and account management. We identify problem areas, we sprint on solutions, and we discuss opportunities. These initial 2 hours set the tone for the day.

12-1pm: At Virtue, we pride ourselves in being culture mavens who operate ‘inside culture’. That means we need to know culture the way most people know their phone numbers. I use this time to catch up on cultural happenings across music, fashion, art, and science. And I also challenge myself to dip my toes into a whole new knowledge area or field. This week it’s been Interaction Design for Virtual Spaces. I’m not an expert, but I know enough to not look stupid while talking to an expert.

1pm: People who know me, know I am strict about when I eat lunch and I’ve even been known to bring my tiffin into meetings and boardrooms. Embarrassing, I know. But I let them put it down to creative eccentricity (which it’s not) and not the fear of indigestion (which it is). Post lunch I make it a point to walk briskly for 20 minutes. This walking time, weirdly actually helps me ideate.

2pm: This is Sacred Writing Time. It’s when I give time to hone my craft, jot down ideas and crystallize stray thoughts. I have often been appalled by the fact that most senior creatives in advertising rarely find time to do the things that made them senior creatives, to begin with. I have vowed never to become that person. As long as I breathe, the pen will always create and the mind will always imagine. It’s our life’s calling as creative people and I don’t intend on trading it in for an Excel sheet.

3-6pm: Regulation time. Since we work remotely (sometimes over multiple timezones) reaching out to people and “overcommunicating” becomes incredibly important. I have always been a hands-on leader and this is the time when I get into the weeds to solve, assist and mentor. 

6-7pm: I call this Murphy’s Hour. It’s when everything that can go wrong, does. And it’s usually at the end of the day. Time for decisive action and quick thinking. I have to admit, the adrenaline rush at this time of day gives me a special kind of high. I have found this time – with backs to the wall and nothing to lose - is when some of our best work gets sold. Not always, but often enough for me to write it here. Why? How? I’ll ponder this mystery till the end of my days.

8-10pm: Phones off, life on. I eat an early dinner with my wife. We watch a movie, stream a show or play some music on our new record player. I have recently started doing what I call “intermittent social” where I delete social media for a few months and try to reconnect with older forms of recreation – playing a musical instrument, reading or just having a conversation. I find it incredibly liberating and I couldn’t recommend it enough.

11pm: It’s been a long and fulfilling day. Sleep is my best friend.