Uploaded May 2021 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
The Art of Failure at Wieden + Kennedy
Failure in advertising is unique in that it is often a collaborative effort. In 2006, A team of 12 in the Wieden+Kennedy 12 internship program—an advertising school within the Portland office. Because it was a school, it naturally had a culture of experimentation. This wasn't measured only in terms of the output, but in how the 12 of them worked together.
For the next 72 hours, the 12 students worked in shifts. As a group they innovated quickly to perfect the process. They figured out the fastest way to put pushpins into a wall: Fill the end of an interchangeable screwdriver head with pushpin, and drive it into the wall. Reload and repeat more than 100,000 times.
When the agency returned from the long weekend and saw the wall glowing with the sparkle of all those pushpins, they were astonished.
It demonstrated to us why agencies will always matter: the collaboration of talented individuals. A great agency is a safe place where one can fail, and share it with others.
The message of "Fail Harder" is to never hold back. Trust others around you, because they will show you a greater idea than you ever knew you had.
by Jimm Lasser CD (Member of the team of 12 and is a CD at W+K NYC.
NOTE: This video is posted strictly for educational purposes and is posted under Fair Use to solely assist current and future advertising students and creatives.
The Art of Failure at Wieden + Kennedy
Failure in advertising is unique in that it is often a collaborative effort. In 2006, A team of 12 in the Wieden+Kennedy 12 internship program—an advertising school within the Portland office. Because it was a school, it naturally had a culture of experimentation. This wasn't measured only in terms of the output, but in how the 12 of them worked together.
For the next 72 hours, the 12 students worked in shifts. As a group they innovated quickly to perfect the process. They figured out the fastest way to put pushpins into a wall: Fill the end of an interchangeable screwdriver head with pushpin, and drive it into the wall. Reload and repeat more than 100,000 times.
When the agency returned from the long weekend and saw the wall glowing with the sparkle of all those pushpins, they were astonished.
It demonstrated to us why agencies will always matter: the collaboration of talented individuals. A great agency is a safe place where one can fail, and share it with others.
The message of "Fail Harder" is to never hold back. Trust others around you, because they will show you a greater idea than you ever knew you had.
by Jimm Lasser CD (Member of the team of 12 and is a CD at W+K NYC.
NOTE: This video is posted strictly for educational purposes and is posted under Fair Use to solely assist current and future advertising students and creatives.
