I came to LIA expecting to learn a thing or two about creativity from the best, and I did:

Not just from the jurors but also the 126 creative peers chosen along with me to embark on this journey.

On day one, between the jury rooms and the panel sessions, we exchanged names, designations and an awkward smile. 

I met people from the Philippines, France, Germany, Argentina, Australia and many other places worldwide. Initially, I struggled to find what we have in common and then it clicked: our love for the work and craft. 

We bonded over our shared passion, excitement, and confusion as we navigate our way through this complicated industry.

We may have struggled to understand our different accents but clearly understood the language of our collective wonder.

The wonder and excitement we felt as the panellists and jury presented work that is subverting societal narratives. 

The whole five-day experience felt like going back to college. 

The panellists became my lecturers and my fellow Liaisons- classmates.

So here's what I learned during this five-day creative crash course:

AI won't take our jobs

But the people who use it will. And no amount of AI software in the world can replace the work that we do. Our life experience is what makes the work. Not ChatGPT, it's about going back to your Past GPT.

Really brave ideas are fragile things

Everyone wants to kill a great idea, it's delicate. 
Reputation and money are at stake. Nerves are at an all-time high. But we can turn a really nervous client into a brave one. 
How? By empowering them with data and showing proof that great work works.

32 under 32

In an industry full of impossible deadlines, the most unrealistic one is to achieve everything under 30. 

But as one of the jurors rightly said, such deadlines are bullshit. If you're 32, make your list. Create a 32 under 32. Subvert the expectations that society is trying to push down your throat.

Thank you

And a hectic five-day schedule full of case studies, industry talk and great work boiled down to this great thought by Suzan Credle (Global CCO, FCB) - "Will people say thank you after watching your work?"

It can be a funny thank you, an emotional one or an inspired one.

This five-day creative crash course made me say thank you - to my agency who allowed me to be here, to the jurors who generously shared their time and learnings with us and mostly to my 126 LIAisons who opened their hearts, and minds to making this trip to Vegas the best creative gamble of my life.

(The author is copy supervisor at BBDO India.)