Never Say Goodbye

Dear Firstborn,

Well the time has arrived.

I figured I would send this email out today because tomorrow I’m sure most of you will be incoherent from the massive hangovers we will all have induced on ourselves after tonight’s bash.

Based on the intranet I have been here 2 years and 5 months but it seems like it has been much longer than that.

As most of you know I will be leaving Firstborn to take on position at Touro University as the Director of Online Services.

It wasn’t an easy decision for me to make but one that will allow me to pursue personal endeavors as well flex the muscles I have attained here at FB for a great cause, education.

Coming to FB after selling the business that I ran for 6 years wasn’t easy, there was a lot of adjustment for me, but I felt like I was really able to carve out a place for myself here. One thing I can say about FB is that it is like an interactive boot camp, the intensity, the passion and the standard of excellence helped me grow both professionally and personally in all aspects of my life. Every project I have produced has been a valuable experience that I don’t think I could have attained anywhere else.

I have worked on some memorable projects over the past few years, from the Fila Experiment to Zune and everything in between. It has truly been a pleasure working with the finest talent in the business. Every designer, developer, producer and intern I have worked with here has enhanced my life in a multitude of ways.

Firstborn really is a very special place, no one should ever take for granted the environment and atmosphere that Michael helps to provide here. It is a place of growth and of self awareness, responsibility and accountability and the payoff is priceless.

I don’t ever want to lose touch with my connection with FB and even though I will be starting my new position on Monday it does not mean that I will not be in touch and keeping a close eye on all of the wonderful work that I know will be coming out of FB in this next decade of its life. I am both proud and honored to have worked at FB and to have contributed to its history.

I wanted to leave behind some wisdom that I learned while being here and hopefully it will help all of you going forward.

This is not an easy business to be in, tight deadlines, picky clients, long hours and emotional stress are all issues we face every day. When a person is in training for some sort of physical event they work out their bodies by adding resistances to help them build up muscle, those deadlines, hours and stresses are all simply that, resistances that make us all stronger and better people. Keep that in mind, know that when it hurts it hurts because growth is taking place.

I became accustomed to writing up articles and notes on every project I have worked on, I do this selfishly because it allows me to look back and see how much I have learned, it gives me an opportunity to not only review what I have done but to also share that knowledge with others. I encourage everyone here to always look back at successes and mistakes and to keep a journal as to how you have grown and what challenges you have overcome, you will see that through all the stresses you will always come out a better person after every piece of work produced and it will carry over into future projects making them that much better.

Secondly, have fun, be passionate and love what you’re doing. Always go into a project wanting it to be the best it can possibly be, keep a positive attitude no matter what and never let a challenge go unconquered. Always try and do things better, create challenges and work to overcome them, always strive to be greater. The path of least resistance will never pay off as much as facing intellectual and creative challenges, challenge yourself and don’t get frustrated along the way, embrace the challenge because you have chosen it not because you think it has been cast upon you.

Clients will always be clients and we are in the service industry, an industry that requires us to create and deliver the best possible work and service we can, one thing that has always stood out at FB is the respect we have for ourselves and our work. That shines through in every project we do. Always maintain that self respect and never let anything compromise the quality that FB is known for. I can tell you as a producer clients always recognize this in us and even when we fuck up, the client sees the respect we have for ourselves and the accountability we take upon ourselves to make things right.

Lastly I want to say that FB is about good people. Everyone I have worked with during my time here have always been “good people” no divas, no superstars, no assholes and most importantly no egos. This is something that I personally feel is a secret to the success at FB. From the owner to the management to the designers and developers and even interns, everyone here has always been real , down to earth, honest and good people. FB is a filter of sorts, I have seen less talented people thrive here because they wanted to grow and improve and succeed without having to put up some false persona and in the end they have become superstars. I always tell people that FB is about hard work, nothing less. Integrity and honesty is what all good business are built upon and is what I believe has kept FB afloat in this crazy industry. Don’t ever let that slip away!

I want to thank you all for making the past few years some of the most cherished and memorable for me.

Tonight is an opportunity to set the tone for the next ten years so let’s really do it up! I want to leave this place with a bang!

Keep in touch!

Craig

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f i r s t b o r n

PRODUCER

CRAIG ELIMELIAH

o: 212 581 1100 ext 254
c: 646 915 4293

e: craig@firstbornmultimedia.com
http://www.firstbornmultimedia.com

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