Creative Q&A: Tribal DDB's Jamal Hamidi is in the hot seat

How did you get into advertising?
A graduate trainee program. It was the typical deal, a bunch of eager interns eagerly competing for a handful of full-time jobs. It was kinda like Survivor, but without the island.

Fortunately, all the interns that year got hired. And we all lived happily ever after.

What was your first ever ad?
My first ad was for a defence contractor who was pitching serious military hardware to the Australian government. It was not a good ad. In fact, to call it terrible would be far too kind.

After it ran, the government put all defence procurement on hold.

Did my ad have anything to do with it? You might say that big government decisions are influenced by analysts and lobbyists and pollsters, not obscure half-page press ads in military magazines. And you'd be absolutely right.

But I'd like to think that my crappy little ad made its own special contribution to the cause of world peace.

Which ad do you wish you'd made?
Like everyone else on the planet, I wish I wrote that Old Spice TV ad. You know the one, the ad our ads could look like.

Since I didn't write it, I'm just going to have to be content with the notion that, many years from now, my last words will be "I'm on a horse."

What was your worst job ever?
It involved complicated Excel formulas, a crash-course in activity based costing, and quite possibly the biggest spreadsheet ever devised in human history. It still gives me nightmares.

What qualities do you look for in a prospective employee?
A great portfolio, a truckload of talent, and the ability to play all the drum parts in Rock Band by the Beatles. As any musician will tell you, it's always hard to find a good drummer.

What does it take to impress you?
I'm always impressed when someone nails a brief in a completely unexpected and brilliant way. Always impressed. And quite often insanely jealous.

Where do you go to be inspired?
The coffee machine. Because inspiration is simply another name for a caffeine overdose.

Who do you consider to be a creative genius?
JJ Abrams. Not because he's a brilliant writer and director, a pioneer of viral marketing, or a great creative craftsman. It's because, for a few short weeks in 2009, he made Star Trek cool. Now that's genius.

If you were not working in advertising, where would you work?
I'd love to be a venture capitalist. Unfortunately, that requires a significant amount of capital. So, I think I'll stick to advertising.

What is your guilty pleasure?
Collecting guitars. I can't walk past a guitar store without walking away with one. Most times, I even remember to pay for them before I leave the store.

What would you like to be in a next life?
A rock star, especially one of those aging, embarrassing ones who still carry on like 20 year olds.

What is your favourite word?
Some words weren't meant to be spoken. They were meant to be sung. One such word is Humuhumunukunukuapua'a - a Hawaiian word which roughly translates as 'rainbow fish'.

You can't say it without singing it. Go on, try it saying it out loud, one syllable at a time. Hu-mu-hu-mu-nu-ku-nu-ku-a-pu-a-a.

It works best accompanied by a ukulele player. And a few Mai Tais under your belt.

What is the first thing you do when you wake up?
Panic. I've found that I've got this uncanny ability to sleep through alarm clocks and wake up calls, no matter how loud they are. Let's just say that I'm not a morning person.

Worst haircut you've ever had?
It was in New Zealand. I asked for a short back and sides, they gave me a short front and top. I looked like a tennis ball with woollen ear muffs. On the positive side, I did manage to build quite an impressive collection of hats.

What's your favourite song lyric?
Who needs lyrics when you can just...erm... vocalise? Have a look at this performance from legendary Russian singer Eduard Khil, and you'll see that a great song doesn't need lyrics.

Go on watch it. You'll thank me for it. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t6FUR_nhGX8