Stepping away from the daily grind is more than a change of pace; for advertising and marketing creatives, it is essential fuel. While professional accolades satisfy industry cravings, the deepest fulfillment often comes from personal projects, volunteer work and off-the-clock activities.For Campaign’s Question of the Week series, agency professionals shared the pro bono work and personal ventures that inspire them.From creating newsletters and Nickelodeon cartoons to writing and producing music, industry leaders prove that adland is just as creative during off-hours as it is in work mode.For-good, feel-good campaignsBrian Watson, CCO, Cactus, told Campaign he’s worked on the agency’s Man Therapy campaign for the past 15 years. Man Therapy is also an online resource that aims to familiarize men with mental health awareness and treatment.“The work has been life-changing and life-saving for countless men,” Watson said. “Helping people in all forms of crisis connect to help when they don’t know where else to turn has been both creatively fulfilling and personally rewarding.”Scott Foreman, CEO, Copacino Fujikado, explained to Campaign a project the agency worked on with Premera Blue Cross and NHL team Seattle Kraken, addressing stigmas around mental health in sports culture. By having the hockey players openly talk about their personal mental health challenges, the long-form campaign spots showcased the “unspoken need” for more mental health awareness.“By confronting the idea that asking for help is weakness, the work sparked overdue conversations among fans and beyond,” Foreman said.Madeline Lambie, associate creative director, Duncan Channon, cited a recent project with Undo — a California Department of Public Health program that fights to “end Big Tobacco’s influence” in the state — to celebrate its 30th anniversary. The program led to a 52% decrease in lung cancer rates, saved more than 1 million lives and resulted in various cities ending the sale of tobacco products, Lambie said.“My mental peace is tied to my ability to make a difference,” she said. “I’m lucky to work at an agency that allows me to use creativity for something bigger than selling products. This type of work makes me want to show up not just for myself or my agency, but for the people we can help.”Justin Bajan, cofounder, Familiar Creatures, noted that 90% of the brain develops by the time a child is 5 years old. Last year, Virginia Public Media tapped the agency to create When, Then., a campaign that encourages parents and caregivers to “actively engage” with their children’s brain development.“The experience was satisfying,” Bajan said, “but it also pulled us outside of our privileged bubble and allowed us to see how tough it is to raise children without the resources we’re used to having.”Jessie McGuire, managing partner, Thought Matter, detailed the brand toolkit the agency developed for the Street Vendor Project, a collective that aims to raise awareness for street vendors in cities such as New York.(Photo credit: Thought Matter, used with permission)“That work reminds you design is not just marketing,” McGuire said. “It shapes who gets seen, who feels welcome and who gets understood. [Many] people feel isolated or invisible right now. Helping communities communicate their value back to the world feels meaningful in a very real way. It reconnects me to why I wanted to work in this industry in the first place.”Andrew Rutledge, partner, View Source, told Campaign that rebuilding the platform for Chicago’s Ceda — a private, nonprofit community action agency — provided “immense inspiration.”(Photo credit: Ceda, used with permission)“[It was] a great way to rewire our creative brains for a few good months,” he said. “It’s a pause, and it was once said that ‘pause is the necessary condition of the development of all those higher purposes which make up the rational being.’”Personal projects and outlets Wes Morton, founder and CEO, Creativ Company, told Campaign the agency’s weekly newsletter, “The Creativ Brief,” has “transformed into a therapeutic personal business journal.”(Photo credit: The Creativ Company, used with permission)“Writing out the ups and downs of an entrepreneurial journey while receiving over 1,500 subscribers full of peers, clients and colleagues has created an amazing community for me personally,” he added.Jess Lewis, global chief technology and data officer, Crossmedia, founded Mast Cell Collective, a community for those like herself navigating mast cell diseases. She said she was inspired to start the collective because of the “fractured” experience patients face, often going years without a proper diagnosis and cycling through a number of specialists.“Building a community and health tech taught me something that now runs through all my work,” she explained. “The systems people depend on often aren’t designed around how humans actually experience them. That insight applies whether you’re talking about healthcare, technology or AI.”Jake Doll, VP of client relations, PANBlast, created “NerdFave,” a newsletter covering everything from Legos to video games, books, movies and more.“I’m already scheduling article ideas weeks out, experimenting with growth tactics and recruiting contributors,” he told Campaign. “There’s something uniquely satisfying about chaotically owning the whole thing with zero committee sign-off, turning ideas into articles and watching it grow. I’m learning new things about myself, newsletters and PR all at once.”In 2016, Chris Hassell, founder and CEO, Ralph, and others within Ralph Creative produced a cartoon for Nickelodeon U.K. titled Tinkershrimp & Dutch. The show follows characters Tinkershrimp, Dutch and King Hunnybun as they travel across New Great Great Britain. The cartoon featured music composed by Nick McCarthy — a founding and former member of the band Franz Ferdinand — and stars actor and producer John Boyega.“Bringing to life something that was created by two of my best friends together with amazing [people] that really loved the project was just a dream come true,” Hassell said.Eric Rojas, founder and CCO, Six+One, wrote an extended play (EP) album, Psalms of Glory: A Battle Cry of Worship.“This business can crush you as an agency owner if you don’t have an outlet, so I wrote songs to God,” Rojas said. “I took the pressure and turned them into songs to share with other entrepreneurs who feel the same.”Tim McCarthy, ECD, The Infinite Agency, told Campaign that any opportunity to work with basketball team Dallas Mavericks — of which he considers himself a lifelong fan — is a “satisfying experience.”“At Infinite, we absolutely love what we do, but it’s no secret that agency life is creatively demanding,” he said. “So, finding opportunities to fill the creative soul is very important. Some find that in personal projects, pro bono work, or in turning it off completely. Those opportunities live at the intersection of fun, passion and our core value of delivering excellence.”Volunteering leadershipKaren Bennett, MD, U.S., Jellyfish, has spent her entire life volunteering for different causes and organizations. Over the past decade, she’s focused her volunteer efforts on “driving meaningful change” through leadership in her town of Cranford, New Jersey, specifically for Cranford Prevention and Wellness, Cranford Unity Project, Cranford Fund for Educational Excellence and the town’s Substance Abuse and Mental Wellness committee.“These experiences have reinforced something I believe deeply,” she said. “Leadership is not only about driving business growth, but also about creating positive, lasting impact in the communities around us.”Four years ago, Glynnis Cummings, senior account manager, Open Influence, began volunteering for the dog rescue Wags and Walks, which she described as a “constant source of joy.” She even adopted her dog, Pepper, from the organization.“Over the years I’ve learned that taking care of my mental well-being is a requirement, not a ‘nice-to-have,’” she said to Campaign. “Dogs didn’t choose their circumstances, so for me, Wags and Walks is a reminder that a small act of compassion can make a huge difference.”Mack McKelvey, founder and CEO, SalientMG, joined the board of trustees of Creative Spirit U.S. in 2020. The nonprofit is dedicated to creating employment opportunities for those who are neurodivergent.“I’ve been continually inspired by its mission,” he told Campaign. “This community brings talent, creativity and innovation to the workforce that we need more of and shows what true inclusion looks like.”Aaron Edwards, cofounder and CEO, The Charles Group, also mentors first-generation college students at Columbia Business School through one-hour monthly calls that he considers the “most clarifying part of my week.”“They ask the questions I forgot to keep asking myself about craft, courage and what’s actually worth chasing,” he said. “Helping the right families and educators find a network that’s genuinely building futures isn’t just a brief; it’s the same work, scaled. I leave both with more than I bring.”