Q & A with Rich Silverstein

Aug 25, 2008

What is your biggest accomplishment?

RS: My two kids. Workwise, it is building a valuable place for people to have fun and make a contribution, a place and a company where they could make a living and raise their families, where they are allowed to be quirky. I’m pretty quirky myself. Jeff and I did it without having much of a plan, but the one thing we were good at was hiring.

What are your quirks?

RS: I’m completely impatient. I’ll know in three seconds if I’m not interested. I don’t like to labor over something too
long; I like things done fast. And I’m extremely honest. It might seem harsh, but once I say something, it’s gone, there is no baggage. Jeff is the opposite: He is thoughtful, he takes 30 minutes. We are yin and yang, sharing the same values, but very different people.

And the values you two share are…?

RS: Honesty and creativity.

What quality do you avoid in people?

RS: The willingness to wait for things to happen. That does not work here. We seek out interesting personalities that will fill the place up. People who make things happen.

Who outside the ad business inspires you?

RS: I got a chance to work with photographer Richard Avedon when I was starting out and he was so gracious and made a huge impression on me. He showed me the role of teaching and giving back to society. I believe you can be creative and be a nice person. The whole idea of the creative brat, well, you can put up with a person like that for a while, then you get over it and move on. However, if I come across a nice [prospective employee] who is not creative, I’d have to pass. Nice alone isn’t enough.

What is your guilty pleasure?

RS: NASCAR racing. I wish I could be a race car driver. I’ve been to racing school, I go to races and I TiVo as many NASCAR events as I can. I like things that are fast. Each morning I get up at 5:30 and check out autosport.com.

How about other online habits?

RS: I also check out Huffington Post each morning and then check and delete every single e-mail message I get. I can’t stand having e-mail hanging over me.

Do you worry much?

RS: I worry about things all the time. I fret about everything. I have a weekly lunch with Jeff and we go over everything I’m worried about that we need to fix. I have this need to prove myself. It’s like when I was younger and was always trying to please my father. In fact, I seem to find difficult men, such as Hal Riney, to prove myself to. I think when you have a demanding dad, that rubs off on you.

What do you get from cycling?

RS: It’s a way to show my toughness. I pick the highest mountain or the hardest route to ride. It probably comes from the fact I’m dyslexic and had to battle that all my life, and so I try to prove I’m tough enough for difficult challenges.


What’s your current state of mind?

RS: I am always in angst about what campaign we can do to blow people away. Also, I have more than one eye on our country’s economy and the way the world is going. Every day I make the strongest coffee I can and read The New York Times. Still, some stories are so painful I can’t finish them.

Who would play you in the movies?

RS: A fit version of Larry David. He reflects the same nuttiness I have. Of course, he would also have to be more handsome than the real Larry David.

For more Goodby, Silverstein & Partners coverage:
A Note from Lee Clow
Just regular guys: Silverstein and Goodby
Q & A with Jeff Goodby
Q & A with Rich Silverstein
Meet the Partners
The Client is Always Right
25 Years