I never wanted to write or share this post, but I’ve been forced to after Adweek have recently published an article which makes a number of very serious and false allegations about me, which I can’t let go unanswered, both for my own sake and that of the community of which I’m a part.
I’ve now been running One Minute Briefs for ten years since starting it at university. People have always assumed there is a big team behind OMB. But no. It’s just been me. I am by no means perfect. I have made mistakes in my personal life and business life, as everyone has. I have made amends for these and will continue to do so. That’s why, it’s a shame to see campaigns from 9 years ago (when OMB wasn’t even a business) being brought back up. As well as a campaign from 4 years ago, when steps were made to evolve the business & introduce an OMBoard.
I’ve worked extremely hard to create an inclusive community where people can be creative and thrive by gaining contacts, confidence and meet like-minded people.
But it comes at a cost.
As your community grows, your apparent success brings negativity, jealousy, bullying and hate.
Throughout this whole time, I’ve arranged meet-ups, events and done many workshops and talks. I message both men and women all of the time through OMB, some of which have turned into close friendships or relationships. It’s perfectly normal to me, to interact with people on this level.
That being said, if this has ever made anyone feel uncomfortable, then I apologise and I will endeavour to ensure there is a clearer distinction between my personal and business life moving forward. I must also stress that all prize winners are chosen by the brands/causes we collaborate with – I do not select prize winners myself.
I have now put in place a team of OMBassadors and someone else is now running the day-to-day duties of OMB as I intend to step back to deal with the severe impact this has had on myself and the community.
I’m sure you will have read the Adweek article and I know some of you have made your own mind up about me.
A person I had a personal relationship with, has decided to share serious allegations about me in a New York ad publication.
While the person making the accusations against me isn’t named in the article – and I respect that they do not want to be named – I am aware of who they are.
I have a lot to say about the circumstances, but I am not willing to do this through the media, out of respect for their privacy & mental well-being.
Since the article was published, I have seen people coming out to bully me in an almost ‘influencer-like’ witch hunt, in order to inflict as much damage as possible. This has resulted in a pile-on of malicious and inflammatory social posts that are incredibly difficult to read. I’ve done my best to keep away from social media whilst people attempt to make my world fall apart but I have seen some of what has been said about me, and the content of social media posts are being monitored.
To reiterate, these allegations are categorically false and not being considered against the context of my personal and private relationship with this person.
Adweek’s sensationalist and damaging reporting style has led to me being on suicide watch by my family and friends, a fact which I’ve made clear to Adweek throughout.
Despite claims to the contrary, I did in fact provide Adweek with relevant background information including details that substantiate that what I am saying is true – but I provided some of that information off the record because otherwise it would have involved the publishing of sensitive personal details regarding the person who made them.
I have sought mental health help to cope with all of this and I’d like to thank all of my friends/family/OMBassadors for their support during such a difficult time. I have been very sad to see valued members of the community turn their back on OMB, as a result of this article, without having the opportunity to hear my side.
That said, I would like to thank everyone who continues to support me and the community, and I will continue to support the team who are now running OMB and I very much hope it can survive and thrive once again.
Nick