Remember the first time you won?

You were just a kid.

Maybe it was on the playground, the classroom, or a field trip. I'm talking about that moment when you first felt like a hero, despite your short stature and snotty nose. You scarfed down more food than any child should in one sitting. Or you stood up to the bully who was always stealing your Lunchables. Maybe you performed a kick-ass air guitar solo at your BFF's sixth b-day party. 

Whatever it was, that scrappy victory is likely a huge part of who you are.

My first big win was on a September day in the eighties. I diligently worked on a submission for my school's annual "Week of The Ocean" poster contest. The theme was "Let's Keep Our Oceans Clean."

I drew stick figures. Water. A trash can. I was satisfied because I used my new Hello Kitty glitter to glam up the waves. But when I put my completed assignment on my teacher's desk, I saw her give it a dismissive once over. She was unimpressed.

So I snatched my work back, ran to my seat, and quickly dove for the Crayolas. With a few assorted colors in hand, I outlined the stickmen, women, and children differently this time. Now the peeps cleaning in my poster were diverse. Black people, white people, brown people, purple people. Because WE are the world, and WE are the children. And I was WAY into MJ that year. 

Pumped by my quick kid-thinking, I slid my revised drawing back into the pile in the nick of time.

Later that afternoon, the announcement came. Oakridge Elementary named me the winner of the 1988 Clean Our Oceans Poster Contest. I got $10, and my drawing was printed on school posters for the rest of the year. 

But most importantly, my life-long love of inclusive advertising was born.