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Name:       Barbara Murray
Title:          Fearless Leader
 

How long have you been with Left Coast Productions   Since 1999
What is the synopsis of what you do for Left Coast ?
I help people see things. (No, not dead people ) I take clients strategies and marketing ideas and bring them to life in a visual way.  I write the scripts, make a few web pages, throw in a little graphic design, and produce the Left Coast Projects.
In the process, I poke a little fun at ourselves.  

I have the same job description as Dr. Frankenstein: I take parts from all over the company, stitch them together and bring them to life. OK, my creations don’t walk and talk, but they do help give Left Coast and our clients a visual identity and a high profile in the market.

What is your favorite part of your job?
Give me a blank sheet of paper and I’m like a kid at Christmas – I love creating something from scratch.  And I get really excited if what I do makes someone laugh, think, or get an idea of their own.

Can you please tell us a little bit about your background, (i.e., where you were born, where you went to school, family history)?
I come from “good stock.”  That makes me sound like a farm animal, but I was born and raised in West Virginia and that’s how we talk.  Maybe it has something to do with the fact that there are more people in the San Francisco Bay area than in the entire state of West Virginia.

I was blessed with parents who had an excellent work ethic and an excellent sense of humor. They worked us like crazy -- and then laughed about it!

I have three siblings and my father took every opportunity to show us that, “Character is who you are when no one else is watching.”  That was just one of the qualities he and my mother tried to instill in “us young-uns.”  

I like variety and I have eclectic tastes.  That’s great for making life interesting, but not so great for choosing a college major:

I first attended Montgomery College in Maryland for a year, where I majored in recreation. That led logically to two years at the University of Charleston, where I studied business and accounting. Next I spent two years studying law at Marshall University. And, finally (well, so far), I spent two years studying photography and graphic design at the Academy of Arts in San Francisco.

I’m going to be a career counselor when I grow up.

What is one interesting fact that no one in the company knows about you that you would be willing to share?
 Well, a few people have probably heard the ugly rumors, so I should ‘fess up: I’m the story your parents worried about. I was the one who ran away and joined the circus.  I wanted to delay college a year, and I was a gymnast and performer in high school, so I joined the circus to see the world.  I stayed for three seasons, and every five years  or so I go back and attend our circus reunions.  I was a juggler, unicyclist, trampolinist and, occasionally, a clown. (No jokes, please – I’ve heard ‘em all.)

While I was in the circus I met and married a college gymnast who was also working at the circus on a whim.  We had two sons who claim that they were obviously raised by clowns. They have a point, but making me wear a big red nose in the family portrait hurt my feelings.

I made a life change 10 years ago. I got in the car, headed west, and stopped driving when I got to the ocean.  So, here I am at “Circus Left Coast” and happy to be here. Funny, it feels just like home!

 If there were one of your senses (touch, sight, taste, smell, sound) that you could NOT live without, what would it be and why?
Great question! But since this is my story I choose to say, “No….can’t choose.”  I admire those people who have lived with and overcome adversity.

But I want it all: Sense of touch, sense of smell, sense of humor, sense of accomplishment, sense of understanding, sense of fair play, and the ever-present sense of failure. After all, I learned the most when I failed. But I dusted myself off, got back up and tried again -- and was the better for it.

Have you ever been told you look like someone famous? If so, who?
I have been told I look like, act and sound like Brett Butler, the southern (and unsophisticated) comedienne.  Some friends renamed me Brett – and a lot of people still call me Brett.

Personally, I think I look just like Halle Berry. Oh, well. Not everyone sees us as we are.

If you could use one word to describe yourself, what would it be and why?
Game-on. OK, that’s two words and then hyphenated. Does that count?
I live life with passion, and try to live it with joy.  The gift of getting older is that you can play full out and know that it really is about the journey and not the destination.  I’ve learned to give my best and not to be attached to the outcome. Sometimes, the unintended road is the best.

What has been the best day of your life YTD and why?
Although there have been some stellar days, I haven’t yet lived my best day.

If you were handed one million dollars today and you had to decide right away what you were going to spend it on, what would you chose to do with the money?
Oooops – the phone’s ringing and it’s a client calling. It’s back to work for me.
What I would do with one million dollars? Keeping a little mystery is a good thing.
But just because I won’t answer the question doesn’t mean I don’t have a plan!