We recently connected with Aaron Perlut and have shared our conversation below.
Aaron, appreciate you joining us today. Before we talk about all of your success, let’s start with a story of failure. Can you open up about a time when you’ve failed?
I fail all the time and try to address those failures so that I can learn and grow from them. As a result, I do not have a lot of tolerance for people who are unwilling to address their shortcomings.
Some 17 years ago, I reached a breaking point with my inability to pay attention and finish tasks. It was beginning to creep into my professional life and I needed to address it. It took roughly five years to find the right approach, but I finally found an ADHD medication that worked for me. Today, I am remarkably productive and able to use the “disability” to my benefit — effectively completing multiple tasks in a more compressed period of time.
In late 2018 — after years of heavy drinking and embarrassing myself both personally and professionally on numerous occasions — I finally realized I needed to quit consuming alcohol. I had put myself in too many precarious situations, made too many people uncomfortable, and caused too many problems for me, my family and my company. I had known it for at least a decade but never had the courage to address it. My last drink was November 20, 2018. I quit cold turkey and have not looked back, never been tempted, and I know that today I am a better husband, father, Elasticity teammate, friend and all-around upright mammal.
The final leg of my trifecta came in the summer of 2019. I was in a board meeting of a client. Two of the board members were assailing our agency’s communications and marketing efforts. Sure, they had no idea what they were saying and were prone to shooting off at the mouth. But needless to say, I addressed it poorly. I quickly shifted into a defensive mode and attacked both board members. As a result, we lost the client’s business — and we should have. After I simmered down — and it took me a few months to come to my senses — I came to the realization that I had no one to blame but myself. I spoke with my wife and then a doctor about it. Ultimately, I was diagnosed with anxiety, which upon reflection did not surprise me. Today I am medicated and am thriving more than ever before.
Aaron, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
I began my career in media and quickly pivoted into marketing and public relations. I slowly worked my way through public relations agencies and spent about 10 years working in corporate communications for energy companies. In 2005, I went to work for FleishmanHillard, one of the world’s largest public relations firms, which ended up not being a good fit for me. Then in 2009, I founded Elasticity along with two other partners and over the past 14 years we’ve built a progressive practice and worked with a nice mix of established brands like Capital One, MasterCard, Best Buy and H&R Block, along with a number of exciting startups, education institutions, state governments and economic development authorities.
Can you tell us the story behind how you met your business partner?
My business partners and I all worked at FleishmanHillard and shared a vision about how our industry was pivoting due to technology and consumer information gathering habits. We spent about a year pitching our concept to supporters and finally found a partner to help get us off the ground.
What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?
Our name, Elasticity, says everything you need to know about us. We are flexible, agnostic, not tied to any specific means of helping business achieve their goals through marketing and advertising. We help brands and organizations stand out, and anyone who has worked with us knows it.
Contact Info:
- Website: goelastic.com
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/aaronperlut/
- Twitter: @aaronperlut