In this edition of I Am Merkle, to celebrate Black History Month, we get to know Wesley Hall, Solutions Engineer at Merkle. Read on to hear about Wesley’s professional journey, experiences with Black History Month, and more.
1. Tell us about yourself; where did you grow up? Where do you live now? What’s your cultural background or heritage?
I was born in Memphis, Tennessee, in what I like to describe as the "inner part of the inner city." And like most inner-cities during the 1980s, I saw the drugs and crime take their toll on my neighborhood and my family. My grandmother was the rock of our family. She was politically active, an artist, and she was a hustler. My grandmother taught me the importance of self-reliance and how to make the best out of any situation life hands me. She is part of the reason I am an avid quilter today.
2. What does Black History Month mean to you personally, and professionally?
Black History Month is when we surface stories that are not often told, and it’s time we pay homage to people who have paved the way for our freedoms. History is almost always taught through the lens of the historian's view, and Black History Month changes the way we look at our past. That view is not always pretty, but it is always useful.
3. If you could be remembered for one thing, what would it be?
I want the quilts I make that outlive me to remind people of my creativity. I want people to say that when we spoke, they felt like the most important person in the world. Okay, that’s two things but I couldn’t decide which was more important.
4. What drew you to your career?
My career actually began as a hobby building my own websites for fun. I was working night shifts in the emergency room at a Memphis city hospital and played with HTML to pass the time. I landed an entry level web developer position, taught myself JavaScript and PHP, and discovered the new world of (what was then called) Web Analytics. I dove deep into tools like Urchin and Web Trends which became the foundation for Google Analytics, and I have stayed immersed for the last 14-ish years. I guess I’m a digital analytics OG.
5. If you could have any occupation in the world, what would it be?
My dream is to be a well-paid public speaker. I love sharing knowledge and insights and I especially love motivating people in their everyday lives. In my dream job, I would get paid to fly around and give talks about anything: life lessons, technology, you name it. Delivering a TED Talk is on my bucket list.
6. What is your biggest accomplishment?
I am very proud of where I’ve come in my career. From being unsure about what I wanted to do in life to now loving my job and the tasks I do is a blessing. My greatest accomplishment, however, is outside of me. Seeing my grown children thriving or listening to my wife happily singing as she walks around our house fills me with immense pride. My family is the best thing I have had a hand in.
7. What role has failure played in your life? Can you think of a moment where apparent failure set you up for success later or down the road? Do you have a “favorite” failure?
When I was eleven years old, I got the chance to go to my first sleep-away summer camp that was sponsored by the YMCA for inner city kids. I didn’t know how to swim, but when I got to the lake where the other kids were swimming, I jumped in and literally almost drowned. I simply didn’t want to go to the shallow part where the non-swimming “minnows” were. I wanted to hang out with the older and cooler “sharks”. So, I jumped in, started sinking to the bottom of the lake, and I had to be saved.
In my mind, if other folks were swimming, I could jump in and then learn how. I still live like that today. I will still jump in the water and try to learn how to swim. Sometimes I need to be rescued, bI ut some amazing times I come up stroking like a shark.
8. What is a lesson you’ve learned at Merkle/dentsu that you believe everyone should learn at some point in their life?
The evening news usually shows people at their worst. Every day I work with people at their best. People like Andrew Carnegie and Barack Obama talk about how important it is to surround yourself with people that are smarter than you. I get to do that at Merkle/denstu and I am blessed by what I learn from such kind and brilliant people.
9. Rapid fire
a. Favorite food?
Lasagna and garlic bread
b. Favorite book?
My Bondage and My Freedom by Frederick Douglas
c. Favorite author?
Ta-Nehisi Coates
d. Favorite podcast?
99 Percent Invisible
e. Favorite TV show/movie?
Family Guy!
f. Favorite hobby/activity?
I love quilting. I have a quilt studio in my home.
g. Favorite quote?
I do me. You do you.
h. Best advice or mantra to live by?
Do not get stressed about things you cannot control.
About the Author
Wesley Hall has over fourteen years of digital marketing strategy and implementation experience, having worked in both corporate and consulting positions. Wesley has led implementations for several major Fortune 1000 websites. Wesley specializes in advanced analytics programming methods, and is an industry thought leader for Tag Management Systems. Wesley is an advocate for data governance and reporting standards, and he regularly lectures about digital marketing best practices. Wesley is a sometimes overly enthusiastic Atlanta United and Nottingham Forest soccer fan and is an avid and award-winning quilter.
