Al Patton is chief creative officer at Atlanta agency Dagger, known for its work with Alfac and for creating Atlannapedia through its media arm, Butter. He’s also an amateur stand-up comic, who’s played shows in New York City and Atlanta.

At first, he says, advertising seemed “like a way to get your comedy out into the world. Young writers are always looking for clients where they can write their comedy scripts.” Unfortunately, some clients just don’t lend themselves to humor.

“If being an agency writer or creative is your only outlet for getting that stuff out of you, it’s only going to extract it out of you one drop at a time,” Patton says. “If you have that stuff to express, you’re never going to be fully satisfied with the way advertising and marketing allows you to do it.” Instead, being on stage scratches that itch for him.

He also talks about the similarities between pitching and stand-up, not being able to embrace Michael Jordan’s Bulls just yet, and Ron White’s advice for success.