Board Member Spotlight – meet Arthur Uratani, AMADC’s District Current Chair!
Arthur Uratani
AMADC District Current Chair
Director of Marketing & Outreach, Bookoff McAndrews
All too often, we get caught up in the stress and responsibility of our jobs. Our days are jam-packed with meetings and deliverables – from running weekly marketing reports for a digital marketing campaign to putting together in-depth creative concepts for brands. We let the “grind” take over and forget to pause for a second and remember: marketing is cool, lively and exciting. AMADC District Current Chair Arthur Uratani makes sure to remind himself of that every day.
“Marketing is just fun,” says Arthur. “I live by the Mighty Ducks’ mantra. They played the game of hockey to have fun. They didn’t play necessarily to win. Of course, it’s great to have success. But for my mental well-being and overall joy in my life, I want to do something that’s rewarding and I’m happy with; that’s mentally stimulating; that’s entertaining on a daily basis. Marketing hits a lot of those things for me.”
As the director of marketing and outreach for Bookoff McAndrews, a patent counseling and prosecution law firm, Arthur likes to say he has “the most fun job in legal.” After graduating from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a BA in Political Science, he got a job at a law firm and quickly realized being a lawyer wasn’t the right fit. So, when he got an opportunity to go into legal marketing, he jumped at it and never looked back.
“I’ve been in this industry for well over 10 years, and it just keeps getting better and better,” says Arthur. “Right now, I’m a legal marketer, but I would call myself a generalist – as in I handle all marketing activities for my current firm. So that’s everything from communications, to branding, to marketing strategy, to events, to coaching, to digital marketing, to social media, to graphic design. I have a lot of fun hats I get to wear.”
With more than a decade of marketing experience, Arthur has learned a few things along the way – things he wishes he knew earlier in his career. What is Arthur’s best advice to new professionals?
“Ray Dalio said, ‘If you don’t look at yourself and think, “Wow, how stupid I was a year ago,” then you must not have learned much in the last year,’” says Arthur. “I’m always looking back at my past self and thinking, ‘Why did I do that?’ It’s a good exercise in humility and self-reflection. With that in mind, my first piece of advice is to be organized. When you are organized, your creativity can really flourish because you aren’t worried about every little thing that you need to do. My second tip for the procrastinators out there – and I’m a procrastinator myself – is to put effort into doing things as they come in because often, they’re much less daunting and time-consuming than we’ve built them up to be in our heads.”
When Arthur first joined AMADC, he started off as a member. After attending a handful of events and making a few connections, he determined being a passive member wasn’t the level of engagement he was looking for. He wanted to maximize his membership and immerse himself in the culture of learning that AMADC cultivates, which is what motivated him to pursue volunteering positions – leading Arthur to eventually become the chair of the District Current committee.
“When you become involved in an organization like AMADC, you are surrounding yourself with other people who want to learn and grow,” says Arthur. “In every single AMADC board meeting, I’m always impressed with something that someone is doing or saying. So whether it’s their knowledge of the topic, their poise or their ability to communicate effectively, I am absorbing all of it and trying to incorporate what resonates with me into my internal process.”
Thoughtful relationship building is the foundation of how Arthur approaches both his professional and personal life. Whether it’s the strong referral program he’s helped build at Bookoff McAndrews or the cohort of young professionals he has connected in District Current, Arthur prioritizes being in the orbit of motivated and inspiring people – and helping others do so as well.
“I want members to be able to find and connect with peers that inspire them. That opens up so many doors, and I want to give members opportunities to learn from each other, to motivate one another, to build meaningful relationships and eventually go on to champion each other,” says Arthur.
Outside of his legal marketing career and his role at AMADC, Arthur focuses on three key values: taking care of his body, nurturing his mind and quite simply, being happy.
“Sometimes, we as a society place more value on what you do for work than our mental and emotional states,” says Arthur. “I prioritize being happy and having fun. In my spare time, I’m a yoga instructor. I love teaching yoga because it’s super rewarding to watch others grow and get better each day. I also get a lot of enjoyment out of reading; it has been so fulfilling for my soul. My friend and I started a book club during the pandemic and it’s still going strong. I’ve created relationships that I never would have had otherwise. Over the last two years, the pandemic has limited us but it also has opened up opportunities for us to do more.”
Want to get involved with District Current or another AMADC committee? Become a member and fill out the Volunteer Application here.