When you wake up, do you remember your dreams?

Oooh, this resonates. Modern poetry talking to your heart.

This world that you imagine,
do you remember what was saying?

When it’s just you and your heart.
Do you believe?

Do you define the eyes, defy gravity
brushed the hate off and take off.

What does that feel like,
when life begins to mirror your dreams?

Do you rise like flights, like hikes, like Mike?
air up there, up there is reserved for those who dare to reach.

Who ain’t scared to breach the barriers that were built to box you in.
Walls can’t contain the giant inside.

Don’t let their assumptions lock you in.
You take leaps of faith.

Get air, those are clouds, you’re walking.
Do you see that you have the ability to stretch time, take time and freeze frame it?

Those that thought you were nothing more than the conditions you were born to.
Wherever be surprised that you made it?

You have to be fearless when you step on life stages.

When you wake up.
Do you remember your dreams?

—-

credits: Uncommon creative studio. They created a one of a kind event for Jordan’s Beyond – inviting local Parisian streetballers to a reimagined disused bank based in Paris, re-styled to resemble a basketball court, to step up and play with some of Jordan’s most iconic ambassadors.

How to write

Some good advice by David Ogilvy in the memo How to Write (1982). For the management to circulate as they saw fit.

Doing is the best way of thinking

You’ve probably seen the video. But this is a good reminder: Doing is the best way of thinking.

Take a look and then take action.

You are at your most creative when you are 5 years old and by the age of 8 your creativity is halved.

By age 44 you enter a state of perpetual seriousness.

Structure determines your life and reality lags behind.

This video is a plea for ‘doing’. Make it work!

Uncomfortable

The Greek designer Katerina Kamprani gives objects from our daily lives a deliberately uncomfortable twist.

“Designers usually want to make everyday products even better or more useful. I try to avoid it. I design objects that become even more frustrating. My creations are like parasites in the world of design,” she says.

It makes you aware of how we think of everyday objects. Actually, we don’t think about it all. We take it totally for granted. The series is called The Uncomfortable and disrupts that normal pattern. Fun.

In the eyes of the animal

Nice to experience this other perspective!

Visitors to an English forest were able to explore the woods through the eyes of different animals as part of a virtual reality experience by London design studio Marshmallow Laser Feast.

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐄𝐱𝐭𝐫𝐚 𝐋𝐢𝐬𝐭

Something that is in the foreground often gets all the attention.

It could be a famous person who sees all eyes on him or her.
It can be an intriguing object, a wonderful creation.

Or a popular topic, you will see the same content given a new look over and over again.

‘The Extra List’ puts people in the spotlight who are or were in the background. A film extra (an extra or sometimes even described as ‘atmosphere’) is a person who appears in a film or television show, but has no lines.

It is a reminder to not just look at what is directly in front of your eyes, but to widen the lens. In many situations we are unaware of the beauty of details or of something that is extraordinary and wonderful.

Looking is not the same as seeing!

1. 𝐅𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐕𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐚𝐧 𝐌𝐚𝐢𝐞𝐫
This film (in Dutch) unravels the discovery of 100,000 negatives by the unknown amateur photographer Vivian Maier. Image credit.

2. 𝐈𝐧 𝐚𝐥𝐦𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐩𝐢𝐜𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞
Erik Kessels, advertising man, artist and designer, creates fascinating photo books and exhibitions of found amateur photography.

3. 𝐌𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐨𝐧 𝐁𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐥𝐞𝐭𝐭
Bartlett, an American who led a secluded life, created a series of lifelike dolls in the mid-20th century. His sculptures were posthumously discovered and admired for their artistry. Image credit

4. 𝐈𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐥 𝐓𝐚𝐥𝐩𝐚𝐳𝐚𝐧
Talpazan, a Romanian artist and UFO enthusiast, created vivid paintings depicting his encounters with aliens.

5. 𝐉𝐢𝐥𝐥, 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐮𝐧𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐭𝐞𝐝
At first you don’t even notice her, she is one of many. But little by little you start to become aware of the presence of ‘extra’ Jill Goldston.

6. 𝐆𝐞𝐨𝐫𝐠𝐞 𝐎𝐡𝐫
Art potter, he calls himself. After his death, George became one of America’s most celebrated ceramicists. He pushed the standards of traditional ceramics. But during his lifetime his work was considered strange. Image credit

7. 𝐆𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐚 𝐃𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐢𝐜𝐚
Gilda Domenica worked as a seamstress all her life. Without realizing it, she has become an artist. All her works are made with recycled materials: newspapers, plastic plates, food packaging, toys. Image credit

#widenthelens
#see
#noticing
#creativity
#inspiration
#dowhatyoulove

Trust in the things you love

Do something worth remembering
of a photograph or a scar
– Mickey Smith

The sound of the waves.
The music.
The spoken words.
The dialect.
The purity.

This film touched my heart, and that’s a beautiful thing.
This is Mickey Smith’ take on the magic of being in the ocean.

It als reminded me of the film Point Break with Patrick Swayze and Keanu Reeves. Yes, I know, I know. It’s hardly comparable. But I used to watch that film so often, knowing the lines by heart. It transported me to good times with my friends. At the beach, the sea side. And filled me with laughter. Let your weirdness flow flee! To all misfits, salt rats and dreamers. Do what you love.

I see life in angles, in lines the perspective.
A slight turn of the head
The blink of an eye
subtle glimpses of magic other folk pass by.

More recenty he made this beautiful film: a blaze of feather

See. Feel. Trust.

A lot can be learned from this article on Oatly. It’s short but powerful. And I recognize a lot. How do you get people to see, feel, trust what you are trying to share. Here is what creative director Kevin Lynch learned shaking up the dairy sector.

It starts with trust
Put simply, the people who do the work were entrusted with approving the work.

Think revolution, not evolution
Before becoming the Oatly, you know, the company spent almost 20 years being the Oatly you ignored. Oatly followed all the FCMG rules it could find and created marketing that only a focus group could love.

Transforming from a food processing company to a lifestyle brand that stands for something more meaningful than just selling oat milk. Nothing but the name survived the rebranding. I don’t believe the Oatly of today could’ve arrived through incrementalist thinking and evolution. It required revolution.

No one cares
One of the most enabling aspects of working on Oatly was the freedom to openly admit that no one gives a shit about what we had to say. By acknowledging this indifference, it gave us a much better opportunity to make a connection by meeting our audience where they’re at.

Knowing people aren’t listening also forced us into some behaviors that every brand could benefit from. First, care about your audience more than you do about yourself. Second, be single–minded.

It’s better to be debated than ignored
fckoatly.com, a website Oatly colleagues created just so people didn’t have to waste time rummaging through the internet looking for all the things we did “wrong.” You can argue that Oatly had no choice but to be brave – that trying to shift the planet from dairy to plant–based will inevitably cause tension, so we might as well face it.

Understanding that sometimes, the road to greatness isn’t step by step; it requires a leap. Knowing your biggest competition isn’t other brands in the category; it’s indifference. And realizing that criticism is just a form of caring.

Read the article which was published in The Drum

#strategy
#innovation
#brand
#trust
#culture

Awkwardness

Such a lovely TedTalk by Melissa Dahl about embarrasment, awkwardness and social anxiety. It’s the fear of being vulnerable and being your true self. Awkwardness is there when the script is falling away. There’s unpredictability in life and you have to learn to get comfortable by those uncertain situations. Awkwardness is the fronteer to people.

She wrote a book about it, Cringeworthy, outlining her Theory of Awkwardness. Watch the above TED Talk, too, of course. She defines awkwardness as the ‘irreconcilable gap between how we perceive ourselves, and how others perceive us.’ This feeling is holding us back from the things we want to do. It’s like your little inner voice that’s putting you down.

How awkwardness comes from self-consciousness and uncertainty. How we create more drama with ourselves than necessary. How to find the “growing edge” and challenge yourself to have more awkward conversations. Don’t take yourself so seriously and have fun, play. It can be a power for greater understanding and connection with people. Open up your heart. Perhaps you don’t always have the skill set to deal with it but it starts with you. You are the instrument.

#awkwardness #melissadahl #authentic

The DO Lectures

The DO lectures. Little pieces of gold. Full of heart, ideas and insight. These lectures will be your mentor. And best of all, they’re free.

Oh, I like this site. Always something to learn, always nuggets of inspiration. The DO Lectures is an encouragement network for the creative underdog. Our goal is to inspire you and help you reach your potential. It’s that simple.

Courses. Events. Talks. Shop. Ideas >> DO visit this website!