Briefly
To all the artists, educators, designers, scientists, strategists, organizers, chefs, lawyers, botanists, writers, activists, entrepreneurs and anyone else that ideates, iterates, and delivers... Thank you for making things out of thin air. (Poof! Existence!)
Creativity isn't about paint, clay, or watercolor, it's about thinking up a new way to do something interesting & valuable.
I saw a quote the other day on Twitter that went along the lines of... "Don't say maybe when you mean, no."
As I reach out to potential partners for IPaintMyMind's Shared Walls™ program, this idea rings true. By a long shot, I'd prefer a clear NO than a false MAYBE.
This is an important idea. How often do we say the former when we mean the latter? Probably too much, even if our intentions are good. But to be fair, expecting others to mean what they say starts with each one of us doing the same.
No is a perfectly acceptable answer... especially when a false maybe is the alternative.
I'm going to try and get better at this. Wanna join me?
You know what I'm talking about, I'm sure you do... Those times when a word or idea seems to circle back to you frequently, almost as if it's taunting you, reminding you of its priority in the world.
There are a few thing to say here:
"Youth" is the most recent example of this phenomena for me. The word came up with respect to my personality, then again with respect to my soon-to-be-daddyness, then through a song (cool kids, don't be afraid of a great pop song), and finally through this film (which might be one of my favorite films ever).
The point is, it's an indication of awareness.
So I wonder...
What's been circling back to you lately? And probably more importantly, why?
Buildings, websites, relationships, and vehicles all require maintenance. It can be helpful to remind ourselves that solutions are temporary & that things worth keeping, building, growing, or preserving, are going to require at least a little bit of elbow grease.
Plug-n-play isn't forever. It's fair to assume a certain level of upkeep.
Friendtor (frend-tor) noun. 1. Someone who is both your friend and your mentor, this relationship can be reciprocal or unidirectional, but has the most potency when shared in both directions. When I spoke to my friendtor, we shared some awesome ideas & both learned a lot.
2. A relationship between people in which there is true equanimity and both people teach each other. The emphasis is on a free exchange of ideas where based on the subject, the teacher and the student shifts. The value of having a friendtor is immeasurable, I'm so lucky to have them in my life.
Yesterday I participated in my high school's Career Fair as an alumn who was now an "Entrepreneur." Instead of talking at them about what I thought entrepreneurship was, I started by asking them why they were interested in knowing what being an entrepreneur meant. Answers ranged from wanting to create their own schedules, to being their own boss, or having some experience of a family business. Freedom, both creative & social, was central to their curiosity.
I joked that some days I feel unemployed, but I also reminded them not to worry too much about what they think they want to be or do now, but to collect info by testing things out. Finding the intersection of interest & value definitely came up a few times.
It made me think about the level of digital normality that existed when I was in high school versus what these kids have to work with. Instant publishing, social media, and digital tools a keystroke away.
The fact remains, there is no currency like being current. There is a potency in having it all out in front of you.
Today I was reminded...
The kids know a lot and I've got to be the one asking them the questions.
Thank you is free. It also feels good, makes others feel good, and tends to create more chances for you to say it again.
I just published an article on Medium.com entitled, 13 Dads Offer Wisdom On Raising Tiny Humans. The reason that was an article I wanted to write, was because I'll be a dad this May. As a grown-up kid, it's been funny, amazing, and humbling to think about myself as a father.
While those thoughts sloshed around, I had the idea to ask some dad's I admire for a bit of perspective... so that's what I did.
A sincere THANK YOU to the dudes for their time & thoughtfulness.
Lately I've been reminded that intent is everything. By forgiving positive intent gone awry, we create more spaces to truly communicate as opposed to react & defend. It's helpful to remind ourselves that to expect positive intent, we have to dish it out, and that in doing so, we intentionally build positive spaces all around us.
I like to call this, 'The Good Bubble'.
We can exist in any category we want. We can like things that society might not think would go together.
We can be a jock that also acts in plays. We can love art and math. We can love Hip Hop and Prog Rock.
While categories are about what subsection of life things fit into, they don't apply in the same way to humans as they do to facets of life.
We're not constrained by labels, genres, ideas, places, worldviews, ourselves...
Or at least, we shouldn't be.
Letting others be who they are is inextricably linked to having the freedom to be ourselves.
Here's to both sides of said coin & learning to do both things better.
To me, the truly great thing about David Bowie was how fully he gave himself to the things he was compelled to create. He had advanced thoughts about art, music, fashion, technology, & business, among many other categories, because he could see the entirety of an idea from every angle, then build it.
He could fully envision how the band should play, what should be worn, how the lights should be set up, what the cover of the record would look like, what the stage design for the tour should be, & what persona would fit best, all the while maintaining an inherently intuitive creative approach that never lost the forest for the trees.
He consistently had cohesive ideas about how all the parts would fit together to service the whole.
What can I say, I admired that about him.
In thinking about how one can best create and implement projects, making things that work, inspire, and elevate involves similar creative visions. It requires a preeminent idea about the end product & how to get there.
Simply put, David Bowie embraced his weirdness and unlocked his genius.
He proved that our freak flags are OK... and made some really cool shit in the process.
P.s. This article I read on Medium.com pretty much sums up my sentiment. I also highly recommend Bowie's most recent record, Blackstar, which was released last week, just days before his passing.
Hey, friends. You may have noticed that your emails often get categorized as either part of your primary inbox or as a promotion. Since I use Mailchimp to send out my newsletter, you are probably seeing my emails in your Promotions tab. The thing is, I'm not Groupon, an airline, a brick & mortar business offering a discount, or any other kind of typical promotional retailer.
While I do offer services & have art for sale, my newsletter has a lot more to do with unpacking ideas & questions that you might find value thinking about. As such, I'd love to make sure you get my emails, and there are two ways to make sure my emails show up in your primary tab:
As an aside, it was great to get a solid response to my offer from a few emails ago, & I'm excited to jump on a call with the first 3 people that responded.
More and more every day, I think about strategy. As in, how am I going to do what I want to do?
The what is fantastic, but the how determines whether or not it will work. I'm stoked to help a few of you get tactical about your projects.
Here's to big things in 2016!