Accidental Creative

Quick Thought: Stupid and Simple

Do not confuse stupid (one-dimensional) and simple (multi-layered.) They can appear very similar at first glance but there is an intentionality in simple executions that reveals itself over time.

Stupid: Novelty
Simple: Creativity

Stupid: Quick flash
Simple: Slow burn

Stupid: Used up
Simple: Re-purposed

Stupid: Desperate
Simple: Patient

Stupid: Provoking
Simple: Engaging

Quotable

On rest:

"Learn to pause…or nothing worthwhile will catch up to you."
Doug King, poet

AC Podcast: #76, Keith Ferrazzi

At one point in his career, Keith Ferrazzi was the youngest CMO in the Fortune 500. Since then, he’s led innovative companies and formed his own consultancy, Ferrazzi-Greenlight. He is the author of the international best-seller Never Eat Alone, which is a masterpiece on bulding relationships. In this interview, Keith shares with us some wisdom about how creative pros can network, build relationships and thrive by living a life of intimacy and generosity.

Indexed Brilliance

Fellow AC-er Rob Seddon sent me a link this morning to this little piece of web brilliance.

Thus far, this one is my favorite.

We can get so locked into modes and means of communication that we overlook the mashability of media. What I find brilliant about this is its simplicity (and insight) combined with its lack of pretention. New means of connection emerge when we strip away assumed complexity.

Technorati Tags: linkage

5 Reasons Why My Kids Are My Creative Heroes

I have four and two year old boys (and an eleven-month-old daughter). Here are five reasons they inspire me - in no particular order:

1. They work with what they’ve got. This morning they came bursting into my home office (at 6:45am mind you…) playing super heroes. One was "goo man" who shoots purple goo at bad guys and one was "web man" who operates (strangely) like SpiderMan except he can fly and has a horn on each side of his head. Hmm.

2. They only see possibility. They live within the bounds of "no" and "yes", but are always saying things like, "Hey! what if…" They see boundaries as opportunities to re-direct their energy.

3. They ask questions incessantly. I spent a full half-hour the other evening answering their questions about a small "boo-boo" on my leg (a relic from a week-old paintball injury.) Their insight and concern was mind-blowing.

4. They have little tolerance for "blow-offs." They keep pursuing answers until in makes sense. If my wife or I give them a pat-answer, they see right through us. They are on a mission to understand.

5. There is always time. They live in the moment. They are not obsessed with what’s going to happen, they are concerned about what is happening. 

A Reminder…

This is the message I keep on the Wacom Tablet in my office. It’s a reminder to me that the goal is to ruthlessly pursue what I’m about and to not allow fear or compromise to rule my actions.

I had these little bumper stickers made for my team a few years ago and a few people put them on their cars. (Hmm…not sure I’d want to be driving behind them…)

I like to place these little reminders in conspicuous places around my workspace. I have another one in my home office that says "Act like who you are." It’s there to remind me to be authentic. I have another one that says "He loved well, he died empty…" which is what I want on my tombstone. (Not too soon, though.)

Are there any little reminders that you could put in front of you to remind you of how you want to engage life and work? It’s one small way to keep what’s important top of mind.

So…what would you put on your Wacom Tablet? 

 

Can’t Say Saskatchewan

So…after much consultation with my dentist I finally decided to take the plunge and get….wait for it…braces. Not just any braces, but Invisalign, which are fairly invisible unless you’re up close and personal. I’ve had an issue with my teeth since my teen years, but have always ignored it and assumed that it wouldn’t get any worse. I was wrong. In the past several months I’ve begun to have headaches, issues with eating, etc. Apparently I will wear these brilliant little trays for ten months and my smile will be anchorman-esque.

Since I am incapable of simply having a new experience without twisting it in some way to apply to life and creativity, (which makes me a big hit at parties), I started thinking about the seemingly invisible disciplines in life that allow us to stay aligned or bring us back on track. We "wear" them in such way that others might not notice, but over time they see our increase in energy, discipline and overall prouductivity. At many times when I’ve found life in chaos and disorder, simply instilling a few small disciplines (such as daily study, writing each day, contacting one distant friend each day) helped re-align me around what’s important.

These disciplines can hurt at first because we are moving things around (just like braces move our teeth) but over time we find that we are re-aligned, energized and generally feeling better about ourselves.

Where are the tension points in your life that are causing problems? In what way has your life slipped into mis-alignment? What little, invisible daily disciplines could you instill to bring yourself (over time) back to a good, healthy, productive place?