Vinspired Voicebox

Voicebox is brought to you by V an independent charity aiming to inspire a new generation of young volunteers, by funding and supporting voluntary organisations all over England to create inspiring and diverse opportunities.

Voicebox is a data visualisation project, curating young people’s views on issues that matter, visualising the findings, and then setting the data free for you to do the same. The aim with Voicebox is to better understand young people, so we can deliver programmes better suited to their needs.

The project sounds pretty interesting to me, check it out for yourself here.

Jay-Z Rhapsody commercial

I love this ad for soo many reasons. Not just because the link has reached my inbox 9 times already. This ad for me shows one great creativity and most importantly as understanding of the audience i.e. hip hop fans. Simply said 'Jay Z fans get it' reason being is that the ad recreates all of his album covers, sometimes you dont have to try and talk to everyone, just the people that care.

10 Great creative online destinations

Whenever I find myself in a creative void, I have a list of web sites that I can visit that instantly give me a shot of inspiration. I try to visit most of them everyday, and have found that by studying these great sites on a consistent basis has expanded my own capacity for being creative. Opening up to other’s creative work is a great way to broaden our horizons and helps us think outside the box. Below I have outlined my top 10. Enjoy!

1. SpringWise – A database of great ideas that any entrepreneur can act on to help you start the “next big thing”. There are some great, fun ideas, plus they showcase the latest trends of entrepreneurship.

2. WhyNot? – Much like SpringWise, WhyNot? has lots of user-submitted ideas for any ambitious soul can take on and develop. However, WhyNot? is more of a community for entrepreneurs than SpringWise, which can be a bit more helpful at times, I really use both of these sites as a way for me to think alternatively.

3. Digg – You can find a smattering of news, tips and other odd things on the Digg homepage. Digg’s users find the best of the web, and the community voting does a wonderful job of showcasing quality news and compelling links.

4. Del.icio.us Popular – I love the del.icio.us popular page. One can find the most creative and interesting articles and tools on the Internet on the Del.icio.us popular page. It’s basically a barometer of what’s hot on the web with designers and techies alike.

5. Tumblr – Tumblr is another one of my personal favorites. Aside from creating your own Tumblelog, the Tumblr homepage showcases the best links, images and videos that people are sharing around the web.

6. WisdomQuotes - Nothing inspires more than a great quote from someone smarter than myself. I’ve done entire blog posts based on an inspiring quote.

7. Seth Godin’s blog – Aside from his uber-savvy marketing advice, there are plenty of untapped ideas and inspiration that he shares frequently with his readership. And you better believe that if Seth Godin dreamed it up, there’s a good chance he’s on the mark.

8. DocStoc - You can find some incredibly creative and informative documents that can lead to many ideas. You’d be surprised at the great content you can find at DocStoc.

9. Kottke.org – Jason Kottke has been posting interesting and creative information on the web for the past 10 years. He’s a favorite of many bloggers, and rightly so.

10. How to Change the World – Guy Kawaski is a fun guy with great ideas. Though his blog is geared slightly more to the marketing crowd, it’s full of great ideas. I think the most stimulating thing about Guy’s blog is that it’s written with great voice and lots of humour.

Refining your idea

Hey world, I have had a long and eventful weekend, and as some of you may relate, that means my Monday is going to be less productive than usual. So far I have caught up on some reading and made some calls. Then I took out my idea book and started to refine.

Creative individuals have plenty of ideas. Great big, earth-changing ideas. Unfortunately, not many of them ever evolve into anything fruitful. Why? Because having an idea is only half the battle. The real challenge is refining the idea into something than can and will happen.

There is a fine art when it comes to refining an idea. It’s what separates good ideas from great ideas, and will ultimately define your success.

Most ideas have a clear cycle, I am going to attempt to breakdown some points for refining your ideas.

Make it usable
An idea is worthless unless it’s transformed into something useful. Incredible ideas can turn into stupid ones very quickly if the idea isn’t doable.

What makes an entrepreneur great isn’t necessarily the greatness of the idea he has. A special entrepreneur is one who can make the idea happen.

Define it
To refine the idea, you have to first define the idea. By creating a definition for your idea, you’ll make a clear focus on what the idea is going to do. How is it going to help? What will it do? How will it do it? These are things that have to be carefully thought about in the early stages.

You may find that you’re constantly changing the definition to your idea, and that is totally normal. You might change the definition many times before the project is done.

Make it sellable
If you’re going to invest time, sweat and money into an idea, it needs to have a business plan. In other words, can it make money?

Money plays a huge part in refining ideas, whether creative types want to believe it or not. Money is what gives you the ability to create the idea, and later to sell the idea. Some people don’t want their ideas to have anything to do with money, and that’s totally fine. You should figure out up front if you want to make money from your ideas or not. Most people do ;)

Does it makes sense?
After you’ve done the other three steps, I find that if I can explain my idea to my parents or grandparents without them walking away scratching their heads, than the idea has been well defined. What may make sense to you might not make sense to anyone else. If you’re finding that nobody is understanding a) the core concept of the idea or b) how it improves something, you’ve got trouble.

And that's all folks, hope you have fun refining

Reading Makes You Better at Life

Recently I’ve been on a huge reading kick, picking up everything and anything I can get my hands. With the wonderful advent of Amazon, you can easily and cheapily get any book you want.

I’ve found that no matter what I read, the act of reading every day has helped me in nearly every aspect of my life. Here are a few of my ways that reading can improve the quality of your life.

It makes you smarter:

Those that read have a higher intelligence, and general knowledge than those that don’t. In Anne E. Cunningham’s paper What Reading Does for the Mind , she found that reading, in general, makes you smarter, and it keeps you sharp as you age.

No matter what you’re wanting to do or become, you can’t do it without more knowledge. Reading is an excellent way to get where you’re wanting to go.

Reading reduces stress:

Like most form of entertainment intends to do, reading distracts your mind from whatever is going on in your world at a given time. Fiction is meant to the best for this, although I don't read an abundance of fictional books. Whatever it is your reading, you can bet it will relax you.

Given that I’m a pretty high-energy person, reading forces me to sit and be still. This daily act of making myself be quiet and still has been nothing short of miraculous for my life.

Improved analytical thinking:

Cunningham’s studies have found that analytical thinking is boosted by reading. Readers improve their general knowledge, and more importantly are able to spot patterns quicker. If you can spot patterns quicker, your analytical skills receive a boost.

Increased vocabulary:

It’s no secret that reading increases your vocabulary and improves your spelling, but did you know that reading increases your vocabulary more than talking or direct teaching? Reading forces us to look at words that we might not have seen or heard before.

Increased vocabulary is especially crucial for bloggers or writers. All successful writers will tell you that in order to write well, you need to read. Every day. You’ll be surprised at the words you start incorporating into your writing.

Knowing what other people are saying and using the perfect words to convey your feelings is a critical part of being a better human. Better listeners are more successful in life.

Helps prioritize goals:

Many times we’re certain we know what we “really want” in life. Yet I’ve found that activities like reading show me things I didn’t know about myself. My mind will drift to things that I’d really like to do, and it isn’t long that these little lapses in reading start to cycle. The same sort of goals keep popping into my head, allowing me to see what I really want to do.

When you remove yourself from your work environment, you’ll start to see things that you might really want to do, that you’re not doing yet. Reading gives you a chance for your to wander.

Conclusion

Ok so there are a few ways that reading makes you better at life, I urge you all to pick up a book today and start reading. We make time for the things that are important to us. How much TV do you watch? How much time do you spend trawling the web? You could easily replace reading with those activities.

Peace

Johnie Walker - Commercial

This is simply advertising as it should be done, they say all great brands, be it people, companies or charities have a great story. This commercial is the perfect example of a great story being told.

YouTuber's - Selling out

Not being a youtuber myself, at first I thought the girl in this video was a bit crazy. On the second listen I realised that she makes some really good points, about when it's ok for brands and people to work together, and how transparent they should be.

italktosnakes gets the VT seal of approval, check it out.

10 youth myths - Slideshare

Morning peoples, today's gem comes from slideshare, before I share it with you, I want to highlight if you don't know already how great slideshare is for gathering information and gaining knowledge.

Mobile youth are particularly good, and regularly produce greats slides like this, '10 Youth myths', check it out

Top 10 Youth Marketing Myths by Graham Brown

View more presentations from Graham Brown.

Is this the future of brands?

Sally hrouda recently wrote a compelling piece on the future of brands. Many of the topics are familiar, but I appreciate the way she has condensed a lot of information and opinion into a very concise piece. Worth reading, check it out below:

Brands and companies are moving forward from traditional and tradigital marketing into a period of social engagement that maximises participation. They used to be able to treat their audience like herds, forcing their message upon them. However, people are now like swarms, connected to each other through digital touch points (mobile phones, cyberspace, computers) moving through currents, in no direction.

The millions of micro-interactions occurring in the realm of social media (Facebook, YouTube, Google, blogs, twitter) have led to the birth of brand ecosystems, living, breathing organisms that are about stimulating brand conversations. A strategic planner previously drew out the most powerful insight into human nature through obtaining a “helicopter quality”, having the ability to look at facts from an overview viewpoint. But in this changing environment it is imperative that they break down the barriers between brand, channel and consumer and listen within currents to react quickly to cultural trends (mobile, gaming, music, celebrities) and predict future movements, whereby pushing brands into a desired destination. There is an opportunity for brands to use tensions, or brand memes to challenge competitors or the status quo. Providing the ecosystems with new experiences that gives them something to talk about and influence society to build their own communities, or tribes around brands.

Due to the increased transparency of governments, countries and brands in the economic downturn and conflicts people have become disillusioned by institutions and instead are turning to each other for more credible advice. A brand’s success will derive from its ability to build trust, which will in turn build a strong brand affinity. They will need to prove themselves, not just advertise their benefits, but empower people to build stories and co-create content via channels, which then transform into brand platforms. Karim Temsamani explains that Google is at the very beginning of expanding its capabilities into image/video search and translational services. Ultimately brands will become intangible as constituents signal dynamically and brand experiences cross borders through cultural ecosystems. People in society will be able to be a part of global conversations and global ecosystems, becoming creators of global brands. A strategic planner will need to become a live thread between ecosystems and their agency to create innovative dynamic experiences, before they become outdated.

People are aligning themselves with brands to create their avatar. For a company or brand to influence people to gravitate towards them and buy their products they will need to be create movements. What if Fairfax created a movement for real journalism or Google for knowledge? And as a result new media standards are set and everyone becomes educated. Knowledge could provide people with skills, improving an economy and cultural tensions between societies. A strategic planner will have to plan to build movements not just nail an insight.

Rene Descartes once stated an individual exists because “I think, therefore I am”, however in the future we will evolve to “I link, therefore I am”. By 2020 people will link to brands, which will be a holistic experience created between products, conversations, movements and people through virtual and real interactions.

Global youth insight into importance of the weekend

Found this interesting video on the global youth opinions/insights regarding the importance of the weekend. Worth checking out, how do you feel about the weekend?

New music monetization models

I was recently talking with a close friend about the increasingly bleak outlook of the music industry, we were both attempting to predict what the new music model may be. I was suggesting its going to be a middle ground between, brands, artists and a cause. Clearly not a well thought out solution, but I am sure there is something in it, give me a couple more months and I would have cracked it.

If you cant wait until then PSFK, recently put up a post entitled 'Album as Advertisement or Application', worth reading, check it out here.

Spiritual vacation to Egypt

The reason for July's post absence, is I took a much needed spiritual vacation to Egypt. The trip was monumental for many reasons. First I turned the grand old age of 25, which for me is a big deal. I really connected with the lady in my life and I got to touch and absorb the history from arguably the most significant place in the world. I can honestly say that this trip has changed my life, having experienced what I did I can no longer be the same person.

Before going I could never have imagined that a single trip could do so much for my soul, but it truly has. I would urge everyone to take a trip to Egypt for the right reasons and just take everything you can in. I mean it's the place where Moses wrote the ten commandments, which is literally the base of all world law. That alone could represents the places significance to the world, without even mentioning the pyramids, the Nile,the red sea, Sphinx etc .

I don't believe there is much more I can say, except seeing is believing

LUPE FIASCO - THE L.A.S.E.R.S. MANIFESTO

Great socially focused campaign featuring Lupe Fiaso, I agree with almost every word. Check it out!

One Day - Introducing Kooley High

'One Day' gives a great insight into hip-hop culture is, following up and coming rap group Kooley High. The documentary directed by Napoleon Wright for Becauseus Films in association with M.E.C.C.A. Records, is a good look, check it out!

One Day - Introducing Kooley High from BECAUSEUS on Vimeo.

Like minds

Hey one and all, yesterday I had the most inspired meeting I have had in ages. It was with a gentlemen named Troy Kennedy, who seems to be more like me than me (if thats possible). It was the kind of meeting that when you finished talking you feel like you have known the person for a life time. He introduced me to a lot of ideas and I am going to share two of the best:

1. The Greun Transfer:(TGT) is a show about advertising, how it works, and how it works on us. Hosted by the inimitable Wil Anderson, TGT decodes and defuses the commercial messages that swirl through our lives, with the help of a panel of ad industry experts.

The show is Australian, and has just been picked up by BBC Three, its great so check it out.

2. The Million: which is a integreated campaign with Verizon, Samsung and the New york school board. It just picked a D&AD pencil, again its amazing so check it out, video here.

A brief guide to world domination

So I have been indoors most of this evening, on the internet looking for intersting information, taking in a myriad of topics, titles, feeds, links and pics, like most people in my generation. Every now and then you stumble across a true gem.

That gem is A BRIEF GUIDE TO WORLD DOMINATION. its amazing, It’s also free, so there’s really no reason why you shouldn’t at least check it out. Here’s a taste:


I should warn you now that this report
is not for everyone. In fact, it’s probably
not for most people. Instead of writing
for the general public, I spent about 35
hours writing these pages for a small
minority of people interested in living
life on their own terms while making a
dramatic, positive difference in the lives
of others at the same time.
In short, I wrote it for people who are
serious about ruling—or at least chang-
ing—the world.

Book of the Month: Here Comes Everybody - Clay Shirky

I have decided to start a monthly book recommendation, as I read soo much I thought I would share my favourite books with you.

This months book is Here Comes Everybody by Clay Shirky, its all about the new world of collaboration and it repercussions. Like the video above shows, lead and people will follow

Pharrell: On being an artist...

I haven't heard any music from Pharrel in a while, but here he gives some advice about being an artist, I believe these wise words relate to anything anyone is trying to achieve. Like Iverson said ' I'm not talking about the game, im talking bout practice', check it out

A few ways to stay creative!

OK so hopefully you can relate, sometimes I find it challenging to stay creative or just turn it on and off when needed. I decided so scour the web and put together a list of ways to stay creative. Here goes nothing:
Some of these tasks include:

1. Find Inner Peace Before Starting Tasks

While I do try to be at peace and free of negative thoughts most of the time, on occasion I can get run down with incessant mind activity. If you can relate to feeling angry, frustrated or stressed at times, then you need to realise that being in this mode is not the best place to come from when you want to work on creative projects.

Instead, I use a number of techniques that help me relax, whether it be meditation, taking in my surroundings or simply focusing on my breathing. Anything that helps me get into a calm mood. From here, with an empty mind, I find it much easier to produce some creative output.

2. Be Willing to Explore New Ideas

If you ever get too stuck in a mindset that your way is the only way and you know everything about a topic that you need to know, then you could be missing out on some purely genius information. Even though I might have a good idea of how I think things should be done, I’m always willing to explore new ideas.

If you stay fixed and isolated in one area of your life it can easily cross over into your more creative pursuits. This doesn’t mean you have to accept or agree with everything you see / read, but at least give new perspectives a chance before dismissing them.

3. Always Take Notes

Since I started taking a lot of notes in my daily life, I honestly have no idea how I lived without them in the past. Whether you are an artist, a writer, an engineer or anything that allows you to use your imagination at times, be ready to take notes whenever necessary.

I tend to read informative books rather than ones based on fantasy or science fiction, and always keep a small notepad with me to write down some real gems I get from the content. Similarly, if I’m out and about and something comes to mind, I’ll keep notes in my phone and then upload them to Google Docs later in the day.

These simple but useful notes have helped me massively when it comes to the likes of article ideas, design inspiration and more.

4. Outline a Core Structure for All Projects

I’m sure this is a case by case example, but for the life of me I can rarely sit down and work effectively unless, I keep a structure of what I want to stick to and then flesh out ideas from there.

Even for this blog post, on a piece of paper I wrote down the title and my six main points first. Only then did I open up a text editor and start turning the points into paragraphs. Not only does this help you stick to your goals, but I find having a structure first of all can greatly increase efficiency for any project I undertake.

5. Follow Other Creative People

This is by no means in order to steal pieces of their inspiration, but you could see it as stealing some of their workflow. I love seeing how people in my industry plan their work days and I can see certain bloggers’ posts on the topic tend to be some of their most popular.

If there are people you look up to in your niche, see if you can find out how they structure their days, where they get their inspiration from and what makes them ‘tick’. If they’re well known it’s likely someone has done an interview with them and asked them questions like this.

6. Tidy Loose Ends Later

This especially applies to writing, but this tip can be used in many other creative outlets as well. I find that I work the best if I stick to a core structure, but then just let my imagination flow, not worrying about spelling mistakes or slight imperfections in design.

I believe that if you spent all the time you are trying to be creative, also being logical and fixing up mistakes, it not only leads to less inspiring results but it is a much slower process. Let your mind wander, see what you come up with, and tidy the loose ends when you are finished.

Foreverism

Trendwatching recently released an interesting post about Foreverism: Which encompasses the many ways that consumers and businesses are embracing conversations, relationships, and products that are never done. Driving its popularity is technology that allows them to find, follow, interact and collaborate forever with anyone & anything.

Thought it was worth sharing, so check it out

Channel 4 - Tribes

Channel 4 have released the results of some youth research they begun in 2006 to build new dialogues with agencies and advertisers and to help shape more effective communication with young people.

The study is a guide to youth culture in the UK, from the street up. The 26 most interesting and influential tribes have been identified and brought to life through the interactive website www.uktribes.com. Users can explore tribal attitudes, motivations, music, fashion and art through video, photography, blogs, young journalists’ commissions and loads more.

Building on the qualitative foundations, we launched an online game to gain an idea of numbers. findyourtribe.co.uk was seeded on tribe specific websites and woven into editorial pieces.

Air Yeezy

Yeah I know I am about a week late with this post, and everyone in the know is sick of the Air Yeey hype, so this is for those that aren't knee deep in streetwear culture, and might have missed the wave or should I say craze that the infamous Kanye West has brought to the sneaker game with his Nike Collaboration. You dont have to take my word for it, check the video below. Brand managers take note

Divine Design

Hey World,

I know its been a while, apologies but the universe has been keeping me busy. If you hadn't already noticed, some would say I am relatively spiritual not on a sciencetology level but more on the enlightenment tip.

Any who my spirituality has led me to be a strong believer in divine design which is the universe's way of rewarding intention, passion and purpose. That said the universe was definately listening to my intention, passion and purpose when it put me in the path of Nick Jankel-elliott, broadcaster, practical philosopher, leadership expert and personal development coach. Since our meeting we have been working on what I see as the future of mass collaboration and peer-to-peer learning, hence my lack of blog love, dont fear though things are back in order.

I really just want to make the point to one and all, of how important it is to first understand what it you really want, and then to dedicate as much time as possible to achieving it, then be patient and things will start to happen.

Mash-up Society

I was sent a great mashup video link this week, Like most mash-ups some talented person has spent time finding, editing and remixing different footage to make a brand new entertaining video.

As we see so many of these videos sometimes we forgot or just don't appreciate the skill involved in creating one, the video below is great example of the talent it takes to produce great content.

Another quick thought, is what we can achieve in this increasingly connected world, lets all try and make the internet a better place. Enjoy

Sometimes things are just meant to be....

I am sure you have all been in situations that are coincidental some call it fate others destiny, some just put it down to luck. I like to call it divine design, a phrase coined by Deepak Chopra, the author of the infamous ' Seven Spiritual Laws of Success. In this very book Deepak, talks about the law of least effort, and how we all manifest everything that happens within a lives. He states once we recognise this, and become conscious of our thoughts, we can apply the law of least effort, to bring us everything we desire.

I'm sure the sceptic in you is saying yeah right, well check this for a story. I have been living the life of a freelance marketing consultant for while now, I have worked with some amazing people, but as you know the freelance world can be a bit sparadic. Because of this I thought it may be good to get a part-time marketing position for 2-3 days a week to tide me over. Within 24 hours of breathing life into this thought, I check Gumtree and see what in essence appears to be the perfect job post. So perfect that I dont think I could have wrote a more fitting job description myself.

'A marketing assistant / exec assistant to grow our business and consumer brands, help radically raise our profile, and change the world a little bit.' http://www.inner-revolution.com/

I haven't got the position yet, but if this doesn't demonstrate the law of least effort I dont know what does. So in closing the more aware we become of the power within I thought, the more successful as people we are.

Three reasons why fear is a creative's friend

For the creative person, fear is always nearby. But in spite of the close proximity, it’s usually a very strained relationship. Fear is one of those emotions that most of us are trying not to have. Because it doesn’t feel good, it’s been coded as a so-called “negative” emotion. And we’re so keen to avoid this negative emotion that we find ourselves avoiding situations that elicit fear for us, so we code the fear-inducing situations as “negative” as well.

But, fear isn’t bad at all. All emotions have a positive purpose that serves us. Have you ever thought about the positive purpose of your fear?

Fear is a signal you’re learning

Because we’re designed this way, we tend to respond to ALL unfamiliar experiences with fear - even if they’re not dangerous. So long as you’re taking yourself into new territory, and growing, you’ll always feel some fear along the way. From a creativity point of view, fear is useful because it makes you more alert when you’re learning and growing. And fear is a signal that you’re learning. In fact, if you’re telling yourself you’re learning in a particular area of your life, yet you’re not feeling any fear in that area of your life, you’re probably not learning.

Fear lets you know what’s important to you

A third purpose of fear is that fear let’s us know what’s really important to us. Think about it: when something isn’t important to you, you probably don’t care what happens with it, and you won’t feel fear then. It’s the stuff that’s closest to our hearts, that we really care about, that we feel the most fear about - because it matters to us how things work out. With so many choices available to us these days, alot of creative people find it difficult to figure out what’s really important to them and decide what they want in life. A really counter-intuitive, but easy way to figure whether something is genuinely important to you is to notice how much fear you have about it. The more important it is to you, the bigger your fear will probably be.

Fear holds creative tension

When there’s an unresolved problem or a gap between where we are and where we want to be, a tension develops. The bigger the gap, the greater the tension, and fear we’ll feel. Alot of the time, in order to relieve the tension, we change our vision of where we want to be or stop asking that unresolved question. Successful creative's embrace this tension, knowing that tension is an important part of the creative process. Creative tension motivates our unconscious mind to continue searching for a resolution, even while we go on with our other tasks or go to sleep at night, those epiphanies that you have, where the idea just seems to have popped into your head out of nowhere.

So next time you feel afraid, stop and remind yourself that fear works. And then check which purpose your fear is serving, and ask yourself, “Knowing that this is the purpose of my fear, what would I love to do next?”

Adidas TV

Branded TV stations have had a chequered history. Audi TV launched in 2005 to a mixed reception, but is still going strong. Meanwhile, Bud.tv from Budweiser recently pulled the plug as it failed to attract the young, male-dominated crowd it was targeting as visitors to its 'destination' website.

So what will the fate be for adidas.tv, which soft-launched last week on adidas.com's basketball sub-site? There already seems some controversy surrounding the launch.

A selection of adidas-branded video clips could be downloaded from the beta site via a free adidas-branded player and embedded into blogs or any one of 25 social networks that are compatible with the service. This is great branding tool for adidas that will help spread its content far and wide across the net. There was also the adidas.tv widget which will relay regular content updates when these become available on the hub. The site was initially slated to offer 75 clips created by adidas and its partners, but this is expected to increase quickly, with channels covering specific sports, alongside a dedicated adidas Originals channel hosting short films. In short, adidas.tv is expected to become a hub for all adidas video content.

I believe adidas is well positioned to create content which is well suited to the sports community and will be picked up across the web by there intended audience. That isn't to say that every brand can provide the correct engaging content for the audience they serve. Adidas has a history of non-traditional marketing, and regular gets involved in collabarations which don't necceasarilly just embrace sport culture but youth culture in general. This is why i think adidas.tv wil be a success. I am sure more brands which try and follow suit as it becomes increasingly difficult to reach your target audience, as media becomes more and more diverse.

How be to a Mastermind

There has been a lot of talk in the blogosphere recently around the topic of the 'Mastermind'. Eben Pagan says 'Possibly the most important and profound action you can take to create change, transformation and success in your life is to build and participate in a “MasterMind.”'

So I guess your wondering what is a MasterMind?

A MasterMind is a group of people who have common interests and goals, who get together on a regular basis to support each other in growth and development toward actualizing those interests and goals. It’s a dedicated group of people who share at least some values, perspectives and objectives in common, who understand that the power of the “group mind” is exponentially more powerful than the sum of the individual minds from which the group is composed.

The first person that explicitly described the concept in detail is Napoleon Hill (in his book “Think And Grow Rich”).

Hill said that no individual can achieve great power with out a MasterMind. My experience (and the experience of every powerful person I know) confirms this idea.

One of the most “magical” powers of the MasterMind is that it affects you on a subconscious level… without you having to “do” anything.

We humans are programmed by everything that happens around us. We tend to be MOST programmed by what we see, hear, and experience others doing.

Not what we read, not what we think, not what we feel. We’re influenced by the OTHERS around us. We literally become those that we surround ourselves with.

Want to know how much a person makes per year? Find their five closest friends and average their incomes. That’s the answer.

Want to know how healthy a person is? Find their five closest friends and average their health.

Want to know what a person’s aspirations are?

You get the picture.

So how does one create a MasterMind group, and how does one make sure that they’re doing it “right”?

Here are a few pointers, based on my experience:

1. Make sure most of the people in the MasterMind are FAR beyond you. At least 3-5 years down the road you’re trying to travel. 5-10 years is even better. This isn’t a non-profit organization or a charity event, so don’t treat it like one. You’re in this to GROW. (All the while knowing that if you grow to your full potential, you’ll be able to do much more effective charity work later in your life.)
2. If you do allow others who are behind you on the road to success in your chosen area, make sure that they have MASSIVE POTENTIAL. You’d better be feeling in your gut that they’re a super-star, and it’s only a matter of time before they pass you.
3. Meet regularly in person. If you are located in different geographic locations, it’s fine to meet by phone often. But get together live, in-person regularly.
4. It’s great to have a few different MasterMinds for different parts of your life. A physical-health based MasterMind can be just as valuable to you personally as a financial MasterMind. Again, just make sure that the members are beyond you.
5. Make sure that the people you invite to the MasterMind can add massive value to the OTHER MEMBERS. Remember, you’re inviting people who are beyond you. They’re going to get a lot more value from the group and the other members than they are from you. Carefully select members who will get value from each other. Keep yourself out of the equation mentally.
6. Be the “hassle remover” for the group. Handle the schedule. Handle the details. Do the annoying administrative stuff that noone else wants to do. You be the one to set up the teleconference bridge meeting line, or the meeting space reservations. You be the one to walk next door and tell the neighbors to be quiet because they’re disturbing your meeting. You be the one to go out and get more drinks for the group because everyone is thirsty.
7. Remember, the value to you isn’t the tangible things you’re going to get. Don’t focus on material gain. What you’re going to get is the personal GROWTH that comes from being around evolved beings. Let the others have the perks and material rewards of the group. You sit back like the “dumb fox” and allow your mind to receive the higher-level transmissions that are coming from the others around you.

DJ Vinroc - The Art of Beat Making: "Believe"

I am a sucker for short film, and DJ Vinroc latest video making a beat for his song "Believe" plays like a short film, I thought I would share my appreciation, check it out below. ENJOY


The Art of Beat Making "Believe"-Vinroc from Vinroc on Vimeo.

Cooperative platforms

“Digital is not a silo”, the term has quickly moved from just explaining how digital is merging with other channels, exemplified amongst others by projects such as Esquire and Mini. To explaining something much bigger:

How digital platforms don’t exist in isolation, but are cooperative platforms, the backbone in the network of activities inviting the participant into an idea or context.

A silo is a platform where the communication to a large extent happens inside it’s walls, where its mostly concerned with it’s own storytelling and effect, removed from the other platforms. TV, Radio and print can all be interpreted as such stand alone channels.

Digital on the other hand, doesn’t exist in isolation, it’s a set of cooperative platforms. And we need to utilize this kind of platform strategy if we are to meet the challenges presented by next generation advertising as suggested by Tom Himpe in his book Advertising Next. We need to build our stories in a more complex range of interfaces between the product, or the products services and the customer. We need platforms that all work and function together in order to create the larger, more complex story, the true story.

Phenomenology - The Obey Manifesto

I came across an old theory or explanation by Shephard Fairy on the logic behind his sticker and stencil campaign, this is a reallg good and insightful read, so I thought I would share it with you.

The OBEY sticker campaign can be explained as an experiment in Phenomenology. Heidegger describes Phenomenology as "the process of letting things manifest themselves." Phenomenology attempts to enable people to see clearly something that is right before their eyes but obscured; things that are so taken for granted that they are muted by abstract observation.

The FIRST AIM OF PHENOMENOLOGY is to reawaken a sense of wonder about one's environment. The OBEY sticker attempts to stimulate curiosity and bring people to question both the sticker and their relationship with their surroundings. Because people are not used to seeing advertisements or propaganda for which the product or motive is not obvious, frequent and novel encounters with the sticker provoke thought and possible frustration, nevertheless revitalizing the viewer's perception and attention to detail. The sticker has no meaning but exists only to cause people to react, to contemplate and search for meaning in the sticker. Because OBEY has no actual meaning, the various reactions and interpretations of those who view it reflect their personality and the nature of their sensibilities.

Many people who are familiar with the sticker find the image itself amusing, recognizing it as nonsensical, and are able to derive straightforward visual pleasure without burdening themselves with an explanation. The PARANOID OR CONSERVATIVE VIEWER however may be confused by the sticker's persistent presence and condemn it as an underground cult with subversive intentions. Many stickers have been peeled down by people who were annoyed by them, considering them an eye sore and an act of petty vandalism, which is ironic considering the number of commercial graphic images everyone in American society is assaulted with daily.

Another phenomenon the sticker has brought to light is the trendy and CONSPICUOUSLY CONSUMPTIVE nature of many members of society. For those who have been surrounded by the sticker, its familiarity and cultural resonance is comforting and owning a sticker provides a souvenir or keepsake, a memento. People have often demanded the sticker merely because they have seen it everywhere and possessing a sticker provides a sense of belonging. The Giant sticker seems mostly to be embraced by those who are (or at least want to seem to be) rebellious. Even though these people may not know the meaning of the sticker, they enjoy its slightly disruptive underground quality and wish to contribute to the furthering of its humorous and absurd presence which seems to somehow be antiestablishment/societal convention. Giant stickers are both embraced and rejected, the reason behind which, upon examination reflects the psyche of the viewer. Whether the reaction be positive or negative, the stickers existence is worthy as long as it causes people to consider the details and meanings of their surroundings. In the name of fun and observation.

Shepard Fairey, 1990

A thousand words....

Check out Ted Chung's mesmerising short film, A Thousand Words below.

Jeffrey Wells describes it in this way:
... an elegant, concise and very affecting portrait of big-city loneliness and instant connections that flare up and are gone seconds later. The emotions are halting and delicate but true. Beautiful piano score.


A Thousand Words from Ted Chung on Vimeo.

What We Own And Where It’s Made

I wanted to share this series of posts by VerySmallArray, I loved the simple but effective posts, showing a bunch of photos called ‘What We Own And Where It’s Made’. This kind of concept that is soo sincere and intriguing, reminds me why I love blogging. Companies reading this should take note, it really is more about how you are doing what you do, than about what you are actually doing.

I am your future...

Very good presentation by the people at MobileYouth.org, they really bring home the differences between research agencies and the actual people they are researching.

mobileYouth.org I am...not interested in mobile marketing

View SlideShare presentation or Upload your own. (tags: cell student)

Joshua Allen Harris

Interesting artist Joshua Allen Harris speaks about his art, and how his idea spread

Music is .....

To me this quote best describes music 'asides from silence, music is the only thing that can express the unexpressable'. You know the feeling when you hear a tune and it communicates exactly what you were thinking but couldn't articulate, making you feel like 'ooh i'm not alone'.

I believe this is why music is so important to culture, because it allows people that are very different to have something in common. Its like when you go to a show you will see people different ages, different races all feeling the same vibe.

Bob Marley sang ' when the music hits you feel no pain', again for me this couldn't be more true. Often when I need inspiration, motivation of just comfort my first salvation is music.

I also feel I have learnt soo much through music, music was originally designed to pass on messages, although for certain music this has lost its way, there is still a big amount of great message music that is trying to guide us closer to truth.

At the end on Common 'like water for chocolate', pops rap breaks it down.

Hip Hop, Hip Hop, the language of the underground railroad
In it's purest form
Yeah true hip hop is just like the Underground Railroad

If the message is not for you
It can sit on your nose and your brain remain froze
So when you see me traveling on a spiritual high
I'm flying high with Cee-Lo
Or maybe watching my long's heart dancing to a De La flow

Everybody knows there's no fruit on the tree without The Roots
And Black Star said we are what we are
The Knowledge Of Self Determination
And my little homie KG
Up there in Minnesota milking 10000 lakes

Keep the heat on em', we got to be kind to the growing mind
So if your heart is real
You will hear Big Will and Ms. Lauryn Hill
If your love is true, you will hear Badu-ism

And you can't go right until you go left
and get some ingredients from the music chef Jazzy Jeff
Children, I've travelled this globe
north to south, east to west
And whenever my soul appears lost
I turn to the musical stylings of a Tribe Called Quest

Check out a good post on the future of digital music here

Ari - Cease and Desist

Great short film entitled Cease and Desist about artist / designer Ari Saal Forman who mash-ups the Newport cigarette brand into a cool “Nike-like” sneaker. Branding, addiction, sneaker culture and legal infringement are explored. Check it out

Were All in Power

Producer Exile, has just put out his directorial debut, and its fucking amazing. Its created in stop motion and for me is the perfect example of engaging content. Check it out for yourself. Advertisers take note, you cant put a price on authenticity


Exile "Were All In Power" from Okayplayer on Vimeo.

Check out Exile explaining the concept behind the video below

VIMBY - EXILE

CultureLab’s Trends to Watch For in 2009

1. Rockstar and Skater Hip Hop will continue to gain in popularity (Lil Wayne and Kanye respectively are the icons: watch for Charles Hamilton, The Knux, 88 Keys, Black Milk, and B.O.B)
2. Classicsm is the new racism
3. The 90’s grunge era will influence in ‘09 as the 80’s did in ‘08
4. Sneaker Brands to watch: Supras, adidas, Yums, and "Vulcanized" Shoes
5. Streetwear brands to watch: Rowdy, KR3W, Volcom
6. Twitter goes to the masses
7. Classicsm, Ethnicity, and Lifestage will creep into online social network choice: Facebook: older, more affluent and more educated, MySpace: younger, less affluent, Black and Hispanic skewing
8. C.R.E.A.M., Wu-Tang’s mantra will ring very true in ’09, cash will be king!
9. Creativity in digital hustle
10. Prepaid Cell Phone service will explode as the economy continues to slump
11. Smartphones as status symbols
12. Rise of the Black and Hispanic geeks
13. Asian pop culture will continue to grow in popularity
14. Renaissance of creativity in business, politics, music, and entertainment: watch for new music genres, new art forms, new ideaologies, and new ways of film-making
15. Low budget but creative aesthetic in fashion, film, and music, “Thrift Chic”
16. The urban elegance movement flourishes, i.e. Obama, Diddy, Maxwell
17. Big Government will be cool
18. The role of narrative and storytelling will grow in all art forms and advertising/promotional outreach
19. DIY- arts and crafts
20. Common Craft-style "what is" and "how to" videos will become an increasingly popular resource for education of online applications and communities

Apples new release

Apple Introduces Revolutionary New Laptop With No Keyboard

50 Youth Marketing Trends

PART 1: 50 Youth Marketing Trends for 2009 by Graham Brown mobileYouth.org

View SlideShare presentation or Upload your own. (tags: teens kids)

PART 2: 50 Youth Marketing Trends for 2009 by Graham Brown mobileYouth.org

View SlideShare presentation or Upload your own. (tags: blyk djuice)