ESTRATIJIRONES vol 156.

Its content-turtles... all the way down.

Happy Father’s Day weekend to all the dads. And to everyone else I suppose. 

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"When was the last time you were in a creative review that had everyone laughing?"

>50% of y’all said more than 3 months ago.

Among those that took the google survey, nearly 40% said its been more than a year since a creative idea made them laugh out loud.

that is a rare “oh shit” data point…

There is so much to unravel here.

But most importantly is why?

Sometimes it is because of…

a single person. some people just suck.¹ Maybe they are in the room or maybe they suck the joy from afar. This could be a client, a manager or anyone on the team. Work fun is a communal effort and is far easier when everyone is open to it.

the process. The project based structure of much agency work has resulted in the systemic destruction of enthusiasm. Agencies want so mad to be taken seriously, they stop themselves from having the fun that good work requires.

**and the hot take**

the way we sell ideas in the first place. Concepts are much harder to make fun than executions. They also are most open to interpretation, turning future rounds of review into wrestling matches between difference in expectation.

We spend so much time thinking about the big idea, the joy of the output suffers.

I’m not saying that concepts aren’t important or that we should jump straight into executions. But we should do our best to make decisions based on reactions to the final output rather than the agreeability of the intangible.

➫(if you haven’t, would love if you’re able to spare the 3 minutes to fill this out)

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Being a dad is the most uncertain thing I’ve ever done…

But also, the above quote is obviously super relevant to strategy work.

the need fort certainty is also a joy killer.

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This is the true circle of life.

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what can feel like self betterment is often actually a dopamine craving. This whole newsletter is basically a collection of cigarette butts left behind by a heavy smoker…

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I havent come across the right opportunity yet, but I know this is the perfect background image for something out there. maybe it belongs in something you are working on…

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Celine’s 2nd Law: Honest communication occurs only between equals. If one person has power over another, then the less powerful person can’t risk saying what they really think. Thus, in any hierarchy, honest communication only travels horizontally.

This is incredibly relevant to client service industries. Any client relationship will ultimately fail unless both sides see the other as equal – in the context of the work and as people.

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I’m no Godin evangelist but this is probably something that everyone who has ever worked in an agency setting can identify with:

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oh look, all the most important (state of the business) questions you should ask at the start of a project, all in one place:

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Last week’s newsletter included this image:

which sparked Elena at SS+K to send a response, resulting in this brief but great exchange:

Elena

my two cents on the content/content image - I think it is illustrating the difference between content we consume one-sided, and the feeling of being content in the two-way dynamic between ourselves and other living things 

my reply:

I really like the thought of “being content” consumed by other living things.. 

“Content” has always felt so self oriented. “This is here for me to consume” – but really, everything consumes and is consumed. 

We breathe in but we also breathe out. 

Elena:

yes, what is consumed changes the consumer. or said another way, "you are what you eat" 🤷 perhaps a scary thought amidst the reign of the all-you-can-eat content buffet.

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You are what you you eat. We consume and are simultaneously consumed. Nothing is exempt from this… Take stock of the things that surround you. 

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and remember….

"Digital technologies privilege our impulses over our intentions."

--James Williams

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this seems like both the kind of project I’d like to work on and the kind of report that itself stresses me out.

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WEEKLY MONSTER

My daughter scribbled on some paper and I used it as a prompt. First time drawing with charcoal and I am pretty pleased with how it turned out.

1. Or they are dealing with their own shit and misplacing the emotional response