Happy commoditized affection day!
An update I feel weird about:
I want to finally get rolling on v2 of the scrapbook. It will likely be a compilation of bits and bobs from the first 100 newsletter volumes, alongside insight from interviews with those I’ve been lucky enough to connect with as a result of v1.
But it’s gonna eat some time and probably include a bit of overhead. This isn’t a kickstarter moment where I need x amount of dollars. And I still refuse to make a paid subscription version of the newsletter because recurring subscriptions feel predatory.
So, I made one of those “buy me a coffee” things.
If you’ve enjoyed the past 61 weeks, and want to throw me some bones, I appreciate you. Include your name/email in the comment box and you’ll hear first about all updates on v2.
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“what are the hot takes?” is a pretty good way to start any strategy thinking.
…
Tangential, here are some hot takes collected over time:
Don’t let accuracy get in the way of truth
The opinion of the majority had no bearing on the truth
a moment of delight is better than overall utility of media.
talent is little more than patience
creativity is execution is likely going to be better than creativity in concept.
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I’ve been thinking about this last one a lot.
Imagine pitching SuperCuts and presenting the creative concept “Showing well cut hair” - If the ECD didn’t kill it, clients likely would for not having enough edge (the same edge that will later prevent the work from getting made).
But in execution, you could be giving lemurs sick fades and shaving wooly mammoths.. or maybe every hair screams as it is cut.
These are all ideas that “show hair being cut”
Why not start there, rather than start our creative presentations with some anthem about small business owners who have the confidence to do their own thing because they look good with a fresh cut… (I made this up, but sounds real, right?)
Pitch simple. Execute absurd.
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Here’s an image that I find hilarious for some reason:
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'A new ignorance is on the horizon, an ignorance borne not of a lack of knowledge but of too much knowledge, too much data, too many theories, too little time.'
-EUGENE THACKER
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Winston Cigarettes are the reason we use the word “like” the way we do in American English.
Prior to 1954 there were two acceptable uses of the word "like": as a preposition or a verb. This Winston ad completely outraged grammarians, poets, and the general public with its unconventional use of the word as a conjunction. But the ads didn't stop, and in 1961 Merriam-Webster officially amended the definition and cited Winston's ad as the reason.
Sometimes the right way to do something is to do it wrong.
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Came across this lone note in my phone:
“There is no longer any aesthetic distinction between the mainstream and fringe”
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Wise words from Simon Veksner, Creative Director, DDB, BBH (Via Praveen)
However I don’t think I agree entirely with the shape of this line.
I’m a BIG believer in the law of diminishing returns. But I think the math here is a bit off.
My builds to this that nobody asked for:
1 day: 10% chance of cracking the brief
3 days: 40% chance of cracking the brief
5 days: 60% chance of cracking the brief
2 weeks: 90% chance of cracking the brief
3 weeks: 30% chance of cracking the brief
I think the chances of cracking a brief in the first 48 hours is unlikely because it doesn’t allow for time to breath. And good thinking happens when you binge on information and then try to purge your mind of thinking about it. (see James Webb Young). You might get to something that works, but first thoughts are rarely the strongest.
Additionally, if you can’t crack it in the first 1-2 weeks, you probably wont. At this point you are over thinking and getting in your own way. The only path to salvation is killing your assumptions, turning off any screens and widening the circle of people you’re talking through it with.
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Don’t let accuracy get in the way of truth
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17. Mismatch Theory:
Moths evolved to navigate by the moon, a good strategy until the invention of electric lamps, which now lead them astray. Equally, humans evolved to be tribal, a good strategy until the Digital Age, where it now leads us to act like polarized goons online.
…Our software doesn’t match our environment.
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“If the news is fake, imagine history.”
- Something someone said on twitter once.
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There are noun problems and there are verb problems.
We need a new web site, or better sales collateral, or a campaign that features our new identity. These are noun problems. Noun problems often require noun solutions — that is, things and stuff and content.
We need our sellers to make better decisions, our marketers to market consistently, or our executives to explain our vision. These are verb problems. Verb problems often require verb solutions—that is, workflows between things and stuff and content.
(I’m a big fan of looking at the shape or type of problem before trying to answer it. This is a way of doing that I haven’t come across before but I like it.)
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In a similar vein, I think you could describe the roles of Strategy and Creative as the same… Both our jobs is to solve a problem.
Strategists solve “why” problems. Creatives solve “how” problems”
What’s interesting is that, outside of a brief, I often catch myself applying “how” thinking to a “why” problem.
When a batch of creative work isn’t great, we think “how could this be better” but the more important question is “why isn’t this working” and “why is this what they thought was right”
“Why” problems require you to look at the shape of the problem as a whole. This requires structured, intentional thought.