The Main Feed

Subscribe (RSS)

Archive for February, 2010

On collaboration & sharing ideas

Jim Antonopoulos | 27.02.2010

“Every collaboration helps you grow.”
Brian Eno
Too often in business we are focussed on ourselves and not each other. We tend to play the classroom maths test game of guarding our answers under the palm of
our hand whilst secretly hoping they are better than our classmates.
Collaboration – the action of working with someone to produce or create something – has been at the heart of the creative industry for decades, but like the child undertaking that math test, there has always been a reluctance to engage
beyond the discipline we work within.
As we enter a new decade this old paradigm is eroding, giving way to the plethora of social media networks that encourage the sharing of observations, thoughts and ideas. All of which can now be broadcast and accessed around the world within seconds. Ideas are becoming less precious, and the way in which we embrace and draw upon them to inspire new ways of thinking is growing day by day. So too is the ability to collaborate with each other globally, which is at its highest point in human history.
As creative professionals we should champion collaboration across our businesses and those of our clients, encouraging collaboration across disciplines and industries to learn and grow from our experiences. Pairing our knowledge enriches our own work and ultimately
that of our clients and the audiences
we engage.
There is an old saying:
“If I had one apple, and you had one apple, and we gave each other our apples;
we’d both still have one apple.
If I had one idea, and you had one idea and we told each other our ideas;
we’d each have two ideas.”
Ideas are currency and the more we
share them the richer we are for both
the experience and the result.

zoe

“Every collaboration helps you grow.” – Brian Eno

Too often in business we are focussed on ourselves and not each other. We tend to play the classroom maths test game of guarding our answers under the palm of our hand whilst secretly hoping they are better than our classmates.

Collaboration – the action of working with someone to produce or create something – has been at the heart of the creative industry for decades, but like the child undertaking that math test, there has always been a reluctance to engage  beyond the discipline we work within.

As we enter a new decade this old paradigm is eroding, giving way to the plethora of social media networks that encourage the sharing of observations, thoughts and ideas. All of which can now be broadcast and accessed around the world within seconds. Ideas are becoming less precious, and the way in which we embrace and draw upon them to inspire new ways of thinking is growing day by day. So too is the ability to collaborate with each other globally, which is at its highest point in human history.

As creative professionals we should champion collaboration across our businesses and those of our clients, encouraging collaboration across disciplines and industries to learn and grow from our experiences. Pairing our knowledge enriches our own work and ultimately that of our clients and the audiences we engage.

There is an old saying:

“If I had one apple, and you had one apple, and we gave each other our apples;  we’d both still have one apple.  If I had one idea, and you had one idea and we told each other our ideas; we’d each have two ideas.”

Ideas are currency and the more we share them the richer we are for both  the experience and the result.

. This article appears in our latest issues of Adventures in Branding, download it here.
. Written in collaboration with Chris Butcher.

Tags | , , ,

Categories | Graphic design, Inspirational, Tank

Calling all designers – the world needs you

Richard Foster | 23.02.2010

Singapore 2050

Having attended the ICSID conference in Singapore late last year, ‘Designing our world 2050’, one theme kept surfacing in each presentation and discussion – the critical role design and designers will play as we head towards the challenges of the next 40 years.

As studios from around the globe presented their concept solutions to issues ranging from urban sprawl to healthcare to personal mobility, I found it both daunting and inspiring. Daunting to face up to the significant challenges of the future (over population, climate change, scarcity of resources), but inspiring to think how design can respond and offer a way forward.

But why design? It’s the quest for that big idea; the one common truth that drives every designer – be it an industrial designer, architect, futurist or branding expert. That idea that will transform peoples thinking and lives. That idea that proves ‘impossible is nothing’. That idea that drives positive change.

The thrill of an idea is that you don’t know where it will take you. Consider these 2050 possibilities imagined at the conference:

_ multi-level industrial agri-villages where people and agriculture co-exist to reduce the urban footprint and create fully sustainable living developments

_ the body becomes part of the resource solution, creating its own electricity through re-engineering our biology

_ a personalised care model takes a holistic plan for responding to the health needs of each individual; mapping out the social, educational and genetic signposts throughout a person’s lifespan in order to act before issues arise

_ a car becomes a resource to be shared where parts such as wheels and engines can be utilised by others and take on a life of their own

_ film posters become interactive devices, allowing trailers to be tailored to suit the viewing audience,  people to buy tickets and change their seating, or even have films sent directly to home entertainment systems

What is clear is that the world will need new thought. For design to lead the charge, it needs to be considered as part of the general education landscape. It has gone beyond having a finite scope, taught in a 3-year degree. It needs to be integrated into all aspects of education. Design, or ‘imagineering’, inspires thought, creativity, action. It does not need to be confined to a specialist activity. These are traits everyone can posses and develop.

In the next 40 years we will face challenges and opportunities unlike any seen before. Events such as Singapore 2050 don’t seek to offer the ultimate solution, but serve to inspire ideas and collaboration. It will be fascinating to see where this thinking takes us.

Tags | ,

Categories | Tank

The changing conversation

Jim Antonopoulos | 2.02.2010

Picture 1

WOW I haven’t blogged in quite some time, and from what I see when I look at my RSS feeds, many I follow aren’t bogging either!

I can’t speak for others but I know that I’ve been both busy being dad as well as focussing my conversation on the Twittersphere. Why?

The reasons are cheap as they are nasty:

  • It’s immediate. I receive instant gratification that people have read my thoughts right then and there.
  • If I have a question that needs answering, I have access to real people with real varied opinions available to answer me.
  • The people who follow me are interested in what I have to say. That’s why they bother.
  • I am interested in what the people I follow have to say. That’s why I bother.
  • I can seek advice from other business owners and get response.

Twitter has been panned for meaningless conversation but the experience I have had has been anything but; I have had coffee with a PR firm which I may choose to help me with some real business, I’ve met people who encourage my strange taste in music (that’s for another blog post) and I also get to follow Lance Armstrong’s training routine which in turn inspires me to get off my arse and go to the gym.

It’s not for everyone, and it has taken me away from this blog for a little while, but it works for many.

So, for long-winded thinking I have our blog; for quick snappy thoughts and musings, I have my Twitter.

Glad to be back.

Tags | , , ,

Categories | Tank