I found this short film on 'Creativity' and 'Influence' interesting. It's great - well worth a watch. Some good observations on what makes ideas spread and where creativity comes from. If you liked 'The Tipping Point' then this is more of that but from the horses mouths.
There's a line in it which says "Brands are established by doing great things... you can't fake it".
I had a conversation with a friend recently about personal branding. It's a phrase I hate. But I understand and accept that we all have our own and shape it in what we do. My issue is that when I see the phrase being used it's usually referencing ways to 'enhance yours in 3 easy steps'... or something along those lines. It's usually about people wanting to be someone else other than themselves.
I guess if someone came to me looking for advice on how to build their personal brand I'd give them a list similar to the one I used to give to aspiring DJs when I was one back in the day. It was a list with one instruction that simply said 'Play Great Records'. Forget the rest. Don't worry about the mixing, the headphones or the stickers on your record box. Play good records and the rest should follow. So if you're coming to me looking to enhance your personal brand my advice would be simple - 'Do great things - the rest will follow'.
1. Marc Maron's WTF podcast with Ira Glass - Brilliant podcast in which two storytelling styles collide as the sweary Marc Maron interviews This American Life's awesome Ira Glass.
3. Untangling the Web by Aleks Krotoski - Aleks is one of my favourite journalists and broadcasters whose new project for the Guardian is a great example of how to engage your audience, use networked tools to build a story and show your working out as part of the process. Journalists and broadcasters take note.
The more it snows the harder it is for people to get into work which means as a workforce we should be more creative. Let me explain then watch this great Ted talk from Jason Fried, author of the excellent Rework.
If you don't know I split my time working from home in Manchester and in the office in London. I go down to London about twice a month and make sure that I fill every minute I'm down there with essential meetings in order to make best use of the time. The roles of both locations are well defined. In London I do meetings and in Manchester I try to make the things I talked about in those meetings happen. It's a system that has worked well for a long time but last week I messed up. I traveled down for a training course I didn't have. Having blocked out several days in my diary for this course I found myself in the office with no meetings.
It was hell. It really was. No reflection on my work colleagues - you know I love you all - but I got nothing done. Fourteen years of working in isolation has certain disadvantages but working from home gives me the physical and mental space to control my day. Both of these are taken away when I'm in the office.
It's important to have control of your mental space. At home I can control my distractions. I can work either with or without music. I don't always have to listen to Radio 1 and 1Xtra. I can listen to 5 Live or have Ian Dury's 'Reasons To Be Cheerful' blasting as loud as I want without worrying about being too old/noisy/cheerful. I don't have to over hear a conversation about last night's apprentice which I will inevitably end up joining. And I'm far less likely to agree to getting involved in projects I don't have time for simply because they're 'interesting' - I'm terrible for doing that. Tim Ferriss has some great thoughts on this in The 4 Hour Work Week. You really should read that book for more work/life-hacking tips.
It's also important to control your own physical space (that's my space in the picture). I tend to have different spots that I work from depending on what I'm doing. I spend a lot of time in the morning working at the table getting through 'doing' tasks (emails/phone calls). Middle part of the day is usually taken up by more 'thinky' type of tasks. I do this either on the couch or on cushions on the floor by the window - with pens and paper. And finally towards the end of the day I've started standing up - something I picked up from my friend Steve Farrell. Really does the job when the brain is getting sleepy. I don't have space for a standing up desk so I shift my laptop over to the hob and stand for the last hour or so. It's great. Every office should have a hob to work off.
It's been said that my 'refreshing outlook' comes from being slightly distanced from the office. I didn't say that, my boss did. I agree with him too. Working at home takes discipline. But if you've got a to-do list you'll get it done and as a result you'll be more creative. So, if you manage a team of people don't be afraid to let some of them stay home when it snows - just agree with them at the start of the day what you expect from them by the end of the day and let them enjoy the freedom of their own personal space.