What does the word interesting mean?
If you’re in adland – especially a planner – it appears the definition revolves around being able to quote the words or actions of someone respected in the industry that you’ve just seen or read about.
Of course there’s nothing wrong with that – especially when it sparks off your own thoughts or actions [because let’s face it, doing things others find interesting is better than simply being known for knowing/repeating interesting things] – however what’s started to bother me is there appears to be some people in our industry who have created an elitist view of who – or what – can be classified as interesting … discarding anyone or anything if they’ve not appeared in Wired, TEDTalks or PSFK or worked in adland [as long as it’s at one of the ‘cool’ agencies] or a highly regarded ‘intellectual’ industry/category.
Interesting isn’t purely about the views and actions of the celebrated or the elite, it does – and should – include things that come from the masses … those people we walk past every single day without giving them so much as a second glance.
Whether it’s the elderly woman down my road who told me Chinese women always answer to men – initially their father, then their husband, then their son – through to the prostitute who can tell how the economy is doing by the number of foreign businessmen she comes into contact with through to the woman in the documentary I watched who bought a painting at a thrift shop, convinced herself it was a Pollock and then turned down US$9 million for it … there’s something or someone of interest everywhere if we just drop our prejudice, open our eyes and ask the right questions.
Please don’t think I’m trying to say I’m doing something special or am the only one who thinks/acts this way, I’m not, lots of people do – and have been doing – this sort of thing for bloody ages … I guess I’m just saying that if we’re looking for ‘interesting’, then we should look beyond the industry magazines, trend company websites, planner blogs and specialist conferences because if we only shower those things with our attention and praise then we’re not only doing ourselves a massive disservice, but we’re missing out.