Filed under: 2026, A Bit Of Inspiration, AI, Attitude & Aptitude, Confidence, Conformity, Craft, Creative Development, Creativity, Culture, Independence, Individuality, Planners, Planning, Point Of View, Strategy
One of the many things I love about China, are their proverbs.
Whatever the subject, there will be an expression that captures the issue in a brilliant, wonderful way.
And there’s so bloody many of them … and each one not only makes you nod your head in agreement, but also makes you think and then look at things differently afterwards.
Anyway, I heard one recently that I love.
In fact, I love it so much I’m going to use it as the ‘final lesson’ in a presentation I’m writing for a talk in Berlin – more of that in tomorrow’s post.
The quote is this:
I love it.
I love it for a load of reasons.
One of them being that China tends to encourage conformity rather than individuality – so this is beautiful for simply challenging that convention.
But the other reason is that it sums up the heart of the presentation I’m writing.
Especially in a world where so many people are – rightfully – worrying about the impact AI will have on their job, career, livelihood.
Because to take that quote one step further …
If you spend years doing all you can to become a perfect, straight tree …
A tree who stands perfectly with all those other perfect straight trees …
Not only could you find yourself being chopped down and turned into boards, you may discover that’s all you were ever going to be allowed to be.
Or said another way:
When you blindly follow someone else’s definition of ‘best practice’, the result isn’t just that you get turned into boards … it’s that your career is spent being walked on and walked over by people who never cared what you could become, only what they could become.
Which is why if you want to increase the odds of living a bigger life, be the wild tree.
Because while others may mock your shapes, bends and scars … you’ll know they’re signs of a life well lived, not a life walked upon.
Filed under: 2026, A Bit Of Inspiration, Confidence, Delusion, Linkedin, Marketing Fail
I’ve got to be honest, I’m getting fed up reading certain people’s sarcastic comments on other people’s posts on Linkedin.
I could maybe handle it more if they were responding to something offensive or idiotic.
I could maybe tolerate it more if the commenter had a long history of doing things that were truly special.
And I could maybe accept it more if they had a track record of posting interesting and well considered posts of their own over time
But in most cases, none of these ‘occasional acceptable’ filters are true, because not only is the only thing these people are synonymous with is trolling others posts … the issues they attack are, for all intents and purpose, harmless observations or a badly phrased updates.
But there they are, fulfilling their ‘main character’ delusions by going on the attack with a smug ferocity that makes you think they’re a fully paid-up member of the Andrew Tate fuckwit gang.
Talking of Andrew Tate … their responses always sound like they’ve been shaped by that manosphere twat.
You just know they’re convinced their retort is as sharp as a knife being plunged deep between someone else’s eyes, but to everyone else, we simply see their comments as blunt and missing the spot by a mile.
There’s one person in particular who seems to have all the sniper skills of a blind, drunk man … but that doesn’t stop him. Every day I see him make an attempt to churn out a sarcastic comment, even though his words always come across as inane and as confusing as the person he’s attempting to ridicule.
The funniest part is you just know they think this makes them look clever to others …
Or they hope they do, because that’s the characteristic they desire most in the world.
You can tell this by the other way they behave on Linkedin …
Crawling and fawning to people who have achieved the level of industry status and fame they crave … with the caveat, the people they aspire to be tend to all express themselves with the level of self-righteous arrogance that would put Nigel Farrage to shame.
Of course, many can respond to comments on Linkedin without ever looking stupid, arrogant or desperate for attention.
And there’s even a few who can pull it off while being openly sarcastic and confronting. [Albeit because they’re smart, experienced and their comments are actually addressing an issue that needs challenging]
But the individuals I’m talking about don’t fit either of that criteria …
So, while they may be fooling themselves into thinking they’re sharp, witty and successful-as-hell … they’re not fooling anyone else.
Which is why I love they keep posting.
Because the more they think it elevates them, the more it’s bringing them down.
Filed under: 2026, A Bit Of Inspiration, Attitude & Aptitude, Collaboration, Colleagues, Content, Context, Creativity, Culture, Curiosity
Dear clients, companies, managers and network CEOS …
If you want the creative people you employ/hire/work with to be 100% effective, you need to allow them to be 20% ineffective.
Doesn’t matter whether that 20% is spent going down dead ends, rabbit holes or absolutely nowhere at all … the reality is rest/distraction/experimentation fuels creative freshness and effectiveness rather than it being a barrier to it.
Or said another way: Space creates new ways to overcome old problems.
I totally get the temptation to ‘keep people busy’.
I totally get the supposed logic of putting people on new projects as soon as they’ve finished old ones.
I totally get companies love to give their creative partners ‘sprints’, because they think that makes things ‘more efficient’ – albeit financially rather than for the work.
Hell, I even get the temptation to outsource work to machines when they don’t need any ‘productive ineffectiveness’ whatsoever.
However, while all these approaches may give the illusion of certainty and control to clients/procurement/finance/management, the reality is not only is that bullshit, they often end up undermining the potential of what could have been achieved.
Oh I know you’ll hear differently from a whole range of Guru’s/Consultants/Agencies/Research Companies etc …
And – to be fair – many of the methodologies they are flogging absolutely decreases the odds of screwing things up badly.
However the irony is, when you blindly adopt their practices, you also end up decreasing the odds of achieving something truly special.
And while that would be OK if that is what companies/procurement departments said they wanted, how many actually say that?
Oh no …
They demand more output.
More effectiveness.
More productivity.
More hours.
More magic.
So while maximizing every second of every creative persons time may sound an effective use of their time, you’re just screwing yourself over … because this approach ends up creating something worse than exhaustion – it encourages monotony, complacency and repetition.
Or said another way … it destroys the opportunity for creativity to redefine – in your favor – the rules and outcomes of logic, history, money and/or distribution.
So while every person benefits from having time to think, rest or experiment … for the creative mind, fuels their power where everyone around them also benefits.
Hence if companies want to benefit from the full power and potential of creative effectiveness, it requires you to let people be a little ineffective on the way.
Explore.
Experiment.
Educate.
Fail.
Try.
Collaborate.
Contemplate.
Have a bit of a fucking rest before the next ‘urgent job’.
And while I appreciate that may still sound like twisted logic to some, so is outsourcing the reputation of your brand to the procurement department who only care about who can do/make things for the lowest price while still expecting your customers to want to pay a premium for it.
You’re welcome.
Filed under: 2026, A Bit Of Inspiration, Anniversary, Birthday, Jill, Nottingham, Paul
After my birthday and Jill’s birthday – today is the last birthday of those closest to me.
Paul.
I have to say I love how close they all are to each other, it makes them – and us – all feel extra special and close.
At least to me.
And while I am on the other side of the planet from him these days, I will see him soon when I pop in on my latest multi-country stupid trip in a few weeks.
I can’t wait.
Not just because it’s been a year since I last saw him, but because we have – as I wrote here – gone through a pretty tough time for the first time in our friendship.
But while that has been challenging, it never challenged what he means to me.
As I have said many times, now my parents have died – he is the person that has been longest in my life.
And shit like that matters. Especially when you don’t have many people you call ‘a friend’.
Which is why I am extra happy to celebrate his birthday today and very excited to share some time with him soon.
Because if life is a game of luck, where he is concerned, I won.
So happy birthday my dear Paul …
Because while every bit of trouble I’ve ever got into my life can be traced back to you … so can all my greatest childhood memories.
And I look forward to making more with you for years to come.
Love ya Hilly.
So today it’s my birthday.
I’m 56.
FIFTYFUCKINGSIX.
I’ve never felt my age, but right now, I can’t even comprehend how old I am.
Just 4 years off 60.
Or said another way, 4 years from being the same age as Dad when he died.
For years that number haunted me … and it will probably be very emotional for me, when I turn that age … but right now, I feel closer to 40 than 60.
Part of it is my attitude … or as Peter Mensch say’s, my “immunity from maturity”, hahaha.
But another part – and I appreciate how superficial this is – is how I look.
Don’t worry, I don’t think I’m Brad Pitt or anything – I’m more like ‘Arm Pit’ – but recently I was watching something with Otis when a 50 year old man was interviewed and I caught Otis staring at me.
“What’s wrong?” I asked him.
“Nothing. I just can’t work out how he looks so much older than you, when you’re older than him”.
He said it with an air of confusion, consideration and happiness.
Which made me happy.
Not necessarily because I look – at least to him – younger than some 50 year old on the television, but because it means I’m healthier so I’m more likely to be around him him longer than I once may have been.
And while even that may not be as long as I hope or wish … to me, that’s the greatest gift I could ever receive. Albeit this weekend, I’ll be watching the start of the World Cup and eating like ‘old Rob’, hahaha.
Have a great weekend, I know I will be.
