thinkingaboutpeople

I hate to-do lists

2011-12-19T22:54:00.004-08:00

To-do lists annoy me. They’re a list of things I’m accountable for in the future, most of which I’d rather not do. It’s not that I don’t want the outcome. Aside from paying parking tickets (shit!) I want to achieve almost all the tasks on my list, but those tasks feel like debt.

To me to-dos feel like a weight on the future. A drag on the potential of the next moment. They’re depressing.

Which makes the fact that I recently left IDEO to join Orchestra.com somewhat ironic.

Orchestra is your to-do list shared with the people in your life, with realtime chat embedded in each tast. Social. That’s why I left to work for Orchestra. I’m social. I hate doing chores, but doing tasks with a friend feels like hanging out. Remembering to do that thing I almost forgot because a friend or fiance reminded me feels like we're working together. And getting things done in a timely manner feels like a joint accomplishment. A cause for a celebration.

See that difference? Tasks went from a depressing drag on the potential of the future to a cause for celebration by flipping a switch, sharing and socializing around the task with others.

I work on this problem constantly at Orchestra because I can’t get enough of enjoying life with others, which is exactly what we’re trying to do to the world, make accomplishing things more enjoyable, while creating more time for appreciating life together.

Pic via foggodavid

I do love Nike, but...

2011-11-06T20:22:00.000-08:00

I love Nike, anyone who knows me knows that. Anyone who meets me can see that.

I’ve been inspired by the Just Do It spirit, ingenuity and fire since I was young.
I interned there three summers and at their ad firm Wieden&Kennedy, trying to understand and absorb the ethos of competition and sport.

And I’ve worn Nike nearly every step of my way for well over a decade. You just can’t beat their technology, style and flair.

And yet, somewhere over the past year I began to stray.

It started with trail shoes. I purchased New Balance 100s because they’re great and Nike doesn’t make trail shoes. Neglecting the thousands of miles of unpaved wilderness seems unexplainable, but oh well.

And recently, at the suggestion of a friend I tried on the New Balance Minimus Road. They took a bit of adjusting to because they ask a lot of your lower calf and ankle muscles. But, true to the minimal running philosophy and biology, my body adjusted and I’ve felt better on runs recently than in a long time. Now I can just cruse, which is all you want as a runner.

So now I find myself a Nike lover who runs in New Balance every day.

Honestly, it feels odd.

How did New Balance get here? From what I understand they did it by listening to runners, carefully. They brought the best shoes on the market to distance runners and experimented together till they had something ideal for the basic motion of running.

Little technology to speak of, not much left to brag about actually.
They made something that works for people, by working with people.

“But what about the Nike Free?!” you’re asking. I own a pair, and run in them, but they’re not as good. Plain and simple, there’s too much going on with them technologically. They get in the way. I’m sure Nike doesn’t agree, they’ve sold millions and made millions. But ask runners, real runners, fast or slow who hit the roads and trails frequently and you won’t hear a lot about the Free. Mostly you’ll just hear, “no thank you.”

So Nike, I haven’t given up hope on us running together again, but right now we’re not in synch and I’ve found someone who’s listening to me better.

You taught the world to live by three words, “Just Do It.”
Well, I’ll offer you three in return, “Keep it simple.”

Follower Fatigue

2011-06-20T22:47:00.000-07:00

Follower Fatigue

I recently received an email from Google asking if someone I know could be my “friend” on Google Places…and I just about lost it.

Why?!

You know that bad dream where you’re on stage, everyone is watching and you freeze? You don’t know what to do, everyone is disappointed and you run off in horror.

I’m beginning to feel that way online.

So many new services, and for each come new requests and notifications to connect and follow. And for what? What are these followers expecting from me? Do they even know? What if I’m not worth following? Do I even know how to be a good Followee or Friend?

Facebook. Twitter. Foursquare. Scribd. Quora. Pinterest. And now Google Places. The list just keeps growing.

I’ve been posting to Facebook for so many years now it just comes naturally. Judge me by my wall, feel free. But my new Pinterest page? What does it say about me? Before I’d even “pinned” a thing a friend made fun of me for having nothing. I was boring before I could figure out how to be interesting. Feels like middle school all over again.

Signing up for each new service is like moving to a new achool – you’re a no one all over again.

But what to do? Reject followers? Reject friends? Or reject the new sites?

I’d like to begin as a follower before becoming a followee. Like in Middle School, I want to join a clique before having to create my own identity. This is possible on Twitter, you can follow without an account. But once you enter your name…BAM, here come the followers, the requests and the expectations.

Oh, those expectations…

Wait...WHAT? No.

2011-01-18T20:58:00.000-08:00

Bob Costas greatest pet peeve about sports has always stuck with me. When the famous sports announcer was asked in a round table discussion about what bothered him about sports, he replied,

“I get annoyed during those times in sport when someone passes away and the broadcaster fills a moment during the game with ‘Well, that really puts everything in perspective now doesn’t it?’
No! No it doesn’t!”

Costas went on.

“What have we done in society, have we so lost touch with reality that it takes someone dying for us to remember that sports isn’t life and there are things that matter more than who wins?”

For some reason that quote always stuck with me as a caution against disingenuous questions. And it comes to mind recently in relation to social networks.

I’ve heard several people recently posit themselves as thoughtful by pointing out what is supposedly the newly evolving concept of friendship. Something that I don’t personally believe is newly evolving.

These people assert,

“People are realizing that instead of accumulating 500+ friends, what’s more important is creating meaningful relationships with a small group of people they can trust. They’re even going so far as to unfriend people.”

My reply?

No shit.

At what point did ANYONE speak sincerely about the fact that their accumulation of digital social network friends was more important, more supportive or more fundamental to their happiness than their closest daily friendships? Friendship is certainly evolving for some people. To each their own. But to tear apart the straw man of “new friendship” as a construct of the last decade is weak, and honestly we all deserve better discourse about the evolution of friendship and emotional connection. We deserve to extend each other the credit that we each know the meaning of a true friend and that that hasn’t been diluted by the digital connected with hundreds of acquaintances.

So next time someone makes a blanket claim about how friendship has been rocked by the blow of technology, ask them to be specific. Ask them to dig in and engage with what they're seeing and what they mean. My guess is this will be a much more intelligent discussion a step away from the false questions or general claims.

The comeback!

2010-08-13T09:27:00.001-07:00

It's been waiting in the wings for years.

Rejected by a generation.

It was only a matter of time.

The utility is too great, the quality of life to grand to be denied.

And those F@CKing GenXers were too whiny, too weak to be apathetic forever.

Announcing...the return...of the MINIVAN!!!

I'm not married.

I don't have kids.

But I want one. SRSLY.

The Economics of Peaches

2010-08-12T14:57:00.001-07:00

These peaches aren't ripe.

Not yet anyways, but I'm eating one anyways.

Cause why not? It's still pretty good.

These peaches are put out at work for anyone to eat when they please. There aren't ALWAYS peaches, but in the summer time there are frequently. And these peaches get taken quickly.

This means that I have little to no incentive to leave them and wait for them to ripen. If I do wait they're likely to be gone by the time they're ripe. I could take one and let it sit by my desk, but then I run the risk of forgetting about it and letting it rot.

The quality of these peaches is that they are here, right now, to be eaten, even if they're subprime.

Is there an economic principle that explains this behavior?

It's not the Problem of the Commons, I know that. That's the explanation for when I eat too many free peaches and have a stomach ache while others are left without peaches to enjoy.

Thoughts or suggestions? Chime in please...

We should all be Gaga

2010-07-14T09:06:00.001-07:00

This quote from Lady Gaga seems true for everyone:

"When I wake up in the morning, I feel just like any other insecure 24-year-old girl," she says. "Then I say, 'Bitch, you're Lady Gaga, you get up and walk the walk today.' "

In most ways each of us is getting up in the morning and fulfilling an expectation that we’ve set for ourselves – embodying the persona we’ve created.

I admire Gaga for her intelligent blatancy. Her unabashed celebrity creation IS a mash up of all of the past celebrities she is accused of copying, and that’s the point. The banal critic adores pointing out influences for current stars, as if it establishes his credibility or lessens the star’s current stature.

It doesn’t. It’s the opposite. We live in a mash-up culture where reinvention and amalgamation is prized.

Each day that Lady Gaga gets up in the morning and out does her phenomenally extravagant self from the day before she is an inspiration to anyone who’s trying to be something new. Anyone who’s trying to grow.

Which should be everyone.

Proper Goodbye emails

2010-07-06T17:14:00.000-07:00

In case you haven’t heard, the economy is picking up, and with it come the job opportunities.

New jobs lead to goodbye emails.

So, if you’re gonna quit, try to do it in style – my 6 points for success below.

1. Keep it short

You’re leaving. We get it. No one cares for tirades when you work here and we’re less interested now that you’re gone.

2. Be genuine

Don’t dwell on “how much you’ve learned” or “what I’ll never forget” – I’ve already glazed over by the end of that cliché. Say something meaningful.

3. Know that we’ll be fine

This one is difficult, cause all anyone cares about is themselves, but spare us the drama. You’re leaving, if you were a good person to work with we’re really gonna miss you, but please, this place was great before you and will continue after you.

4. Realize that you cannot “drop a bomb”

Everything negative thing you say will be discounted 50% because you’re quitting. No one likes a sore loser. Same goes for people who point out problems without doing anything about them. If you’re being truthful now, you were being disingenuous before.

5. Say where you’re going

It’s all anyone really wants to know. Everyone is thinking about themselves remember, so they want to know what you felt was a better gig and judge you based on your decision. If you don’t say where you’re going it reeks of self-importance and drama. Unless you’re not gonna do anything, in which case you should brag your ass off.

6. Inspire

The most memorable goodbye email I ever received wasn’t a goodbye email, it was a thank you email an engineer wrote thanking the company for supporting his family through difficult times and giving us all perspective on how lucky we were to work there. That was memorable. He lifted us all up and gave us something out of the blue. And he made cookies.

7. Make cookies

Cookies never hurt anybody.

iPad discovery #1 - The freedom to do one thing well

2010-05-13T10:06:00.002-07:00

My great co-worker D.Webster coined it best "2010 is all about mono-tasking!"
These days the freedom to strip down your focus to a singular endeavor is precious and rare. Many of us are pulled in multiple directions simultaneously and tout our ability to multi-task The iPad provides the freedom to focus by limiting use to one application at a time. The "inability to multitask" is criticized as a technical limitation, but I have to ask, what's your technical limit of processing synchronous tasks?

If you're like me you have 8-10 programs running at a time, with up to 20+ browser windows open "to get back to." This makes for a seamless work stream, rapidly flicking between programs, but quantity is many times the enemy of quality as my ability to focus red lines.

Apple announced that this summer the ipad and iPhone will allow "multitasking" - but that is more of a technical allowance than altered. Allowing Pandora to run in the background while I type this is just a good idea. Trying to fit multiple programs into is single frame will just bring me back where I am on my laptop.

While reading the Times, watching a Ted video or typing this post I find myself flinching, eager to do something else simultaneously. But that's the point.

Don't.

Sit there and enjoy the moment.

What is the iPad? Who knows.

2010-05-05T11:24:00.002-07:00

So I bought an iPad. Yippeeeee. Okay, moving on.

I’m in the store, and it’s MADNESS. SF Apple store is like Mecca. Sure, NYC is a glass cube, but SF is insanity. I’m asking questions of the kind employee even though I already knew the answers. I’d read about the product from every direction, so at this point I’m questioning so I can stall and mull over the decision.

And then he asks “So, how do you plan to use the iPad?”

And I was stunned.

He looks at me and I’m speechless for a moment.

“What do you mean I asked?”

He wanted to know how I suspected I would use it relative to past paradigms.

Would I be using it for email, internet, news, photos, music, videos, etc.?

Silence on my end.

He was so kind I couldn’t bring myself to ask “How am I, new consumer, supposed to know how I am going to use a product your own CEO declared a ‘new category’ - a 'game changer' ?”

“What new applications and uses will be invented for this new platform in the coming months?” I was tempted to question rhetorically.

“In what ways do you suspect social use behaviors will coalesce around content packaged in an entirely new (beautiful) form?” I wanted to pose.

But I didn’t, because no one knows. Not yet.

And that is why I left it at “I’ll take one.”

Why multiple perspectives matter

2010-03-01T14:19:00.002-08:00

I ride the caltrain to work each day, which requires a ticket.

Without a ticket you get a fine. Hefty.

Since most people purchase monthly passes today is a big day, the 1st day of the month. New-pass day.

But the morning of the first day of the month is a special 12 hour window - old passes are still valid!

Why?

Because Caltrain listened, and over time they figured out that well intentioned responsible people sometimes forget their pass in the morning melée. And so they offer a window of lenience.

But the man next to me this morning didn't get it.

"have it one way or the other!" He berated the conductor - "Why does it matter if you give me till noon?! My new pass is sitting at home on my desk!"

Well, Sir, it matters because not everyone is like YOU.

Although providing a window of lenience allows monthly pass riders to either pick up their new pass at work or purchase a $6 ticket for the return and avoid a $250 fine, the man this morning COULD NOT think past his own pass on his desk at home.

I mention this story because it is common.

The products we use and the services we endure are too often designed for 1 user - leaving us to puzzle, scratch our heads or scream when puzzling "The designer of this system NEVER considered this scenario?"

You know the feeling, you don't feel out-of-the-ordinary, but design feedback is informing you that you are.

Think things through from as many perspectives as possible, then settle on solutions that provide the most flexibility with the greatest simplicity.

Good design balances tensions, and accommodates for our humanity...

"safe" at "home"

2010-02-16T18:44:00.002-08:00

There are times you realize these are just walls, shingles and coats of paint.

Last week our house was broken into.

No, our home was broken into.

We signed the lease. Wrote the check. Copied the keys. And generally did our piece to build a home.

We placed the furniture, built routines and began to live our lives.

And then some dickhead broke in and shattered the myth of security.

We are never as safe as we’d like to believe, but the need for sanity keeps us from contemplating and agonizing over the list of possible maladies. Even if you're aware of potential dangers, I always choose to focus on the great impending earthquake than the potential for harm at the hands of another person.

But that’s exactly what happened. They broke in the 3^rd floor window and stole my little Mini from the garage. 3 days later it turned up a mile away….can you imagine what someone would do with a stolen Mini for 3 days? As a person who bought the car after seeing The Italian Job, I sure can.

And in the end the cash they took was small and the damage to the car is insured, but the reminder that those doors and windows can’t keep the world away is particularly unpleasant and unappreciated.

But that’s life right?

Carry on…

What if '09 was all there was?

2010-01-05T21:56:00.001-08:00

“Worst year ever!”

“God, glad that’s over…”

“damn…that sucked.”

No matter where you were in December you heard variations of such sentiment:

“09, goodbye and good riddance”

Which began to make me wonder: What if ’09 was all there was?

It was a tough year. A really tough year, but so was ’08 now that we think about it. And in ‘07 stocks were up, but life wasn’t easy.

“Just my luck…”

“When it rains it pours”

are expressions that came to mind in ’09.

But so is - “Misery loves company”

And the more we began to expect disappointment, the more we saw it. The more attuned to inconvenience, dissatisfaction and frustration we became, the less hopeful and optimistic we were willing to be.

Yes, very difficult things happened in 09, and if you’re someone who lost their job, got sick or lost someone you loved I am extremely sympathetic. But, if you didn’t have a notable setback in the past year I’m willing to bet that the important things, the meaningful things of daily life were still as good and as bad as they’ve always been. And that’s life.

I’m reminded of the VH1 show “Best Week Ever” where they highlight and recap the gossip and talk show events from the previous week. They spoof celebrities and inane life events. The show is all in the name. The point being that because the content week to week is so silly and trivial, it’s all essentially the same. And if every week is the same, then the OMG Optimist concludes, this week must be the Best Ever!

I like their logic, cause the one who sits around week to week, month to month, year to year waiting for a BETTER time to start living, start trying or start being happy, is the one who will miss out consistently.

If it takes the turning of a new year for people to refresh and refocus on living life in a positive style then so be it. But please everyone, lift your head up, look around and focus on what’s good. See the little things that make you smile and recognize the mundane elements that are beautiful. I’m willing to bet that with that perspective ’10 is lined up to be the Best Year Ever.

Happy new year.

So long Facebook privacy as we knew it

2009-12-09T19:40:00.002-08:00

Thoughtful explanation of Facebook’s new Privacy settings by TechCrunch:
http://www.techcrunch.com/2009/12/09/facebook-privacy/

I'll let them explain the details, I'll take the time to raise a glass to what was and hope that what's next is more exciting and not too, too scary for people.

There is inevitable transition between ideal customer experiences and profitable business models. Business' get off the ground by executing their idea to within an inch of its life in hopes that it will succeed. At some point they need to make money, and that’s when the compromises arise. I don’t hold it against them, actually I resent the people who do. It’s inevitable, and I just hope they will do it well, in a way that respects people’s experience and emotions.

Classic example, but Google did it well. They introduced ads that clearly weren’t primarily the best interests of the user, made billions of dollars as a result, and I don’t mind one bit. Win-win.

Facebook clearly is taking a gamble. They know their content is worth a Google or more in revenue, but they know once the party is over – it’s really over. Ala Friendster. They need people to keep sharing - and feel comfortable – while also allowing them to share that content with the world. So as the article points out, the days of Facebook being a “private” social network are over. At least entirely.

That said, 80% of people probably won’t take notice or change their settings. As a result some people will be upset, others will leave, and most will never notice. Although I wonder if a decrease in privacy will lead to a lesser user experience. I'm imagining that slowly, almost imperceptibly, we all begin to share less because we're not sure who these "Everyone" people are, which leads to less interesting content across the site, and a duller user experience overall. Or it just becomes a shouting ground for exhibitionists - re: MySpace.

Anyways – this is a big deal, Social Networks are growing up. Long live the good old days when we were all drunk college kids who didn’t care about getting a job.

Now time to go delete some status updates from last weekend...

Assume you’re being watched…

2009-12-01T09:29:00.002-08:00

How long until everything is available on DVR?

Oh, I’m not talking on TV, I’m talking EVERYWHERE…

You can see it right? Our lives lived out like 1984, a “police state” blah, blah, blah, blah. That’s all fine and well, call in the constitutional experts and have a debate. That’s not what I’m excited about. I’m wide-eyed cause were watching the moment where tech is finally beginning to saturate the landscape and everything is imminently indexed and searchable.

Yesterday Serena Williams was fined a load of cash and placed on probation for 2 years for verbally threatening a lines women at the US Open. That’s fine, she deserved to be punished. But, can anyone deny the role that high powered microphones and HD cameras played in this suspension? She was penalized a point on the spot, which ended up costing her the match, but as time has passed and the video of her meltdown gains views, anyone can read her lips and faintly hear her say “I’ll KILL YOU” it built pressure on the governing body of tennis.

How can they NOT suspend her when there is undeniable evidence of her unsportsmanlike conduct? Things are no longer one word against another – now everyone is watching.

Similarly, the brutal women’s soccer match between BYU and New Mexico has been replayed continually because it’s breathtaking. The fact that she would pull her oppontent to the ground by the ponytail is bad, but the fact that she did it on national television is remarkable. In the moment it was brutal, but replayed again and again and again it reaches a level of cold-blooded Sinicism. She received so much media attention that she eventually spoke out in the NYT.

These are sports you say, clearly they’re being watched, that’s the point. While true, our eyes are deceptive and forgetful. Reality is amorphous and relative in ways that HD video is not.

A BART cop out in SF recently broke a window with a man’s face – again, momentarily overlooking the fact that he was….yup, on video:

WARNING: somewhat graphic and humanly disturbing, even the spectators enjoyment:

Shouldn’t police ALWAYS behave as though they're being watching? What do they have to hide? Weren’t WE always told to behave like our parents were watching? Not to write anything over email that we wouldn’t mind posting publicly?

While the principles of behavior and conduct may be timeless, or at least evolving generationally, we’re experiencing a moment of inflection where technology is reaching into corners of life previously not illuminated. As we watch the implications of technology saturation impact and alter our daily events the stakes are rising faster and in more ways than they were before.

And is that bad?

“Yes and no” isn’t a very satisfying answer, but it’s all I have for right now. A great deal remains to play out as technology continues to permeate corners of our life.

How bad has it gotten already?

Well, on a personal note, shortly after I moved into my new apartment a friend asked “oh, the one on Buchanan, yeah, someone sent me a video of that place asking if I wanted to apply to live there.”

Me: “…a what?”

Her: “a video, I’ll send you the link”

To take a tour of my home click below, just make sure to enjoy it while pondering the implications of everything being just a link away…

My apartment

Timing

2009-09-30T19:24:00.002-07:00

I’m been thinking a lot about timing recently, mainly because I haven’t been proud of my own.

There’s a lot to get used to in a new city, new job, new friends and new weather patterns. Even when you feel like know which move to make, the intersection of moment and action really matters.

And, unsurprisingly, this realization came to me while running. Actually, racing.

Last week was the Corporate Challenge 3.5 mile run, where corporate dogs in cities around America dress in workout gear, improvise a few stretches, act like they’re having fun and chalk the whole thing up to “culture building.” Oh, so corporate.

Regardless, I began the race quickly, faster than I expected, and yet still felt good after a mile. We were running a long stretch into the wind along the Marina waterfront. The sun was setting in our eyes and wind was stiffly halting us from straight ahead. It was as painful a dead-flat stretch as I’d ever run. I did NOT want to run faster. But then it dawned on me: No one else did either. The men surrounding me were in a collective world of hurt and I was noticing their discomfort, which could only mean one thing: it was time to go.

That’s timing.

I picked it up, it hurt more, I accepted that and proceeded. I understood that if I ran faster then it would have maximum return because no one was going to go with me. Within a half-mile we were due to turn for the wind at our backs, which is the universal metaphor for awesome.

When I realized that I was conscious of the situation and that I could do something about it – it became clear that I had to act. I pulled away and didn’t see those men again

But this isn’t about running; it’s about timing. It’s about doing the thing you don’t want to do in the right moment because you’re coherent and capable – if not enthusiastic.

It’s a simplistic analogy for sure, but no one appreciates an overstretched sports metaphor.

What I’m actually doing is ripping off one of the best slogans ever:

Just Do It.

“Twitter is for old people”

2009-07-30T09:48:00.002-07:00

Have you heard this? Well it blew up a few weeks ago online because of Matthew Robson, a 15-year old intern at Morgan Stanley in England. Story here.

It set off a firestorm of reaction, blog posts and tweets, all fiercely debating something that is true.

It is for old people.

At least older people than him.

Think about being a teenager. No…seriously…think about when you were a pre-teen, I’ll give you a moment…….

Actually, forget it, let’s call me in 6^th grade, 12 year old Peter in 1993, to ask him what he thinks of Twitter:

Ring..ring…ring

Young me: “Uh, hello? Who is it?

Old me: “Hey, how’s it going, how’s umm, 6^th grade?”

Young: “it’s uhhh…

HELLO?

Mom, MOM, I got it! guhh

Sorry about that, 6^th is cool I guess.”

Old: That’s good, have you heard about this new website called Twitter? I’d like to know what you think of it…”

Young: “Dude, I just got a new pair of soccer cleats, so, sweet. I saved up for them, so SO awesome. Wait, Twit what?”

Old: “um, it’s a website, it’s referred to as a ‘Micro-blog” where they limit your status updates to 140 characters…what do you think?”

Young: “Umm, [pause] dude, did you see Ali today at lunch? Uhh, I’m not sure what’s going on, she said “hey what’s up?’ to me and I thought I was going to puke. I feel…….funny.”

Old: “Yeah, yeah, totally, I feel you on that, you’ll get used to it.

Back to Twitter, they say it’s going to be the ‘Pulse of the Internet” and that you’ll be able to know what’s going on around the world with it. What do you think?”

Young: “Pulse of what? I heard people are hanging out after the dance on Friday, but I’m not sure where, would it help me figure that out?”

Old: “Well, maybe, but more than that it would give you a sense of what people like you are interested in around the globe?”

Young: “If Ali says 'Hey' to me again, what should I say?”

Old: “Just be yourself, she’ll like that”

Young: “Myself? [pause]

Ummm….Have you heard of Weezer? Everyone keeps talking about them and telling me I should go buy a CD. I don’t know what to do.”

Old: “Yeah, they’re amazing, you’re gonna go to their concert next year and it’s gonna blow your mind, but back to Twitter…”

Young: “Why do I want to talk to all those people you’re talking about? I have 65 kids in my class and I’m stressed just keeping track of them! Colin, Ryan and David keep hanging out on the weekends and making me feel left out.”

Old: “So you’re not interested in sharing your status with others?”

Young: “Status? I’m not ‘Going Out’ with anyone. Ali’s with Ryan, did I tell you that?”

Old: “Yeah, I remember, don’t worry about it”

Young: “but she’s, like, the prettiest girl in the entire world! How am I supposed to not worry about that?”

Old: “Yeah, she’s pretty, but there will be other pretty girls. Do you think you will gain interest in sharing and discovering content online as you get older?”

Young: “Prettier than Ali? Not possible. “

Old: “Okay, but sharing content online, do you see the value?”

Young: “How can you say someone is prettier than Ali?”

Old: “Okay, alright, she’s the prettiest pretty girl ever. Is that good? Will you answer the question now?”

Young: “Yeah she is.

Well yeah, I mean, I guess it’s good to know what’s going on, but it seems like it’s for old people who care about that kind of stuff…”

Old: “Thank you, that’s all I wanted to know. Thanks for your time, now please, please go do homework. Oh, and go see Nirvana in concert as soon as possible, trust me.”

Young: “what do you think, I was thinking of writing Ali a note…”

Old: “Jesus”

Click

What did we learn from this conversation? Aside from the fact that Ali was the super cutest?

That teenagers have small, yet emotionally complex social networks that they’re only beginning to understand. That their hormones are raging and nothing they say should be taken as an omen of the future, but rather a point-of-view to be considered. And that no service, website or product can be expected to capture kids’ attention in the same way that it does for adults. Face it, their lives are more exciting, exhilarating and nauseating than ours. Imagine if society functioned like middle school, no one would get anything done!

Sorry @biz and @ev, Twitter is incredible, but nothing compares to the fascination that teenage boys have for girls.

ideas

2009-07-28T23:09:00.001-07:00

Yesterday my first tweet took off - and it was a blast.

Most Twitter updates are only interesting to a few people. Actually, most Twitter updates are only interesting to the person writing the tweet (it’s what they’re called, I’m not making it up!). So most of them die right out of the gate.

But, because there are millions of Twitter users, at least a small percentage of Tweets are intriguing to many people. Because the trend has grown to forward on content that you enjoy, a tweet by one individual can rapidly reach thousands or millions of individuals. That is the exciting power of a service that is commonly disregarded as a self-indulgent and trivial.

I’ve Twittered 701 times over 2.5 years, but the tweet I sent out yesterday was the first to gain momentum and live on past my personal network of 150 or so people.

Actually, it wasn’t even my tweet. That’s the best part, I simply passed it along, from someone much more famous and profound than me.

John Maeda is a smart, smart man. He used to run the MIT Media Lab, now he’s the president of RISD. He gets science, technology, creativity and thought. As a result 11,000 people follow his Twitter updates. He’s undeniably worth following. On Sunday he Tweeted;

“Shared by a friend at Bravo: “You pick a boss, not a job. Who you work for can matter more than what you do.”

That stuck with me. I came back to it several times over the next day – couldn’t stop thinking about the consequences of its meaning on the work we do. I close colleague once said off hand “…the more I think about it the more I realize we’re not in the design business, we’re in the people business. From there comes design, but the focus has to be on people first.”

Apparently other’s were compelled by this notion because it was forwarded on from me, and then again, and then again… By the time it stopped Maeda’s tweet had been seen by 2,929 as a result of my forward alone.

An idea, one snippet of content, can be interpreted in so many ways – but when it catches on and connects it’s a sight to see and a thrill to have supported.

The indian, not the arrow

2009-06-23T18:09:00.002-07:00

Is that saying racist? It sounds like a line my grandfather would have said, in the 50's. But that's alright, it wasn't racist then, it was just reality.

Anyways, cultural sensitivities aside, a friend of mine used the phrase the other day and I thought it was perfectly put.

We were asking him about his bike collect. He's down to 4, 1 road, 2 mountain and 1 city P.O.S.
Someone asked him, "so, what's your dream bike?" to which he replied "I own it, it's the light green mountain bike in the back."

We were dumbfounded.

"But, if you already own your dream bike, what do you have to aspire to?" we pondered.

"It's the indian, not the arrow, man" he stated in deadpan, hippy, philosophical zen. "I have it, now it's a matter of learning how to ride it to the level it deserves."

That idea has stuck in my head in the weeks since. While money is tight, or while we are being told that money is tight - it gives us a moment to pause and question whether what we have is in fact already more capable than we are.

I won't get started about over weight men who buy carbon fiber bike parts, that's too obvious a violation. What I will focus on is focus.

I need to focus more, and so does mostly everyone around me. Aside from my friend who just graduated from Johns Hopkins Medical, or my other one who works in the White House, I'm fairly certain that most of us would benefit more from focusing on how we can improve rather than how we can upgrade.

I get that the mountain biking to living life analogy isn't perfect, but it's what is currently inspiring me, so I thought it's share.

ps- have you seen the iPhone 3G S? I heard it's "stupid fast" and puts the previous one to shame!

thinking hard...

2009-05-28T23:51:00.003-07:00

I started this blog a year ago because I had become bored.

I was happy, but I had all of these thoughts with nowhere to go. So I started a blog to think about people. It was wonderful for about 11 months, until it hit a roadblock - IDEO.

In the past 6 weeks I've had so much going on in my head and in life that I haven't had a moment where I was inclined to write. It's been wonderful, and exhausting. A certain amount of thought spilling over into written form is a good thing, at least for me, which I'd like to get back to soon.

I've been thinkingaboutpeople so much recently in a way that is focused around work, projects and possibilities that I've had nothing left to spill over into this blog.

Someone emailed me today asking "so, has the thrill of the initial week at IDEO worn off?" to which I replied a resounding "No."

Getting hired at IDEO makes you feel successful, which I did. And I had a lot of thoughts about that, that I blogged.

But then, when you start, you become aware - reminded of the fact - that at a firm where anything is possible, the unknown variable is YOU. At which point it's time to start figuring out what it is you're gonna do here....

And contemplating that has taken up so much mental space that I've had little left over to do much else.

“It’ll be there when you get there”

2009-04-14T10:49:00.001-07:00

The best advice given to me this month, offered by a man selling $1 homeless newspapers at 1am in the Mission.

Today marks 3 months that I’ve been in my new job at IDEO. It’s been an eye opening, exciting and intense period marked by moments of pride, periods of anxiety and filled with a number of new friendly faces. Now that I have something to look back on I’ve realized that beginning a job is similar to beginning to climb a mountain.

When you set out to summit a peak, you set out with the destination in mind. “Get there.” Once prepared and packed, it is extremely difficult not to begin too quickly. Focused on reaching the crest it is easy to forget that the journey will be extended and pacing is critical to survival. It’s important to settle in for the journey ahead.

The man who recommended this sage advice approached me as I was hauling down the sidewalk, a slice of pizza in hand, focused on consuming the food and getting to bed as soon as possible. I was focused on my state: being hungry and tired. He could tell I was hurried, and probably wasn’t enjoying my slice very much. He also wanted a donation.

“Wow, wow, wow man, take it EASY, it’ll be there when you get there!” as he smiled. He was right, I almost coughed on the crust as I chuckled and slowed up.

I thanked him, extended a dollar bill, took my street newspaper and strolled to my car finishing the last, most enjoyable bites of the evening.

It’s time for me to settle in and trust that “it'll be there when I get there.”

Daily Dosage

2009-04-10T09:09:00.001-07:00

Everyone has heard the basics for daily healthy consumption:
8 hours of sleep
5 Fruits
5 Vegetables
8 cups of water (8oz)
30-60 minutes of exercise
and a healthy blast of sunlight for vitamin D

But what about your mind?

Sure, those things will set up your body to perform, your engine will run and the gas tank will stay full – but will you be happy?

I was joking with a friend that the best way to read the New York Times is to pick it up, peel of the front page – throw that away – and then continue on from section to section focused on finding your “Daily Dose of Optimism,” because everyone knows, it’s not in the headlines of 2009.

What constitutes a D.D.O.?

Well for starters – try to avoid stories about the economy, climate change, species extinction, salmonella outbreaks, house foreclosure, the state of America: education, infrastructure, health care. The list goes on. I’m not suggesting you avoid these topics all together, after all, THIS IS the news. This is the world we live in. But honestly, the world we live in right now is DEPRESSING and if you don’t seek out a proper amount of optimism it’s nearly impossible to avoid losing hope.

So find something that excites you and immerse yourself. Flip to the sections about design, music, sports, art, fashion, puppies, babies, kitties and parfait (everyone likes parfait!) - ANYTHING that engages your mind without tearing your heart.

What keeps you afloat?

I’m not saying to stick your head in the sand, exactly the opposite. I still eat candy even though it’s at the top of the food pyramid, so should you seek out a laugh, a genuine smile, while the rest of these days are founded within harsh reality.

Sitting this one out

2009-03-19T22:51:00.004-07:00

You know that moment during action movies where the Hero looks at a pool of water with gasoline burning on top, takes a deep breath and dives right in, swimming beneath the rampage? Well, you can at least picture it right?

Taking a deep breath and pushing forward submerged beneath the danger in hopes of arriving on the other side unscathed. That’s how I felt about our economy.

For the longest time last fall I didn’t quite understand what was going on, but I pushed right through thinking “I don’t get it, but I’ll be fine, it doesn’t effect me directly.”

Well, no more.

I recently listened to This American Life’s episode “Bad Banks” in which they lay out the whole banking and fiscal crisis in beautifully simple terms. Beyond the clear explanation, what I appreciated most was this line,

“Maybe you’re thinking ‘I’ll just sit this news story out’ and I get that, I mean, I sat out Kosovo, missed it completely. I feel guilty about it, but I skipped it.”

Such a marvelous term “sit this one out” – cause it’s what you were taught as a kid. “Take a breather, collect yourself and then go back in” you’re encouraged as an adolescent. And that is was I secretly hoped to do during the opening months of this mess. Sit on the sidelines, let the adults sort out the mess and then I’d tune back in when there were solid, finalized facts to learn. We are often so inundated with news that it isn’t so much a question of if you will become overwhelmed, but rather when and how much news you will be able to consume before becoming submerged.

And so it was with this “economic recession.” I place that in quotes because it wasn’t until recently that I REALLY started holding myself responsible for understanding a variety of these terms.
• Recession
• Fiscal crisis
• Financial crisis (there’s a difference, apparently)
• Mortgage backed securities
• The Dow
• The S&P 500
And the list goes on…

While educational, this new knowledge exemplifies the reality that ignorance is bliss - at least for a while.

Back to the action hero analogy – I’ve finally come up for air, only to realize that the fire is still raging, we are all going to get scorched somehow, in some way, and that while it was silly to think we could swim past this mess, you can’t blame us for trying.

Good luck out there...it's brutal.

Why not?

2009-03-16T12:10:00.002-07:00

I am fairly certain that that is the motto for the city of San Francisco.

To be fair, I should back up.

Over the past few weeks I’ve enthusiastically attended several events that almost certainly were created with a sentence that began “Wouldn’t it be cool if…” From there the opportunities are endless, as are the options in SF.

For example:
“Wouldn’t it be cool if we threw a HUGE pillow fight downtown on Valentines day and everyone came?

To which someone would certainly reply with dismiss and doubt “Uhh, WHY?”
At which point someone would invoke the SF motto with bright eyes and a smirk: “Why not?”

Stumped. Alright, let’s do it!

How about a 500 person Grilled Cheese Competition in Dolores Park on a Saturday?
Say it with me now…”Why NOT?!” There’s no reason not to, which is totally the point.

Being an “if it feels good do it” type of city – makes for an amazing assortment of style and culture along each sidewalk.

So the next time someone asks you to do, help out with or attend something that sounds zany, don’t ask “Why?” Instead, motivate yourself with “Why the hell not?”

Does Design matter more or less now?

2009-03-12T09:35:00.006-07:00

Last night as the sun set through the window in my bathroom I saw this shadow and it made me wonder: As people look to spend less and pinch pennies, will design matter more or less?

Silhouettes are a classic way to appreciate form, but in this instance it made me revisit the Refill model. The whole "Buy one container, refill the contents" seemed like it was going to be huge for Sustainability, until it wasn't. (At least I don't think it's been, right?) Purchasing a whole new bottle is still relatively cheap, so why bother? Well now that price sensitivity has increased, might we have crossed the threshold where people finally care about the few cents they'd save by refilling instead of replacing?

And if we have then will they care more about the form of "The One" object if it was going to live with them for longer?

Might living in a recession return us to a period where we purchase considering longevity? Even if just temporary?

"Temporary Longevity" sounds like a conflicting term, but really it's just "delayed disposal." I refill an Ethos Water bottle because I don't want to throw out plastic bottles frequently, but I also don't want to hassle or stress about losing a Nalgene or Sigg. It's a compromise.

As we slow down consumption, even slightly, will people pay more attention to design details as object linger in our lives for longer?

I would hope so, but I work in design.

Marketers - The new Debbie Downers

2009-03-10T09:10:00.005-07:00

So this is what we have to look forward to?

The new age of advertising is upon us, marketing in a recession - and the party is officially over. Marketers and ad men are historic party animals. They ask us to imagine, to dream big and envision a better future (facilitated by their brand of course). But now they’ve put the keg away, mopped the floor and are asking us to consider how all this partying impacts the people around us. Thanks MOM!

Here is the bus stop outside my apartment:

A Chevron ad that reads "I will unplug stuff more."

And another one around the block:

Tylenol presents this yawning guy who apparently "Had an afternoon latte." The bottom copy informs us that "Daily choices affect how you sleep"

Wait a minute…Chevron is asking me to use less energy and Tylenol is giving me tips to avoid…Tylenol? WTF? Now wait a minute. Chevron, I know how this works, because you taught me! You’re supposed to reassure me that I can continue to churn through energy and you’ll lead me to a “Brighter day” or something like that.

And Tylenol, oh Tylenol, you party animal – you’re my saving grace, my silver bullet – you ALWAYS get me out of a jam. “Stayed out late partying and need to get a good night’s sleep? Take two of these!” I look to you for a way out, a quick fix! Not sage advice. Damn you Tylenol, I thought we promised each other we’d never grow up!

Fact is, these days we all need to be more conscientious, I’m just not sure I’m ready for marketers to begin leading me toward responsibility.

Online addiction

2009-03-03T22:08:00.003-08:00

I haven't been blogging much recently...and I know why. I have an addiction to the Internet. Well, not the whole internet exactly, and not:

Gambling
Porn (wouldn't that be awkward to announce on a blog?!)
Photos of kittens
Multi-player Role Games, or MRPGs

No, I've become completely and utterly addicted to the Netflix "Watch Instantly" feature. It's not even fair. So much content. No commercials. The click of a button. And the worst offenders? Tv season series'.

Sit down and watch the trailer for a new show and before you know it you're checking to see how many follow-up seasons they've filmed, reading fan blogs about the characters and insider tips about if and when they might begin filming again. If this isn't addiction I don't know what is. I find myself ending conversations with the thought "ooh, I can get in an episode before I go to bed." I've stayed up so late many nights that any plan of running in the morning before work is abandon completely. I've watched 1 episode before bed, decided to follow it with a 2nd and then finally shut the laptop after 5. It's sick really....in such a good way.

I don't mean to make light of addiction, honestly, but it is a eerie feeling when you can sense yourself making decisions that go against your best intentions. Like right now: I've successfully blogged this evening, goal accomplished, but going to bed early? That's going to have to wait until after one last episode...

Authentic sounds

2009-02-20T16:07:00.003-08:00

Turn That Up

I don’t write about music much because I don’t know much about it. But, in the interest of sharing I thought I’d mention what I’m Turning Up these days.

I read an article in Time recently about how almost every artist these days corrects his or her tone and pitch with computer programs and mixers. There is one algorithm in particular, Auto-Tune, that makes the process so easy it’s apparently irresistible. Some people in the industry feel this is leading to lazy recording because it eliminates the need for multiple takes. Why retake when you can simply correct? Well while programs can correct for pitch, they can’t infuse emotion. Musical inspiration isn’t documented on a scale, it comes from the gut, from the quivering of a voice or ripping of a guitar cord.

The week after reading this article and wondering what had come of natural, human, flawed and beautiful performance I heard the music of Lykee Li.

Listen hear to a real performance.

I love this video because it’s the antithesis of perfect pitch and correction. Shot in one take (a style I think I’ve seen more of recently...right?) it exposes the raw talent and beauty of her voice, embracing all its imperfection.

So Turn That Up and tell me what you think.

Times are a changing...

2009-02-20T15:59:00.002-08:00

Last week I spent a few days in Telluride with friends and it was surreal.

It wasn’t the beauty, wealth or grandeur that I found so overwhelming. I was struck by the juxtaposition between our physical surroundings and psychological climate. As we sat around a large wood table settled in luxury we should have been dreaming large for the future. In generations past I imagine we would have dared to fantasize about our own future vacations homes, possibly brainstorming where we hoped to “weekend” as adults. Instead we collectively contemplated what actions we would take, and in what order, if forced into unemployment. Debates that would have focused on the relative merits between weekends at the beach or in the mountains were instead spent hashing out the trade-offs and sacrifices necessary to survive in the current economic climate.

How long could you live without a job?
What would you cut first?
Could you move home? Would you go insane? After how long?
How little income could you subsist off of?

These are questions each of us had contemplated individually at some point and it felt good to speak them aloud, think collectively and challenge each other’s assumptions.

One point that we could agree on was that it helps to remember what it’s like to live on very little. Only a few years ago our salaries were completely entry level. It’s good to remind yourself that even a massive pay cut would leave you someplace that you’ve already been. It forces you to re-examine the lifestyle adjustment and question necessity. In some cases down scaling isn’t easy, but in others you just have to think back and remember when you did without because there wasn’t any other option.

The bottom line is no one has been here before – it’s all difference and changing rapidly, but discussing it with friends in an honest and humble manner was comforting. At least momentarily.

1 month!

2009-02-03T21:37:00.007-08:00

Today marks the 1 month anniversary of me landing here in CA.

A friend of mine mentioned that in college in New England, when it got REALLY cold, he and a friend would look up the weather in Palo Alto and say "well, it's still perfect there..."

Now I work in PA and I can report, it is perfect. I find myself walking between buildings and stopping myself like "Oh my god! It's so nice out today!" And then I remember, it's always nice out here.

This photo was taken in the alley way between buildings. All companies should own more than one building because it feels good to go outside during the day. Even if you don't go out for lunch, at least you leave the one single space during a workday.

One of the other largest differences in my days is the commute I now travel to and from PA.
It takes me 10 minutes to drive to the train stop, find a spot and walk to the platform.

From here I step onto the train for a 32 minute ride. I really enjoy the train because it automatically builds in time to think, read, write or talk with coworkers. As you can tell, my blogging has increased rapidly as I've had time to sit and think. I'd often show up to my last job at 9am sharp, but because of my short commute I wasn't ready to think about anything strenuous for 20 minutes or so.

And finally, on my return trip I am reminded at the staircase each evening that I am one of many people taking this same journey, waiting patiently and compromising to make the commute in an orderly fashion. That was another thing I missed in my last job: contact with people. While the crowd on the Caltrain from SF to silicon valley isn't ordinary, it's still enjoyable to feel in contact with other people each day.

So far living here has been everything I imagined it would be, which was the point.

I have so much more to see and do, but for 1 month I'm off to a solid start.

Optimistic advertising

2009-02-02T23:18:00.002-08:00

I'm clearly bias because I'm a huge fan of W+K's work ever since I interned there in '05, but I can't help but enjoy the optimism inherent in a Career Builder ad posting during the current recession. While it seems everyone commenting on advertising was saying that it's a year to "play it safe" and not take too big a risk because consumers are "afraid," CareerBuilder has the gumption and optimism to suggest the simply truth that if you hate your job maybe everyone will be better off if you look for a new one. Amazing advice.

I was disappointed in this year's ads, mostly because they weren't memorable. We're in a recession, true. We're afraid for the economy, yes. But we haven't lost the desire for emotion, humor and inspiration! Companies sell consumers short because their scared not because people can't handle it. Oh, you say, the ads that ran were "focused tested" at great length? Great. Well apparently those tests surfaced the the content that was least bad, not most worth remembering.

Does anyone know what the storytelling mechanism that's used in this ad is called? Where one line builds off the next while repeating each previous line? Does it have a name? I'm thinking of the 12 Days of Christmas and a Jewish Passover song ("that my father bought for two zue zin (sp?)) as using a similar melodic method.

So thanks Career Builder for being one of the few companies to address the recession head on.

We make the rules aroud here!

2009-01-31T11:42:00.001-08:00

I suppose this is one way to get the party started...

SF is accepting

2009-01-31T11:19:00.002-08:00

What Mandy and I found on the sidewalk yesterday...

We didn't indulge, but it's always nice to know it's an option.

“I think that …”

2009-01-28T09:16:00.003-08:00

I stopped writing that phrase in 10th grade. It felt perfect for my 15-year-old voice. It hedged, reduced and disclaimed my opinions perfectly.

“You don’t have to say ‘I think’ because we already know it’s what you think, you’re name is at the top of the paper!” exclaimed my teacher. “That makes a lot of sense” I remember thinking.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Yesterday a friend called with genuine concern. She was worried about my blog.

She informed me that although she understood what I mean when I post – because she could hear my tone – she feared that people who I’ve never met might not.

“I’m afraid people might think you’re an ass” she stated bluntly. I was quiet. “I’m sorry” she followed, “I don’t want to hurt your feelings, I just want you to know.” I told her that I appreciated the perspective, because I do.

Recently another friend asked me “Who do you want to read your blog?” To which I pondered and mumbled “uhhh, I’m really not sure.” When I began posting in May my hope was to flesh out thoughts, to float ideas. I knew I needed to churn out more thinking and commit to completion. Blogging is inspiring because it forces you to commit, to click “Post.” You can always go back and edit, but you’ve at least temporarily committed.

As I began sharing my blog address and feeding it into my Facebook profile I received more reactions and hits without ever stopping to think about who I was talking to – who my audience was.

Recently reactions have increased. One friend saying she thinks I come off as an ass is offset by another saying he loves hearing my thoughts. Neither is “correct,” each is entitled to their opinion. But how do I want people to think of me? Who do I want to speak to? These are all good questions I need to think through more thoroughly as I continue posting.

My friend’s concern was that when I make statements I sound as if anyone who disagrees is an idiot. That is never my intention. When I recently wrote the “5 Rules for Work” I meant them more for myself than anyone else. I needed to crystallize guidelines for success in my new job because I frequently lose focus of those principles.

What I won’t do here is hedge, diminish and qualify my thoughts by constantly stating “I think that…” because if someone is reading my blog that should be self-evident.

My hope is that anyone reading these posts - you - will understand that I don’t feel superior, I’m simply making statements into the Internet void and seeing what sticks, what feels right and what other people think.

Does that make sense? I’m genuinely curious.

Barack is connected just like me!

2009-01-26T16:26:00.003-08:00

Last Thursday it was announced that Obama would be able to keep his Blackberry.

An article detailing the story in the L.A. Times is here.

Why have I been following this developing story? Why do I care how Barack checks his email?

Well aside from being a fan of the new Prez., I can relate to his desire for digital connection. He just moved to a new city and so did I. For weeks leading up to the 20th it was reported that he wouldn’t be allowed to use a personal Blackberry for security concerns and anxiety over matters of the public record. Everything our president writes while in office is potentially open to the public in the years following, and who wants “O.M.G. you looked SO cute in your suit last night and your dance moves were slammin’!” to make it into the history books?

But Barack won out in the end by arguing that his effectiveness as president was tied to his his handheld device. Without it he would surely be cut off from the variety of voices and insights that he values to make decisions. How can a man-of-the-people be cut off from his people? He has stated clearly that he uses it as a tool to seek additional input and perspective while on the go.

Although not the leader of the free world, my iPhone has a similar impact on my social and emotional connections. Without it I feel disconnected from my network of friends and family scattered around the country. It sounds dramatic, but it’s really just simple. There are people I don’t contact except on-the-go. There are friends who I’ll email on a whim, text to talk trash while at a stop light or call when I’m waiting for a train that I otherwise never make time for. I’m not proud that they don’t command my attention during moments of downtime, but they would understand. I am to them as they are to me. We are great friends living busy lives.

So, while my network is not filled with a “Team of Rivals,“ worldly scholars defining the country’s future, it is composed of the unique individuals who I love and respect to shape my own.

People who say Barack should outsource his networking to an aid clearly don’t connect as rapidly as he and I do. Over the holiday I mentioned to a friend’s father that I was comforted about my move to SF because of the friends I’d connected with on Facebook. To which he scoffed “I suppose it depends how you define the term ‘friend’!” Because he didn’t grow up in a connected culture he can’t experience the power of feeling rapidly connected and supported by a group of acquaintances. I explained that Facebook connections, like all quality internet resources, are just that, a rapid way to create, sort and share information. When you’re moving to a new city the more information you have the better you feel.

I’m sure Barack would understand. :)

Impact pain is temporary

2009-01-25T22:34:00.006-08:00

On Saturday night I went out on Height St., had a couple beers, danced and laughed with friends. I was out for maybe 3 hours, which would turn out to be the minority event of the evening.

I'd decided to bike to the bar, thinking it'd be fun, cheap and convenient. As I left my friends after the bar I was looking forward to the ride home - it's nice here in SF, often perfect biking weather. As I began cycling I thought consciously "be careful and alert, you don't know where trouble could pop up from." As I was nearly half way home I noticed that I was coming up on some trolley tracks and remembering my friend Anne's warning I swerved to cross them perpendicularly. Well...it turns out I didn't see the second set of tracks and without even sensing distress or fear I was suddenly sliding along the ground on my left side ala La Tour de France in July. I was shocked, but I popped up, dusted myself off and began walking rather than riding. A man yelled out to ask if I was alright and I thank and reassured him I was fine. It was only a block later that I noticed my left hand was bleeding and my right hand had ballooned up and begun to turn blue.

FUCK.

I was clearly in shock because the pain wasn't intense. I was embarrassed, frustrated and annoyed, but I continued walking the mile left to my apartment. Once returning home my roommate helped me carry my bike upstairs and his girlfriend encouraged me to visit the E.R. which is outside my bedroom window - closer than the health center was in college. I slipped on my sweatpants, got out my insurance card and headed sheepishly across the street, which is when the adventure truly began.

I don't know whether to recommend that you visit an ER between 2 and 5 am or warn you to forever avoid it, but I'll certainly never forget the experience. These are people I simply DO NOT encounter in my life. The medical staff was professional and kind. Service was slow, but friendly. The people I interacted with in the waiting rooms pushed my concept and understanding of my community to new depths. The number of languages I heard depends on whether your count gibberish and drunken. Swearing ensued as a random women without shoes demanded to be admitted and the begging for money was frequent. Overall I hovered through the experience in a numb daze. I wasn't drunk, the adrenaline walk had sobered my slight daze completely, but I wavered between longing to be released and absorbing my surroundings attentively.

By the end of the 3 hours I was in utter amazement at the conditions these doctors and nurses endure nightly. I couldn't do it and I respect them greatly. The elderly woman sitting next to me detailed her list of ailments to the nurse, including that she's has been HIV+ for 18 years. 18 years! Who even knew HIV existed in '91? Probably no one and that's why she has it. She should be someone's doting grandmother, but instead she is crying out to young nurses for a blanket to calm her chills and meds to ease her pain. My heart would break if I had to endure this nightly.

I walked back across the street at 5am, grateful that my hand was not broken and utterly appreciative for the warm bed awaiting me. Overall the experience was a sobering reminder of how lucky I am to be in solid health and how alert you must be to avoid the blunders that can quickly turn your life downward.
As you can see, the right palm is blueish-purple - but, being an impact wound it will heal much faster than any of the conditions I witness around me last night.

OH, and if you ever stop appreciating the value and convenience of your opposable thumbs, slam the meat of your thumb muscle against the ground at high speed and you'll stop...immediately. I've never considered how many daily actions require you to squeeze, turn, twist, pinch, push or pull.

Why Obama raked it in

2009-01-23T14:04:00.002-08:00

The morning after inauguration I started my day with shock and horror.

As I woke-up I received a text message, “Imagine if McCain had won…” A friend was aiming to reframe the general sense of euphoria into a context of true achievement. This day is certainly immaculate, but it is precious because of what it could have been. That is why it was so expensive.

Much has been written and marveled about the fact that Obama raised close to $780 million during the length of his campaign by tapping the “bottom of the pyramid” with “more of less” donations. The world of politics is forever changed and the world of non-profit fundraising is inspired.

“Imagine what is possible!” the development people are chanting from the rooftops. “The power of the masses is inspired to improve the world!” they say. “This is going to change everything” they hope. What the optimistic fundraisers aren’t acknowledging is the difference between a political race and a fundraising campaign. The first one ends with a winner and a loser, the second is simply a continuation of the status quo. However painful and distressed the world is, there is rarely a deadline when it could get markedly and immediately better or worse.

I donated to Obama’s campaign for a year because I was inspired, but also because I was afraid. You’ve heard it all before. I gave because I cringed at the thought of waking up on February 3rd to watch Obama concede to Clinton after Super Tuesday. I gave again because I couldn’t stand the thought of Obama being unable to finish building his coalition of organizers. And then I gave even more when faced with the prospect of our country being led by an angry old man and a naïve, arrogant mother of five. I gave because I was scared and because I believed this was a juncture for the U.S. to meaningfully recover or decline. My choice.

I want to believe that non-profit aid organizations can harness the positive energy of this “bottom-up” movement, but they haven’t grasped the time sensitive emotion necessary to get people moving. It all boils down to: what’s the difference between donating today, tomorrow…or never. Politics is a world of choices, intersections and divergent outcomes. Non-profits function – or give us the sense that they function – in a world of steady decline. “You need to help because things are getting worse?” But slowly…gradually….eventually.

Donation matching is one method of creating immediacy, but it’s still not enough because it doesn’t explain what I am building toward. A $1 million match? Well you already have a million dollars, why do you need more? The beauty of an Obama donation was you felt as though you were getting more than your money’s worth. Giving gave you a piece of something HUGE. It granted you entrance into a group much larger than yourself.

Giving to a non-profit makes you “feel good,” but it doesn’t instill a sense of Hope that change will actually result. Non-profit donations feel like holding the door open for a stranger – a nice gesture - while giving to Obama felt like tearing down the doors so that everyone can get in – a real change.
Honestly – I don’t know what the answer is, but I know that it has to tie individual action to group momentum and leverage competition, deadlines and fear of missing out in order to spur movement from the masses.

It's easier not to care

2009-01-20T22:31:00.004-08:00

As I was watching Obama speak to me this morning about the state of our country I was overcome with a sense of dread and responsibility. As the new President spoke to me as a citizen I realized that the last time I cared what my leader had to say I was in high school. I began to face myself and wonder: How much can I care?

That question is not rhetorical. Having spent my adult life despising the Commander-in-Chief I hardly remember how to care. Caring is difficult. Caring takes work and emotional toughness because everyday you care is a chance for disappointment.

For years, you said president and I'd say "Ughhh." And now, now I have to listen, to think and to consider carefully. And if I decide that I do care, that I do believe in what this man is saying, then what am I going to do about it? I have believed in Barack Obama since the first moment he told me that he was not the answer to our country's problems...I was. Gulp. "Uhh...okay Barack...that's uh...cool and all...but what do you mean? What does this 'change' you want from me require?"

And for months my answer was money. Month after month I gave cash and asked my friends and family to do the same. Giving money is relatively easy because it doesn't require time. It's essentially "buying" a president, and we all know how good Americans are at buying things.

Today is like the day my parents gave my little brother a guitar. Now it's time to play. I have no doubt that Barack is ready, but am I?

And so while today I was filled with Hope, I was also depressed. Today the Tomorrows of President Obama have arrived and I'm forced to face that America has been reduced to shambles. So tomorrow I have to figure out how to care.

It won't be easy learning to care again, but I hope that you feel the same way, because the only way that this is going to work is if we all do it together.

President Barack Hussein Obama. Today was a good day.

Blog Post Prototyping

2009-01-19T22:51:00.005-08:00

As the only writer of this blog I feel free to write, rewrite and correct anything I choose. None of these words are important enough not to be edited.

It's been called to my attention that my previous post - It's who you know-Lessons of the Elite - may have sent the wrong message, given the wrong impression and, in general, been less clear than I intended.

The point of the post was to explain that the job search process illustrated to me that I benefit from many privileges that I infrequently consider. I am a white male living comfortably. Too often people in my position are unaware of how privileged they really are. All I was trying to say was: I'm aware. I am no more important than anyone else. My privilege is a fortune for which I am deeply and continually grateful.

I don't need to justify myself to anyone, but when I learned that I may have offended others by speaking unclearly I felt it was worth clarification.

I believe anyone who knows me would clearly understand the context in which I was writing. But as Google Analytics illustrates, this blog is read by at least a few who don't know me.

So, thanks for reading.

Obama's People - process

2009-01-19T14:48:00.002-08:00

If you're interested in a photographer's perspective of thinkingaboutpeople, this Sunday's NYT magazine covers some of the important people in the new administration.

Click here to view

A wonderful gallery with an insightful audio recap of the process by the photographer and art director.

Talk to everyone as they are TODAY

2009-01-18T14:01:00.004-08:00

I was talking with my dad yesterday about a "healer" that he met who works with people to gain wellness and health in their lives. I'm not sure of his methods or techniques, but my dad mentioned his approach to understanding people on a daily basis, which I found inspirational.

"I try to focus on each person as they are Today, not how I remember them from yesterday or the days before. That way I'm paying close attention to the signals and messages they're sending me today and not being distracted by my memories of them from the past"

I find this technique inspiring because it demands that you constantly challenge your assumptions about the present. As humans we are particularly skilled at maintaining a working framework of the context and culture that surrounds us. But a clear understanding of the past may lead you astray when contexts have changed without your knowledge.

In my experience health professionals are particularly talented at this skill because they've learned that everything can change in a day. I used to walk into my chiropractor, sit down, shake his hand and he'd say "So your left hip is tight today huh?" Without any mention of my health he had made this assessment by evaluating my gait as I walked to his door. His work began before I had arrived. The last time I'd seen him he'd worked on my right hip, but today is NOW and right now my left hip was aching.

So slow down, listen to people and think, "How are they today?"

Trolls, Haters and Meanies

2009-01-16T15:40:00.004-08:00

A months ago I wrote a post about being "Elite." Using the term loosely I meant it to mean that I've lived a privileged lifestyle, for which I feel grateful.

Someone, anonymously, out there in the Internets, felt that I needed to be cut down and decided to leave a comment on my post weeks after it's release:

"Anonymous said...
News Flash: Tufts is not elite."

This comment amused me to no end. In the Internet this is called "Trolling" - people roaming the web looking for constant ways to upset others, throw them off their game or get a rise. So firstly, someone felt I was worthy of trolling, which is kinda funny, even flattering.

Secondly, they missed the point. Nothing like watching someone try and fail to cut you down. Whether or not Tufts is preeminent is up to the Princeton Review. I don't particularly care. But whether or not it's one of the most resource rich and selective schools in the world isn't a question. Attending any 4 year private institution with even a marginally low acceptance rate places you in the minority, which is why - if you read the post - I was saying I feel lucky.

I love to picture a Trollish person sitting at their computer, in the dark of course - a basement somewhere - chuckling to them self "This'll REALLY burn 'em up!"

Sorry Trolly, it amused more than angered.

Better luck next time...

The 5 Rules for work

2009-01-15T09:27:00.004-08:00

Where I work there aren’t many “rules,” but if you want to get somewhere it’s probably best to outline the “guidelines” “principles” or “best practices” that generate good work. But those are all corporate euphemisms – gross – these are The Rules.

#1 – Show up to work
Seems obvious, but if you don’t, you’re going to go nowhere. You shouldn’t always show up at The Office. Show up wherever works best for you, and show up to work.

#2 – Think it through
Whatever you’re doing, blow it out; think it through to the end. It won’t be right the first time, so get there quickly and figure out what you forgot, how it could be better and what could be taken out.

#3 – Don’t wait for someone to ask you
People who wait are always left waiting. Once you think it through, figure out where it’s going and go there. Start down the next path to see if it makes sense. Then begin again.

#4 – Say all of the obvious things first
Get it ALL out, the assumptions, the basics and the silly truths. Much too frequently people head out without being aware of where they started or talk to others as if they know they’re in the same mental space. Also, sometimes the Answer is so fundamental that you know it from the beginning. But you still do the work. You can’t be sure without working it through.

#5 – Focus on the answer and your To-Do list at all times
That sounds like having both at once, which it is. Focusing on The Answer is imperative because it’s the whole reason you’re doing the work. Focusing on your up-to-the-minute To-Do list is what gets you there and ensures nothing slips by undone along the way. It sounds tricky because it is.

Which is more important? Both.

If you’re boss approaches you at any moment and ask “What’s the answer?” you should be prepared to answer.

There you go.
The 5 Rules to doing good work. I’m sure there are more, but I’m working on these for now.

Questions for prospective Design Thinkers

2009-01-12T23:44:00.007-08:00

A lot of people write to me with a simple premise: I want to do what you do, give me your thoughts.

I have a lot of them.

I am a Design Researcher - a Design Strategist - a Design Anthropologist - a User Centered Design Specialist - a Human Factors Specialist - a Designer. Call it what you will, but for me it all starts with people. Thinking about people is my passion.

A few questions:

Is this what you want to do, or is it what you are going to do?
I ask this question seriously. My belief is that you won't truly succeed in this field until it has become what you are determined to do regardless of the company, the client or the project. A lot of people think my job would be fun. People don't pay you to have fun, you pay them. You can have fun, but no one wants to hear about it when they're faced with difficult ambiguous questions to solve on tight deadlines. If this is what you're destine to do you'll reach a turning point where there is no looking back, when it's what you're going to do, that's when you begin to be employable.

When thinking about people, who do you see first, others or yourself?
This might sound like a trick question. It's not. I've know talented practitioners who work in both directions. Personally, I see others first. I see people do things and then I notice how I do them myself. I've worked closely with people who see people do things and are shocked, almost abhorred because they know how they do it so clearly that they can't imagine why people would do it any other way. The order is less important than the action. Notice. Watch. Listen. No, SERIOUSLY, notice, watch, listen. The only way to uncover valuable insights is by careful, thoughtful observation in one direction or the other.

More often than not, when someone tells me they want to do what I do I don't believe them. I trust that they want to have my job, but I rarely sense that they want to do the work. A lot of people want to do strategic thinking because they want to be heard. The talents I know want to do strategic thinking to do the work. Those are the people worth buying a beer to learn from.

What do you REALLY want to do?
In my case, I want to think about people and work to impact their lives.

That, to me, is the intersection of anthropology and design. Do you care about design? Don't answer to me, think to yourself, because if you don't, then this isn't the job for you. Maybe you "like" design, but are you determined to design? Please, think, and if you don't know, then learn more about what it means to design. It's taken me a long time to fully embrace the title Designer because it wasn't ingrained in my background. I've come to admire it as a personal litmus test.

Remember how I said I like thinking about people? Well that's not my job.

My job is to think about people in order to design. When I feel confident standing behind my work as a Designer I know that I am doing my job. When I am simply thinking about people it means I'm avoiding the toughest part of my job...translation. It's easy to see something, but what does it mean? It's also easy to come up with a meaning, but given that meaning, then what should the team do? See, it's not easy. But if it was easy then it wouldn't be fun.

So what do you want to do? Seriously, think about it. Until you have a good answer, you're not employable.

What are you GOOD at?
Write a list.

Free write for pages if necessary.

Blow it out fully in your own mind first because until you know yourself it is unrealistic to expect others to understand what value you bring to their team.

The element of my job that people most underestimate is the level of "soft skill" it requires. Soft skills are, by their vary nature, difficult to quantify. And, in the absence of hard proof, many people believe they are talented. This is the most difficult question to answer: do you have it? Many people think my job consists of thinking hard, being smart and acting confident. Those are the flavors, not the ingredients. The outcomes, not the important elements. I have seen the most talented design thinkers I know ignored by people who felt they were smarter, faster or more confident. But when push comes to shove the work is done with talent.

The people I most respect just refer to having this talent as "getting it." They mean "getting people, getting design and being able to work with both." It sounds arrogant, but the people who really "get it" don't have to prove it every moment, because they can DO the work.

The moment you begin underestimating the level of skill this job requires is when you stop growing. Lack of growth leads to lack of passion, and then you're done. Be inspired by what you DON'T know. Find people who inspire you and pull it out of them. Notice, watch, listen. Then do this to yourself. Notice your actions, watch when you do your best work and listen to your quiet thoughts. These may indicate what you are good at.

Why do you want to work at ______ design consulting firm?
If you're answer begins with "fun," "enjoyable atmosphere" or "interesting" then you have some more work to do. If food, parties, travel, glamor or hipness are in your answer you might want to seriously reconsider.

Simply: it has to be about the work. It can't be about how you think the work might make you feel, or how the work might fit into your lifestyle. Remember, you're only going to be successful if you HAVE to do this. If you don't feel the driving desire to do this work no matter what it takes, you might get a job, but you won't do great work, and you will likely move on quickly.

This profession is not a stepping stone. Entertaining that idea will keep you from doing the work. The reality is that this industry is no greater than the work that it requires and the people who succeed truly enjoy that work.

The reason I ask why you're interested in ______ design consulting firm is that there are MANY firms out there and people often narrow their focus too quickly out of brand lust. I have been fortunate. Working at Continuum and now IDEO has been a dream, but I found other, less prestigious options in case these didn't work out and they would have provided work, which is what's important. Remember, it's about the work, we're clear on that right? :) I just started at IDEO and I am ecstatic, but I worked for 3 years between the 1st and 2nd time I applied. When I began at Continuum I never imagined I would apply to IDEO again. I couldn't. You can't think that way. Continuum's work is premier. You don't go there to get somewhere else. You go there to do real work. Work that lacks passion is easy to spot.

I understand, everyone is competitive. But for what? If your heart is set on doing the work then you can be fulfilled on projects many places. If your heart is elsewhere, then that is something you have to face first.

Where do you want to go?
I have a lot to learn. In order to do so I have constantly aimed to surround myself with the most talent possible. Many people are threatened by talent. I find that unfortunate because it is the only thing that has ever helped me grow. Think about it, what helps you grow and where do you hope to progress?

Many people I know are limited by their own ambition. They strive for so much that it's easier to try nothing and avoid failure than try and not succeed. Failure is good, embrace it. I have learned that it is the foundation of good design.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Those are my thoughts for now. If you read this, do the personal thinking I suggest, and still want to ask me questions I'd be more than happy to talk. Just remember, no one can get you where you need to go. Others can ask questions that open your eyes, but you have to do the work. That's what it's all about right?

California

2009-01-11T23:18:00.007-08:00

I've lived in California now for 8 days, and well...it's amazing.

The previous post was melancholy, and a little too serious for my taste. I still feel those emotions, strongly, but this was never intended to by my forum for personal catharsis and ambling. That type of blogging doesn't particularly interest me. When I feel things, I tell people. I talk, sometimes too much, to think things through and feel them thoroughly. Luckily I have friends here to talk to, because if I didn't I'd be pretty depressed. Friday for instance, I walked around the city for 3 hours, it was beautiful, the sites were intriguing, and I was...lonely. I don't walk around for hours alone. It's not my thing.

Saturday Anne taught me "The Wiggle" - which is the local bikers method for traversing the city without straining up hill. If in doubt: 1. Turn if you're about to go up hill, and 2. Follow the other bikers, which there are many of around my neighborhood. Did I mention it was 65 degrees with a comfortable breeze and clear blue skies? DAMN!

People say it will be "terribly cold during the summer" - boohoo I say. I'll show you terribly cold, Boston in the winter. All of this leaves me with quite a few jackets - down, canvas, and fleece - that won't be getting nearly as much use.

The 1 thing I'm interested to experience is that people say you lose Time here in California. Not minutes or hours, but months and seasons. They say you'll see someone and be unable to recall when you last hungout together because there isn't the visceral "feel" to the previous occasion. You can't deduce when it was based on whether it was hot or cold, sunny or cloudy, because those elements supposedly come intermittently throughout the year here. I'm fascinated by the recollection of time, so I'll be excited to feel how this affects me.

To anyone who reads this: I miss you. I've been feeling that a lot recently. I had hoped that during these previous 5 weeks of unemployment I would have captured more, but as it turns out I spent the entire time living and very little time reflecting. This blog isn't about Me, it's about thinkingaboutpeople, and my thoughts have been too fleeting and disparate to record.

I start work tomorrow at IDEO and I'm excited. That, I know, is a good thing.

Fly over states

2009-01-04T22:36:00.004-08:00

I've heard the term before, meaning the Conservative states that Democrats literally fly over to get to the places they love, but yesterday as I flew 2,700 miles from Boston to San Francisco on a one way ticket it really sunk in - my heart is split bi-coastally.

And as I collected my bags I was pleased to be welcomed by Gavin, it was a small gesture but it made me smile. I'm not sure what it means to be part of the "community" of a city. I lived for years in Cambridge, MA, but since I didn't own land, I didn't pay property taxes and never felt entrenched in the daily happenings of the community. And yet, even soaked in the sun on this January day, I am deeply sad about all that I left behind in Boston. The whole point of this move, this transition, was to shake things up and break myself out of the routines that I'd lived in and grown accustom to, some for close to 8 years.

That was the "idea," but yesterday was the Day. I've had very few 1 way tickets in my life, and each is marked with significant emotion. The airlines should know this. They would be well served to in some way "embrace" their customers during 1 way journeys because odds are some pretty heavy life shit is taking place. I'm a hugger, I'd take a hug for sure.

I feel fortunate beyond words to be able to leave a city struggling with deep sadness and nostalgia. So often I hear of friends moving too late, after the experience has turned and the memories are sour. I would love to live in Boston this month, this winter, this year, but at some point, the indeterminate time frame, the unknown number of tomorrows laid out ahead of me became too much to bear. I...just...wasn't...quite...getting...there, if you know what I mean. I wanted more, and when I realized that I essentially had it ALL, all the pieces that make life wonderful, it dawned on me that it was simply time for something new. Sometimes CHANGE - as we heard so frequently in '08 - is exactly what you need.

I will always love the Northeast and I will actively avoid the temptation to be the guy who clings to the past and won't stop going on about "when I used to..." Because we all carry experiences that shape our present reality, no matter the former region.

I love Boston - and I'll visit again for sure - but for now I'm feeling a bit homeless because while my emotions linger there and my dreams are slowly forming here in SF, my heart is stretched thinly over that 2,700 mile gap. I'm straining to create a future that is affected by the success, happiness and reality of my past.

It sounds dramatic because it feels dramatic. I'm sad, but excited, what comes next is what I've been yearning for...

Snow in PDX

2008-12-24T17:28:00.005-08:00

Snow in Portland (PDX) is really quite cute.

The white stop drops, people stare up in amazement - I'm surprised they don't drown like chickens - and then they run indoors screaming, not to come out for days at a time.

Why? You might ask? Well, it's cause in Portland they don't plow. The...snow...just...sits. And until it melts it's as difficult to get around busy streets in Oregon as it is to get to backwoods cabins of NH or VT.

Which made me realize that snow days are like sick days. In Oregon, a snow day feels the same as when you start to feel achy and sick so you decide you're going to stay home, stock up on movies and OJ and make a day of it. It's an event. A celebration on inability.

In the Northeast, when it snows, it feels similar to coming down with the flu during finals. No excuses. Plow that shit aside. Sure it's now brown, ugly and depressing, but we've got life to live, babies.

I can feel PDX beginning to get anxious, and if Xmas weren't tomorrow people would be beginning to get all self righteous "I have important things to do!" Oh really, look at you, Mr. Big Important Man.

Well, for now, living through the biggest snowstorm in 40 years has been wonderful.

It's who you know - lessons of the elite

2008-12-09T09:01:00.006-08:00

I recently got a new job. It took 7 months from beginning to end and completely reaffirmed a long standing truth: Who you know matters most*

I've placed an asterisk * next to "most" because debating the relative importance is equivalent to debating the value of different systems in a car: "Which is more important, the engine or the wheels? What about the gas? It doesn't get going with gas!" It's pointless.

By my count I communicated with or received help from 13 people in the process of getting my new job. Not a single one of those people works in HR. I didn't send a single email to "jobs@companyXYZ.com." Come to think of it, I never have.

When I grew interested in Google, I called a friend. Same with Facebook, IDEO, Apple, Jump Associates, Frog Design, Stone Yamashita Partners and the list goes on. I didn't apply to all of those places, because I didn't have to. I was able to understand whether or not those companies would be a good fit for me (and me for them) simply by contacting people I know, and people they know, and in one case, people they know.

And at some point in this job search, as emails were being exchanged, phone calls were scheduled and meetings were arranged, it hit me - I am completely and utterly elite. I went to private school and attended Tufts. I knew I was privileged, I have all my life, but this was elite.

Sure I work hard, people like me, I'm pretty smart and I do good work - but the majority of the time that's not what gets your foot in the door. I know people. And the people I know know people.

It was fascinating to be going through this experience in the middle of a presidential election as Republicans were forcing down my throat the notion that "In America, anything is possible if you stop being lazy and work hard." I'm offended by the assertion that less fortunate people simply don't "work hard enough" because it completely neglects the inherent system of privilege and promotion in America.

I don't support government aid programs because I feel like I might end up on food stamps, I do so because I know from the moment I was born there was an insignificant chance I would EVER need them, because of privilege.

I believe in the American dream, that people can work hard and lift themselves up to new heights. I just wish people would reflect more frequently on what got them where they are and be more appreciative of where they started.

What's the saying? "He was born on 3rd base and thinks he hit a triple"? You may not have been born on 3rd, but I know I at least started on 2nd and I wish more people would admit they didn't begin at home plate.

Ohh, Britney

2008-12-08T05:40:00.006-08:00

Yesterday morning I watched Britney Spears: 4 the recrd, cause that's just the kind of thing you do on Mondays when you're awake and unemployed.

First off, the name: 4 the recrd it's genius. What would look like a simple omitted vowel to some, is in fact a "F you" to adults. It's a way to tip off teenagers that this isn't your mom's 60 Minutes interview, this is for real.

And you know what? I loved it.

When you're Britney in 2008 you've tarnished any hope for titles like Respectable, Artist, Star, Phenomenon, all you can hope for, to aspire to, is to come off as human. And she does. It's odd to say that Britney feeling human is an achievement, but after all she's gone through, all that we've gone through with her, it's a success. You remember the head shaving incident right? The umbrella? Uncountable DUIs? I'm not going to hash through history, but it's been exhausting to be her, even to watch her.

I've been a fan of Britney since Hit me baby one more time. The fact that she was going to be a star was undeniable. Watch it again, seriously. Also, it's been a decade (Oct '98...yeah) since that came out, so the fact that we're still talking about her is remarkable. Part of the reason I love her so much is that, for my generation, there is only one Britney Spears. Past generations had Madonna, Michael Jackson, Elvis or the Beatles. But if you're in your 20's she is your pop icon, whether or not you acknowledge it. To prove it, watch Piece of Me her '07 hit, it illustrates this point perfectly. The fact that she is our star is undeniable. You may love or despise her, either way you can't debate it, it's just a truth, like gravity.

Watching Britney over the 65 minute documentary - for which cameras followed and interviewed her over 60 days - you get a strong sense that she is as real as someone could possibly be given her life experiences.

Interviewer: "Do you know that your life is weird?"
Britney: "It's all I've ever known, so it doesn't feel weird."

That is weird. By the end I felt like I was watching a girl in her mid-20s who tries a little too hard, has a better image of herself than do others, is playfully insecure and says that she's "grown up a lot" - which pretty much makes her indistinguishable from half the girls I know my age.

Lastly, I'll leave you with Womanizer, cause, well, she's Britney and you won't be disappointed.

Oh, this is about YOU?!

2008-12-05T12:10:00.005-08:00

Yup, still sitting on the same couch, in case you were wondering.

I was thinking about people and realizing that the most interesting part of leaving my job was observing the different ways that people reacted.

You had the Friendly-Jabbers - ("Quitter" and "Oh yeah, well you're fired!") which I appreciate, cause they show that they care.

The Genuine Handshakers - they come by, quietly wait and offer an affectionate handshake and an under spoken "Good luck."

The Yankee Hater - some of my favorites. A variation on the Friendly-Jabbers, but with specificity and emotion. I got this in passing, under his breath, from one of the nicest men I've ever met. "Well played" I thought.

The How-Dare-You!s - which crack me up, but genuinely make me smile. They say it to my face, so I know that they care.

The Ignore and Say Nothing - which I find odd, simply because I always engage people, so to say nothing seems strange. But I don't take it personally.

The How-Could-You behind my back - this one is the one I find most interesting. Continuum is a very kind place, but I have heard inklings of someone being pissed and saying so to others. I find this most fascinating, because, as much as I try to make sense of this reaction, to explain it based on my actions, it always comes back to them. If you are angry, betrayed or pissed off because I left my job to go to the competitor, you need to step back and realize that this has NOTHING to do with you. As my mother would say growing up when people got mad "OH, I guess you think this is about YOU?!" Which is to say, shut the fuck up, step back and think about what you're saying. Somehow 140 other people were able to get avoid this reaction, so where exactly do you come off?

People take things personally. I get it. Actually, people have been so kind I think I'm looking for an argument out of interest. I kinda want to get into it with someone. Maybe it would be cathartic? Who knows, but it might be interesting.

Unemployed

2008-12-04T07:55:00.004-08:00

I almost feel bad saying I'm "Unemployed" as people are getting laid off and the economy is in recession, but fuck it, I'm sitting at home on a Thursday watching SportsCenter for the 3rd time, wearing the same shirt as yesterday and eating Cheerios.

Life is good.

I do have a job lined up, but it's on the other side of the country, at a new company, and it doesn't begin for 5 weeks.
5 weeks off in winter? Feels like winterbreak! This is the way life SHOULD be.

Slow Blogging

2008-12-02T07:39:00.002-08:00

As a result of my last post I discussed blogging with a few friends whose thoughts I really appreciate. Some agree, some disagree slightly, but everyone generally feels it is what you make of it, and you shouldn't do it for others.

It's already a week old, but I loved this article in the NYT last Sunday about "Blogging at a snail's pace." And the best part for me was that they quote a man, Russell Davies, who's blog I read constantly. Seeing someone in the NYT who's blog your read is eerily like seeing a friend in the news. I was excited, I read the article carefully to take it all in, I stopped short of cutting it out cause, well, I don't actually know Russell. I have emailed him about blogging a few years ago, but we've never met. I have seen his son grow older, gotten to know his hobbies, even read his wife's blog about being a mother of a young boy in England. She stopped blogging, so I stopped reading, but while I did I enjoyed her thoughts.

Overall, I think too much is made of the significance of each blog. The voices (news, TV, blogs) all want blogging to either be The Answer to life's communication issues, or the devil waste of time and indulgence. It's neither. It's fun. You should do read and write if you're interested, and if not, then you should go off and find something that does compel you.

Reflection on Blogging

2008-11-20T12:03:00.003-08:00

I sent out the link to my blog to my entire company at Continuum so they could read more of my thoughts if they chose to after they read (or just deleted) my resignation letter.

In response I received this post-it:

It says:
"Dear Peter,
Blogging is for old people.

(heart) Rose + Sean

see appendix for explanation"

When I asked Rose where the appendix was she promptly informed me "in my mind..."

Burn.

So am I upset, reeling from being called out for being uncool? No.

See, the irony of the message is that BOTH of the caring senders have blogs of their own. That's right, they appreciate the forum of blogging as much as I do. So why make fun of me? I'm guessing it was for my self promotion indicated by including the link to my blog at the end of my farewell email.

It's one thing to stand in an auditorium and speak your mind in order to think through your thoughts. It's another to plan on doing so and announce to the cafeteria at lunch "So I'll be speaking my mind in the auditorium this afternoon if anyone would like to listen." The first is cathartic, the second is obnoxious and uncool...like old people.

Regional Retribution

2008-11-20T06:11:00.002-08:00

The New England region must have checked my schedule, realized I'm moving soon and rush ordered a batch of frost-biting cold.

I woke up this morning to 25 degrees, feels like 18 with wind. Is it MLK day? Nope, it's almost Thanksgiving...sucker.

But, as I realize there is an end in sight I experience all of this frigid weather through rose tinted lenses. As I fumbled around for my running tights before putting on my contacts I couldn't help but smile. I'll be living in N.E. for 6 more weeks and I actually hope that I sneak in a snowstorm before I go. It almost seems like a novelty considering.

So go on Cambridge, give me your best New England, I'll still love you no matter what you throw at me.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
PS - I should point out that I find the notion that the weather has ANYTHING to do with me personal actually pretty self-indulgent and annoying, but for the sake of this blog I find it amusing. I won't discuss it here, but I find comments like 'Oh, it WOULD rain on MY birthday!" to be the most annoying types of self-centered.

Neighborhood Retribution

2008-11-19T10:58:00.003-08:00

If you live in Boston you get pretty used to parking tickets. My mother even told me when I moved out here: "ohhh Boston, I left that city with more parking tickets than my car was worth!"

And yet, I've avoided to getting a ticket for over a year. I've looked at signs, paid meters and remembered street sweeping.

And then I announced I was leaving Boston. And I've accrued $70 worth of fines in 2 days.

Monday I woke up to find out that my "perfect spot" that was sorta illegal, and by that I mean just over the line, was going to cost me 30 bucks.

On Tuesday I went to dinner in Inman Square. I parked on the street 5 ft. away from a fire hydrant, figuring that was plenty of space. I came from dinner to find a ticket...for the hydrant I thought, fired up and ready to protest. Only to find out the ticket was for "No sticker/permit" "What?!?" I exclaimed incredulously. Then I looked closer...Somerville.

Turns out that I was about 100 ft from the Somerville/Cambridge city line. BAM! $40 down the drain. Just when I thought I was going to escape these cities recently unscathed, they team up for a tag-team ticketing.

It's the classic "Oh, F me?? Oh, no, no, F YOU!"

All I can say is, well played.

Yankee Hater

2008-11-17T07:01:00.000-08:00

When I told my friend Nate that I was moving from Continuum to IDEO, he quickly and accurately summed it up, "So you're going to the Yankees, huh?"

He then offered to be the first to commemorate the moment in the tradition of Photoshop glory:

I hadn't taken the time to imagine my face on Johnny Damon's body, but there you go...thanks Nate.

Am I a creative culture cliche?

2008-11-17T07:00:00.000-08:00

Today I'm giving notice at my first job, Continuum, and beginning the transition to San Francisco to work for IDEO, a competitor.

As the reality of this move begins to settle in I've become self-conscious of the idea that I am in fact a massive creative cliche. I can hear the criticism:

Creative Hater - "Oh, San Francisco? Really?" me - "Yeah."

C.H. - "Oh, puu, puu, I bet you're going to live somewhere 'authentic' like the Mission." me - "umm, yeah."

C.H. - "And, don't tell me, you're gonna work somewhere..wait for it...'Innovative'!" me - "well, errr, yup."

C.H. - "You're moving from Cambridge to SF? Oooohhh, SO original, where else did you consider moving huh? Brooklyn? Berkeley? or...Portland?? Ewww" me - "Well...yeah...pretty much, I mean, why not?

C.H. - "Why not? Well....where's the edge? Where's the toughness? How can you break new ground in a city where everyone walks around in cultural construction gear? You're saturated Peter! UNoriginal! A hanger-oner! You cling to creativity because you're uncreative!"

me - "You have a point. But what if this is how I enjoy living? What if when the Republicans disparaged Obama as a 'Latte-sipping, arugula eating, NYT reading, educated elite' I thought to myself 'Mmm, that sounds nice. I'll have some of that.' Is that wrong?"

C.H. - "No, it's not wrong, just don't fool yourself into thinking you're special alright?"

me - "Alright, deal. And make sure to call me out and keep me real okay?"

C.H. - "Oh you betcha!"

Keep in mind that is the conversation that takes place in my head, it's not verbalized. Therefor, because the Creative Hater isn't embodied, I rely on all of you, the people I know and respect to Keep It Real and keep my perspective on life straight. I appreciate your help...

Yes. We. Can.

2008-11-13T22:01:00.005-08:00

It's been a week...and...honestly...I still don't know what to say.

Baracked the Vote

2008-11-04T13:05:00.003-08:00

Here's today's get up:

Notice the sticker?

Yeah, that's right, I got up and did it first thing. Actually, second thing. I went running first with my roommates. As we passed by the polling place I got so excited I couldn't help myself, I yelled out "New president, BITCHES!" I figured that way it was non-partisan. We're all excited to have a new president right? Both sides of the aisle? I mean seriously...

Here's my ballot...

it gets blurry at the bottom, but if you look closely you can see the good guys' names.

But also, in a moment of seriousness, please read today's NYT editorial about all of the horrible things that they Bush administration is attempting to shoehorn in before they leave.

It's a damn shame they've been allowed to run the country for this long.

Tomorrow is a new day.

Politics at work

2008-11-03T10:28:00.005-08:00

While I might ordinarily avoid being political at work for fear of potentially making people feel uncomfortable....I've decided this week say "fuck it" and go political EVERY DAY.

Today's

So tomorrow is clearly my "Barack the Vote" shirt (Thanks Christa) and then Wednesday is this shirt again...either in victory or defeat. I it will deserve to be worth whether it's covered in champagne from celebration or my own puke in disbelief.

In these last 48 hours I find myself feeling sad, because it's all coming to a head and it's UGLY. The levels of hate, anger and division are nearly as bad as 4 years ago and one of the core tenets of Obama's campaign has been the opportunity to push for a new type of politics.

Ideally, by the time I blog again this will all be decided and Obama will get the opportunity to walk the talk he's been talking for all these months. I truly believe in the man, but I watched a CNN profile this weekend that outlined just how quickly he has moved through each level of government. He's done it so quickly that he is susceptible to true criticism that he hasn't stuck around long enough to enact change or make tough decisions.

My hope, my belief, is that he will inspire our nation to take a hard look at itself and make the difficult decisions necessary to move forward into a new type of politics that avoids, or at least side steps the vast majority of hate and division we've experienced for decades. Is that overly optimistic? Probably. Would it be a beautiful site to see? Absolutely.

People are smaller than elephants

2008-10-08T09:27:00.001-07:00

On Monday night B&B Circus paraded their elephants along the Charles river into Boston for publicity to announce that "The circus has come to town!" And if the kid in you ever wanted to run off with them, seeing the line of elephants holding each other's tails with their trunks only inspired you more.

(Click on the photo to see more clearly) it was DARK, but the pachyderms were dumbfounding.

I'll never get over how small it feels to be human standing next to a large animal. It's a good reminder that without our brain we'd drop a LONG way down the food pyramid.

Undecided or Uninformed?

2008-10-08T08:11:00.003-07:00

I watched last night's debate, it went fine, enough's been said, done.

Then I watched a CNN segment interviewing a room of undecided voters giving their reactions and impressions from the debate and was blown away.

These people will DETERMINE the outcome of this election, and yet, they seem COMPLETELY uninformed. I get that many people are not as consumed by this as me, that's fine, good in fact because they are busy living their lives and making our country run. What I don't understand is how you can get all the way to a CNN studio without looking up some information before hand.
The most common comment is "the candidates didn't give enough specifics for me to trust them..." You want specifics? READ. They're online, they're in newspapers, they're on YouTube in speeches the two men have been giving for a YEAR.

The other comment that pains me was "They weren't telling me enough NEW ideas..." These two men are interviewing to RUN OUR COUNTRY. This isn't a brainstorm about new toothpaste flavors. Bubble gum-bacon! NO. Every idea, each position, nearly every word these men speak has been thought through in advance with the support of smart, smart people. As it should, cause this is serious shit.

I don't want to speak poorly of undecideds, I want to be respectful, but the impression I'm given is that they're undecided because they haven't done any of the work necessary to determine who should lead our nation. And that's fine, I empathize with slackers, but don't sit at the front of class raising your hand if you haven't done the homework. Don't speak into a microphone about your vote until you've taken a moment to read, watch and learn. Don't complain to the waitress that you don't know what to order until you've at least LOOKED at the menu.

Enough from me, I apologize for the exasperation.

Oh, and remember to register to vote.

Passionate decision

2008-10-07T15:36:00.003-07:00

As a rule I no longer play Fantasy Sports. For one reason: I'm much too passionate and optimistic.

Anyone who knows me knows that while I aggressively think with logic, I lead with emotion and heart.

So when people invite me to participate in Fantasy Sports leagues, as a friend did today, I've learned that I must graciously decline. For my own good.

You might ask "Why? You can play for fun, and compete with friends for kicks!" Well, first of all, I'm competitive. That's fine, a lot of people are. I've gotten over crying in the waning moments of losses, but I still care, sometimes too much. So I am competitive, but I am also an optimist, I know want I WANT to come true and I am consumed by it becoming reality.

My NBA Fantasy outlook for this upcoming season are:

Greg Oden = Rookie of the Year
D Wade - outshines Kobe for MVP (all while continuing his Charles T-Mobile ads)
The former Sonics, whatever their called, finish LAST and get booed for making sports decisions for business reasons
Yao Ming sets a record for blocked shots
Dwight Howard jumps so high on a dunk that he gets his shoelace caught on the rim
The Celtics make the finals
The Blazers OBVIOUSLY make the finals
The Blazers take down the C's in 7 and Garnett makes a speech on the Rose Garden floor about how he's always dreamed of being a Blazer and personally hands Oden the Championship trophy

So there you go. Someone please work out the odds of all of those events taking place and get back to me. If it's statistically likely than I'll gladly take part in a Fantasy League.

Tattooing mainstream

2008-09-25T07:25:00.004-07:00

This article in the NYT today discusses how tattoo on the neck and hands used to be off limits, so much so that many artists wouldn't do it, but is now becoming more mainstream. I find it amusing that there are places tattoo artists won't go. While they certainly have some discretion, they place ink under people's skin for a living so why do they get squeamish when it comes to more publicly exposed skin?

They'll ink an Eame's chair on your forearm, but they won't put a word on you hand or neck? I get it, it's likely to be a decision you regret, but still, I find the image of these tattooed artists being hesitant humorous.

My favorite quote though, which really hits the heart of the tattoo matter was this:

“At this point, though, it almost seems as if you’re more outside the mainstream if you don’t have a tattoo.”

I agree. Having a tattoo myself - which most people never see because it's on my upper thigh, only visible when I am in running shorts - I find that when I mention it to others, more often than not, they also have tattoos that I didn't know about it. So before you go and criticize those "tattooed alternative freaks" think about who's around you and whether you might be the odd one out.

NYT Op-Ed Columnist - Roger Cohen - Palin’s American Exception

2008-09-25T05:33:00.003-07:00

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/25/opinion/25Cohen.html?th&emc=th

The point isn't that we're not "exceptional," it's that we are, but SO ARE other people around the world, and sitting here believing that we deserve to succeed is what's leading our country downward quickly.

"The damn-the-world, God-chose-us rage of that America has sharpened as U.S. exceptionalism has become harder to square with the 21st-century world’s interconnectedness. How exceptional can you be when every major problem you face, from terrorism to nuclear proliferation to gas prices, requires joint action?"

Debate vs. Discussion - generate vs. evaluate

2008-09-24T14:58:00.008-07:00

"Do you enjoy debating?"

I've spent a lot of time discussing working styles with my coworkers recently and that was the question Chris asked me, which forced me to pause and think...what's the difference? Which do I prefer? The implicit assumption is that both are forms of discourse driving to generate better, more innovative, thoroughly analyzed solutions.

I realized that while I respect a good debater - for their eloquence, persuasion and posture - I believe that discussion is what creates actual progress and solutions, what allows people to share their thoughts, be creative and float half baked ideas for collaboration. I believe discussion creates the "new" while debate simply narrows to the "better." I find that people who prefer debate are working with some form of "Scorecard" either internal or external. They want to "Win" at a game that I am not clear even exists. "Win what? Who's scoring? For what?"

Assuming both people are working toward the same goal (not always the case) then why debate? To what end? Competition - the force that drives evolution and free markets - exposes the superior solutions, but only when the criteria is clear. Evolution = make babies. Free market = make money. So the next time someone challenges you to debate, take a moment to ask "To what end?" before you engage.

Ambiance

2008-09-20T12:16:00.001-07:00

Here is Sigir Ros on stage last night:

Their show created an aura of eyes-open awe that seemed to make everyone pause....listen....and enjoy the moment. It may have been the haze of weed in the air, but this was by far the happiest show I have attended. Not spastic OMG screaming happiness like J.T. Mellow, collected, peaceful energy that brought the crowd together. It also wasn't in English, so you could let go and stop thinking of things and just BE there and take in the music. I sounds like I was high, I wasn't. I was just really happy to be there and it felt like everyone else was also.

Objects and Graphics

2008-09-18T12:51:00.003-07:00

It turns out the difference between boys and girls is: Guys like Stuff and Girls like Pretty things. And they don't hangout together.

Yesterday I went to an event hosted by the local chapter of the AIGA - the society for graphic designers. It was an awesome show of music posters highlighting the intersection of style, artistry and promotional material. But while the posters rocked, what I was more surprised by was that I'd suddenly found all where all the female designers are in Boston.

Since joining Continuum 3 years ago I've been attending design events hosted by the IDSA - the society for Industrial Designers, and I've always been struck by just how many Dudes I was surrounded by. Surely not ALL design requires a Y chromosome. But it sure seems that way when you're surrounded by packs of male hipsters and enginerds.

Last night was nearly a complete inverse. Almost all female designers, almost completely in chunky glasses (maybe it's all that squinting at their screens.) I'm not judging, I'm just saying, I have a girl friend, but it doesn't take a genuise to figure out that we should host an event that combines these two societies into some alphabet soup "AIGDIDSA" and let the sparks fly.

Can you imagine how many hipster babies would be created from this combination? Host it at a DWR and you take care of 1) sponsorship 2) conversation topics and 3) pre-wedding registration!

I'm not eager to get into the matchmaking business, but this one seem too easy to pass up.

Apple Genius button

2008-09-17T07:59:00.002-07:00

A conversation from this weekend:

Me: Hey, Todd, have you used the Genius Button on the new iTunes? It's hott.

Todd: Yeah, it's nice, I like it cause it throws in random songs you wouldn't expect, like the Electric Slide.

Me: haha, yeah, that's what makes it cool.

Todd: And it's based on algorithms of people's behavior, although, I'm pretty sure the algorithm is set to always include the Electric Slide, cause it's a guaranteed hit.

Me: Sure is. So smart.

What are taxes for?

2008-09-17T07:01:00.004-07:00

I've found myself thinking about this question a lot recently because of the presidential election. Most recently a man I know, conservative, spoke out against Obama on his Facebook page because in his view Obama's economic policy is "Socialist." He posted an Op/Ed from the Boston Globe that opposed Obama's economic plan and commented:

"The guy is seriously out of his mind and completely left wing. I graduated with a BA in History and all of his talk is so far left and practically socialist that it boggles my minds that many Americans do not see through this guy or aren't starting to see through him more. Obviously those people who would benefit positively from Obama's economic plan don't see anything wrong with it but I certainly do. I look at it as, I worked my tail off to get through high school, college, etc. I took loans and pay taxes. With gas prices, the general cost of living, college loan interest increasing, it really frustrates me that I am supposed to pay more in taxes so someone else, who contributes nothing (via taxes) into our taxation system, can "be helped out because it's the right thing to do" in Obama's mind. Yet, through all of this, Obamanomics won't be giving me anything or helping me out. In fact, the tax bracket will probably be re-drawn and I'll have to pay more." - John McHarrie

My views are very different than this, and so I replied to him hoping to create a respectful discussion on the substance of his beliefs. My reply:

John,

I admire your passion for economics and political awareness, but I strongly disagree with your evaluation of the benefits of taxation.

You assert that "I worked my tail off to get through high school, college, etc. I took loans and pay taxes. With gas prices, the general cost of living, college loan interest increasing, it really frustrates me that I am supposed to pay more in taxes so someone else, who contributes nothing (via taxes) into our taxation system, can "be helped out because it's the right thing to do" in Obama's mind. Yet, through all of this, Obamanomics won't be giving me anything or helping me out. In fact, the tax bracket will probably be re-drawn and I'll have to pay more."

My question is, how do you judge whether Obama's plan would help you or not? Is your tax return your only measure? Surely there are more. What types of services and support do you believe are necessary to make America continue to succeed? You are right, you worked hard, took out loans, and will shortly graduate with a prestigious degree and a high salary. Would you like something more? How much taxation do you feel is fair? If someone makes 1 million dollars a year, is 30% taxation more fair than 40%? What about 50%? I ask sincerely, because although I want to understand where you are coming from, it is difficult for me to appreciate the idea that America's wealthy are struggling.

The people you refer to that don't pay taxes do so because the government has decided, our society has determined, that they are making below a "living wage" and cannot be asked to support more than themselves. Do you disagree?

While I am a passionate Obama supporter, I do agree that he shouldn't have used the term "neighboriness" because I feel it only abstractly articulates the benefit of taxation. I don't help others simply to be nice, I help them because I want to live in a society where people help each other.

I hope you can hear where I am coming from,

Peter

I believe that this type of discussion, meaningful, nuanced and specific, is critical to the health of democracy in our country. Unfortunately, this type of dialogue RARELY occurs. The majority of our words are spent (wasted) talking about "clinging to guns" "lipstick on a pig" and "I can see Russia from my state!" Those are not the issues that define define us, but we allow them to absorb us.

Prestige

2008-09-05T12:15:00.003-07:00

Over labor day I moved to a new apartment with my friends on Harvard St. That's right, HARVARD st. If you want prestige you can't get any higher. Yale? mehh. Princeton, pshhh. Maybe you want to jump the pond to Cambridge? huh? It's not even a question. My new zip code is 02138. Never heard of it? Well then I guess you're not reading the eponymous 02138 magazine for Harvard alum. In short, you're not prestigious enough.

This past weekend the undergrads arrived, mini vans, laundry detergent and all and I couldn't help but laugh at myself because as much as I hated to admit it, I was star struck. As much as I want to believe that anyone in our country can become a success, in reality I understand that if you're school zip is 02138 you're head start is so great the competition almost isn't fair.

So if you see me walking down the street (cobbled of course) with a slightly more bounce in my stride, it's because despite my best efforts I can't help but feel a little bit better about myself because of my new digs.

YESers and NOers

2008-08-26T13:20:00.003-07:00

I've been over thinking the content of this post. Putting it off for no real reason.

My new theory is that everyone you know (including you) falls into one of two categories: a YESer or a NOer. Does that capitalization make sense? When asked/invited/called upon to do something, your gut reaction is either "Yes" or "No."

I know, it's not a very profound theory, but I think it's helpful when analyzing people's spontaneous reactions. Which are you?

Here's how you tell:

Wanna go to a concert on Saturday?? I don't care if you're free, you don't even need to know who's playing. Before you thought about any of the constraints, what was your response? Yes, or No?

I often get into arguments with my roommate because I always want him to do things and he's always saying "No" so quickly that I know he couldn't have possibly considered the invitation. Instead, he starts with a preset of "No" and unless he can come up with a formal logical for why he SHOULD participate than he stays with his initial response: No.

The funny thing is that when I called him on this he was taken aback. He told me that he'd always thought of himself as a YESer and that he feels like he says Yes too frequently. I assured him that he doesn't because he often throws out weak, flimsy, pathetic excuses for why he can't come along. I realize I am assuming that he wants to come along in the first place, which is a safe assumption I believe.

So which are you? A YESer or a NOer?

"See that woman? DON'T LOOK AT HER!"

2008-08-14T06:42:00.002-07:00

I actively avoid boring conversations.

Yesterday I was walking down the street with Mandy when I saw a woman and her daughter walking towards me. I immediately knew who she was and knew that despite my obligation to approach her I was in fact going to lower my head and scram.

The woman was my neighbor. Not from Boston, from Portland, Oregon. We were 3,000 miles from where we met, a world away, "Oh my god what a coincidence!" and I had no, ZERO, interest in speaking to her. I hardly say "hi" to her when I'm home next door, why would I want to converse across the country?

You know those conversations you can think through entirely, you know the end before the beginning and you're already bored? Yeah, this was gonna be one of those, so I pointed her out to Mandy and then hightailed it down the block.

Apparently her daughter, who I remember as 9, is now 17 and looking at colleges. My mom informed me that our neighbor has been lamenting that "Tufts is as hard to get into as the Ivies!" To which I replied, "Yeah, tell her that's why I got rejected." As far as I'm concerned, if you're not willing to apply more than once you don't really want it.

Shirts OFF!

2008-08-12T19:20:00.003-07:00

On Saturday night I was hanging out with my friends, BBQing and drinking summer beers, all in preparation for Michael Phelps' attempt at his first gold medal.

Phelps got out well, was in control but in a close battle against a punishing 400 medley and in pursuit of the World Record. I should mention that Michael Phelps is an amazing physical specimen. As a heterosexual male I feel no embarrassment about calling out this seemingly obvious fact. He's a freak. Straight up. That said, when he's in the water it's a beautiful thing to behold.

And so, as he kicked off the final wall and barrelled down the final 50 we were all screaming at the television, willing him to gold. At this point, I'm not sure who said it, but the call was screamed out "shirts off!!" at which point all 5 guys whipped off their shirts and threw them at the screen.

And so as Phelps touched the wall, 1st gold earned, exhausted, world record obtained, with a pile of shirts laying at the foot of the TV.
We were proud to be American for sure.

Silent obesity

2008-08-11T15:05:00.002-07:00

The conversation I just had:

I'm sitting on the couch, working on my laptop:

KH: (mouth full, chewing) Hey! Did you see? There's PB&J in the kitchen! Nom, nom, nom"

Me: Yeah...but there's only white bread..meh"

KH: (mouth still full) "nom, nom, nom, who cares?! White bread is the best! nom, nom, nom"

Me: "ehh, no it's not, it has no nutritional value..."

KH: (still full) "nom, nom, nom, I know! It's like eating air!!"

Me: "uhh, no it's NOT! THAT is why America is fat."

death of the phone call

2008-08-07T12:53:00.005-07:00

This is how phone calls used to work:

You'd call the woman, tell her who you wanted to talk to, she would call your friend, tell them who was calling and connect you two. It was an event I can hardly imagine. So special! So much work! So much wasted time! Exhausting.

A call I made yesterday makes me nostalgic for this antiquated special event.

Yesterday I pocket called my friend Andy. I finished another call, pressed end, looked up and in the process I pressed his name and dialed a new call accidentally.

The thing that makes this irrelevant call so significant, is that Andy looked down, saw it was me and pressed "ignore." How great is that? He ignored my pocket call! The tradition of the phone call as an "event" has officially died the day that you can unintentionally call your friend and he can ignore you because he knows that it's not important. He can call you back another time, which he won't. He won't call back and you won't be offended, just like he wasn't offended to find out that you hadn't intended to phone him.

The phone call is dead! Oh, gtg, I just got a txt...

unfunding journalism

2008-08-06T14:42:00.006-07:00

I tried to cancel my subscription to the Boston Globe yesterday, but I failed.

I didn't even call. Couldn't make myself pick up the phone and do it.
I get The Globe at my house in Cambridge and hardly ever read it. It's thick, regional, slightly sensationalistic compared to it's sister the New York Times, and I just don't have enough time each day, what with blogging and all.

So I want to cancel it because it's a waste of money, paper and time. But, when it came time to do it I couldn't bring myself because I felt like I was giving in to the imminent failure of traditional journalism and paper news. The system is broken. Google and Craigslist took all the profit years ago and the papers need to figure out a way to monetize their business anew. Every time I commit myself to canceling a subscription I stumble upon an article that I know I never would have found otherwise. I do not leaf through Boston.com, it's just worth the time, I've moved on to aggregators and RSS feeds.

But there ARE a few things I believe in strongly:
- The power of journalism to impact the society's thinking
- The importance of both the supporting and decenting voices
- The necessity for credibility established over time. Lots of time. Say what you will about the NYT, Chicago Tribune, Boston Globe, L.A. Times, and such, but you know what you are getting when you only have a minute and you want to get up to speed.

That feeling you get when you feel like things aren't going in the right direction and you just want to scream "IS ANYBODY PAYING ATTENTION!!!" Yeah, that's where journalism comes in. But what are we to do? Does anyone want to go back to Classifieds instead of Craigslist? No.
Does anyone want to give up the ability to Google a news story and sort sources from around the world? Not really. But who is going to pay for all of this?

I asked my friend Aaron and he said that the onus is on the traditional news sources to transfer their business to the web successfully. I agree, but I'm nervous. Where does Google fit into the equation? I think they're great, but I do NOT want Larry and Sergei dictating my journalism. I have to assume that they already are in some fashion that I'm not fully aware of, but handing over the keys to society's voice to two brilliant billionaire coders doesn't feel right at all.

I will continue to subscribe to The Globe until I face the fact that I cannot afford to fund traditional news as a donation and that all I can do is try and support whatever new model they come up with. And some day soon I will call, ask for the subscriptions department and ask for my account to be closed, but I won't be proud.

Imagination and understanding people

2008-08-04T20:54:00.003-07:00

I read this quote the other day and I can't stop thinking about it:

“You might think that I chose my second theme, the importance of imagination, because of the part it played in rebuilding my life, but that is not wholly so. Though I will defend the value of bedtime stories to my last gasp, I have learned to value imagination in a much broader sense. Imagination is not only the uniquely human capacity to envision that which is not, and therefore the fount of all invention and innovation. In its arguably most transformative and revelatory capacity, it is the power that enables us to empathise with humans whose experiences we have never shared.”
- JK Rowling’s Harvard Commencement Address

I really love this quote because I believe it speaks to what "Innovation" really is. There is so much talk about innovative this and innovative that these days that if someone does anything remotely new it's heralded as "Innovative." Working at an "Innovation Consultancy" this is particularly troubling to me because the term is constantly being defined and weak examples dilute the meaning. When I read this quote it spoke to my heart.

JK Rowling is by all accounts a master of imagination and her definition does not disappoint: "the uniquely human capacity to envision that which is not." My group actually has employees with the job title "Envisioner" for this very reason. The title is a made up one intended to express this human capacity. What impressed me, and captured me as an Anthropologist, is Rawling's tie between imagination and the ability to "empathise with humans whose experiences we have never shared." Beautiful right? Why thinkaboutpeople if not for to try and understand them in ways that you have never personally experienced? Why ask questions? Why make friends? Why try to learn about places, people and things you likely will never encounter?

Because there is more out there than just you, and even if you haven't seen it, you can "get" it if you try, you listen, and you imagine what it might be like.

The Dark Knight

2008-08-03T13:30:00.000-07:00

Last night I went to see the new Batman, The Dark Knight, and it was
awesome. I mean it, I was in awe. The visual effects combined with the
intricate and lengthy storyline kept me smiling (and on edge) for
hours. The length actually made me happy. It felt to me like a
storyteller's confidence. "yeah, we're gonna make a 150 minute movie
and you're gonna love every minute of it!" Also, you can tell more
story with that much time, which I appreciate.

What struck me about the plot was how psychological it was. Without
giving too much away, there are multiple conflicts created by The
Joker (Ledger deserves an Oscar BTW, RIP) that rely on the tension of
human vs. human. He actually says at one point "now we're going to
conduct a little social experiment, hahahaha!" (so freaky). And even
the conflict between Batman and the Joker depends upon the two man
having equal and opposite world views. Yeah, it's "good" vs "evil" but
it's so much more than that because you really believe Ledger isn't
just greedy, he actively rejects the "good" that Batman lives for.

In terms of thinkingaboutpeople The Dark Knight is rich, deep and
fascinating to unpack and contemplate.

Oh, and yeah, they blow up so much shit you can hardly believe your
eyes. Go see it. Now.

Thought clouds

2008-07-31T11:18:00.002-07:00

Last week I got a sense for what it would be like to be dumber.

It’s very difficult to imagine how the brain works, but I always think of it like a cloud of energy, swirling, rushing and colliding in fits. With this model it is even more difficult to imagine what intelligence looks like. Certainly some people are more intelligent than others, but what does that look like? What makes someone smart? Is it the ability to remember, to understand, to create, to question, to follow complex arguments? There are certainly many different types of intelligence and last week, while experiencing the thick exhaustion of travel, I get the intense feeling that I was dumber.

As my boss was talking through the presentation we were going to give the next day I was able to follow every word and understand each argument, but for the life of me I couldn’t think creatively about how to make it better. This was the day before the presentation, the day to make edits and tweaks, to create better analogies and frameworks…and there I sat, nodding my head. It was frustrating. I wanted to help make the story better and all I could do was follow along. I wanted to think of better words, more insightful edits and more intelligent ways of articulating our ideas and...I had nothing. It was like my brain muscle was weak. I’d go to lift and get no force. I’d crouch down to carry a thought and it wouldn’t budge.

I’m always curious for experiences that help me see the world in new ways, outside of my typical perspective. It sounds condescending to say this, but I have a greater appreciation for what it must feel like to be dumber. I’m not sure how to accurately score my intelligence, I’ve never cared much for standardized tests because they don’t seem to offer a complete picture. But if I could, I would have loved to score myself last Wednesday to get a sense of just how handicapped I’d become from sleep deprivation.

As a runner I wouldn’t be surprised if I raced poorly while tired. As a design strategist I shouldn’t be surprised if I perform less quickly, create new ideas poorly or not at all when I am equally fatigued.

Exposing your weaknesses teaches you how to perform better under stress. If you learn from these experiences I think they make you stronger. Or at least that's my hope.

“Environment breeds behavior”

2008-07-30T15:37:00.002-07:00

My mother once told me that while I as purchasing furniture and paint for my first college apartment. “Well, don’t get shit, cause environment breeds behavior and this is where you’re going to be living.” She knew that if I lived in a depressing place it would negatively impact my mood and my grades as a consequence, which is at least part of the reason why I was in college to begin with.

I just left Barcelona and was struck by how environment breeds behavior to which I was completely unaccustomed. The people of Barcelona are much freer than Americans, less embarrassed about their bodies, their behaviors or their social interactions. As topless women and men in Speedos surrounded me on the beaches, I could feel the embarrassed little American boy inside me giggling. And as I sat in the piazzas at night drinking “Cerveza muy fria” the adolescent in me that had learned to drink in America couldn’t help but feel on edge, fearful that I would get in trouble at any moment. But you know what? In Barcelona it’s no big deal.

When you grow up with different social norms and customs you don’t know that they’re different, you take them for granted and act accordingly. I’m not sure what the ramifications of these differences are exactly. Do they concern themselves less with body image because they show more skin at the beach? I doubt it. Do they behave less belligerently when intoxicated because they’re allowed to consume in public? I’ve heard that argument made frequently, but it’s difficult to believe. Alcohol is alcohol, it makes people act different and expose emotions they wouldn’t otherwise.

A week in Spain was refreshing for many reasons, one of which was another example of the American customs I rarely question.

.spacespace

2008-07-26T12:00:00.000-07:00

I found out something traumatizing last week. Many of my co-workers believe you only need to put 1 space after a period! This realization shook me to the core. I'm not sure why, but double space after a period was akin to gravity goes downward, the sky is blue and PB&J is always a good idea.

Here's how it went down:
"Hey team, sorry, this is totally off topic, but I've noticed there is only one space after almost all of the periods in our powerpoint, can we fix this please?" -me

"Oh, no Peter, are you serious? That's so antiquated, you're only supposed to put in one space. Two spaces is a hold-over from typewriters. Silly, computers know to put in a larger space after a period. It's called kerning, computers are smart. Duh!" -them

At this point my eyes started to bug out as my teammates effectively told me that I was fundamentally wrong. I wanted to scream, I wanted to cuss, and most of all I wanted them to stop looking at me like I was crazy.

So what is it? If you're reading this comment here and tell me what you believe in. Make no mistake, this is not "what you think" this is a matter of beliefs. I'm pretty sure it defines who you are.

exhausting haze

2008-07-24T15:12:00.002-07:00

I guess I'm experiencing my first bout of Jetlag. I'm tired as shit and can't fade into rest completely. Momentary flights of release sadly touch back down into reality. I've never felt this before and I sure don't like it. Usually I can sleep anywhere, anytime, doesn't matter. But for some reason, though my mind and body ache for recuperation, it hasn't come.

I'm confident it will arrive sometime soon, but somehow in the meantime I'm hurt. It's like missing a friend who you thought you'd been forced to spend time apart from, only to find out then when you make time he doesn't want to join you. I love sleep, always have.

Maybe I need to write sleep a letter:

Sleep,

I just wanted to tell you how much I miss you. I know it must not seem like it considering how much I have ignored you recently, but I really do love you. I do! I have heard some say that "you can sleep when you die!" Those people have always struck me as foolish, or possibly never allowing themselves to fully release and enjoy your company.

I promise to be better, to make time for you, to call on you when I have quality time to spend, not simply fits and spurts worked in around the edges. You mean so much to me, please come back and hangout, we have so much fun together!

Alright, I'm off to find you, please don't run and hide!

your BFF,

P

Advertising vs. Design

2008-07-16T13:40:00.002-07:00

I say "vs." in this title, but I don't actually believe it's a competition.

They both exist, they're both important, just not equally so at the same time.

I just read a great blog post by a Planner from Modernista, which reminded my why I decided to go into "Design."

A few years ago I was working my hardest to become an Ad Planner. I interned in NYC at a sweet place that does amazing work for Nike, ESPN and other great brands. And then I moved back dead set on actualizing my dream to be a Planner.

And then I got disillusion. I'm not sure what it was, but I lost the fire for advertising. I think it's entertaining and can genuinely make you go "Wow!" But I became much more interested in something else: "Design."

I learned about a field of "Design" (yes, I will always use it in quotes) where you were afforded the opportunity to think deeply about people and help companies impact their products, services, experiences and THEN their messaging. I was wide eyed and open eared.

I interviewed at a few places and eventually began working at Design Continuum because I am fundamentally most interested in thinking about people and impacting their experiences and interactions, not simply talking, targeting or campaigning to them.

3 years later I am consistently intrigued by what is happening in the Ad world and continue to believe that advertising is important in deeply impacts our society. That said I'm consistently pleased with my decision toward "Design."

ps - I use quotes when I say "Design" because I feel it is important to question what you mean when you say the word. Other people certainly question when I say I work in "design," "What kind?!" they bark back, slightly bewildered, annoyed or interested in what I mean exactly.

Whatever helps you think

2008-07-16T12:57:00.002-07:00

Yesterday Mandy mentioned how excited she was for her new Sudoku app on the iPhone. It allows you to generate a new puzzle, fill in placeholder numbers in you're unsure, give you hints if you get stuck, and generally look nice all along.

As she was raving I casually mentioned that I get Sudoku, but that it just doesn't do much for me. I start playing and then find my mind drifting.

Without missing a beat, she kept her eyes fixated on the number puzzle and stated "Oh yeah, why don't you go blog about it!" :)

She's right. I might not love Sudoku, but a lot of people do. And those people might think blogging is unimaginably boring. To each their own! The desire to feel engaged, creative, intelligent and receive feedback for your efforts is I think, pretty universal.

FPSG vs. Fishing

2008-07-14T05:01:00.005-07:00

“I’ve found that I really enjoying fishing because it’s one of the only times where I can really clear my mind.” - one United Airlines pilot to another walking down the concourse at SFO

I recently wrote about the compelling visual people who are trying to virtually kill you online. With that on my mind, I was particularly struck when I overheard a man mentioning this to his colleague as they walked toward what I can only imagine was a plane filled with people they would be trusted to transport a great distance at extreme speed.

While many people spend their time and money attempting to feel and experience an intense rush of emotion, these men are exposed to such daily intensity that their leisure hours are spent working to scrub their mind of the intellectual and emotional remnants of a mentally demanding profession.

Your iPod doesn’t lie

2008-07-14T04:59:00.003-07:00

Recently an old friend from High School soccer asked me “What type of music do you like?” He was attempting to connect, share and offer suggestions, but it made me nervous.

Surely you’ve been there: Someone asks about your music habits and you find yourself picking and choosing what you might want to reveal until you blurt out “I like all types!” which is a complete cop out. “I don’t want to tell him about all the girly music I like,” “What if he looks down on me for being super into pop?” and “He’ll judge me no matter what I say” were all thoughts that flicked through my mind.

He was visibly disappointed by my vague answer so I decided to scroll through my iPhone’s iPod for inspiration. That’s when I was faced with the harsh fact that my iPod doesn’t lie. Unless you’ve somehow illegally loaded it with a friend’s music or dramatically altered your preferences recently, your iPod is telling the brutally honest truth about you.

Avril Lavigne? Yup! Baby Bash? Uh huh! Bloc Party? Ooh, that’s a good one, mention that. Britney Spears? DAMN! The list goes on and on. Did my indie cred for liking Imogen Heap just become a love of girly pop when she appeared at the Oscars? Shit!

Face it, embrace it, your iPod doesn’t lie, so you might as well enjoy it.

Google Lively and Edward Tufte

2008-07-14T04:58:00.003-07:00

Last week Google release “Lively,” a Second Life type avatar environment where you can simulate your identity and “interact” with others. I put the word interact in quotes because I am highly suspicious of the emotional value of avatars.

My co-worker told me recently that when his son isn’t at school he’s probably killing someone. Virtually that is. His son is enthralled by first person shooter games because as he said, “He’s not controlling a soldier, he is a soldier.” I believe it’s more than that. Anyone who’s played a FPSG can tell you that it’s emotionally intense. Your blood pressure raises, visual information is rush toward you at an extreme rate and each visual cue has the potential to mark your demise. It’s intense and addicting.

I recently attended a day long workshop with Edward Tufte, a leader in visual communication theory, and the one thing I took away from it was just how powerful humans are at processing visual information when organized in the proper format. 11”x17” size paper at 2 feet? Ideal. Large format projected on a wall? Not so good. When we can focus on the field evenly we’re able to churn through information.

So what does this have to do with Lively?

Lively, like Second Life, is a cartoonish representation of identity intended to be the “future” of online interaction. My problem with this format is that it feels hokey. The character representation is just too simplistic, offers too little information, to keep people intellectually engaged….unless their being shot at.

I feel like this is a classic example of people forcing a technology and pretending it satisfies the emotional desire for human contact. In my experience people get that Facebook is a representation of identity formatted in a way that is at times simple but almost always easy to process quickly. I will try to give Lively a shot, but if it requires me to wait more than a split second as my friend’s “virtual crib” loads so that I can see the posters, sofa and coffee table he selected I’m outta there.

Not quite Business Class

2008-07-10T14:53:00.000-07:00

I'm not complaining....but this does feel different than last time.
Scary how quickly you get used to posh living.

Sous Chef

2008-07-09T07:10:00.002-07:00

I haven't blogged much recently, which is a shame.

Maybe not for you, or for the world, but for me at least.

This got me thinking about the role of a Sous Chef. The way I understand it the Sous Chef helps make sure that the Chef is on schedule by organizing, along with the line cooks, all of the pieces of a dish are prepared and ready to be plated. But if the Chef doesn't show up to work (like I haven't shown up to blog) then the pieces just sit there and begin to pile up.

I'd like to blog more than I have because pieces, ingredients of ideas that I enjoy sharing and elaborating upon have begun piling up in my brain. I hadn't realized how enjoyable blogging is until I stopped.

Breaking the rules!

2008-06-22T18:38:00.005-07:00

The other day at lunch I pretended to break a social rule just to see how people would react.

We were sitting on the grass, in a circle of co-workers, enjoying home style BBQ with both hands from Blue Ribbon. The sun was out, the breeze was cool, all was well.
And then my brown paper bag began to roll away...and I did NOT get up.

I was sitting Indian style (can we still say that? You know what I mean) with a spoon in one hand and cornbread in the other. I was fully engaged in consumption, but the bag was making its way away. It rolled, then hopped, floated and spun away from our group. I was just warned at first, "watch out Peter!" Then they called out, "Better grab that!"

I continued to sit. Didn't move, didn't flinch. I knew I'd get it eventually, but I preferred my friends believe that I didn't care. "Eh, it's fine, whatever!" I casually feigning apathy.
I looked up in mid-bite and noticed that the circle had emotionally turned on me with collective "WTF!" faces all around. "What's the big deal?!" I continued the ploy, "OH, it's in the trees now, it's fine!" No smiles - increasingly agitated glares.

Finally, it was too much for them: "You're gonna go get that right?!" Hilary blurted out, almost gasping that she even had to ask. I cracked a smile, jumped up and jogged over to my friendly paper bag, resting alongside a pine tree.

You would have thought I had threatened to pinch a puppy, piss on roses or light a cigarette in an E.R.! My friends could not believe what they were witnessing. Or what they hoped, dear god they were not witnessing. To litter, so purposefully, so arrogantly, was blasphemous.

This made me think about the old "Don't Litter" logo, and ad campaign targeted at reminding people not to throw trash on the ground. I wonder if Recycling will reach this point, because it sure hasn't yet. It's still somewhat acceptable to fain laziness or act overburdened by the necessary effort and throw away your trash in a regular receptacle.

So recycling is almost there, but what's next? Is it possible that some day people will flinch with similar disgust if you roll up in a car that gets below 40mpg? Or mention that you "flew cross country for the weekend"? Both are bad for the earth, but carry hardly any social stigma...yet.

In the meantime it's fun to remember how far we've come by pretending, just for a second, that I was completely unaware of this progress.

Attention = $

2008-06-21T16:33:00.002-07:00

I just finished The Google Story, a wonderfully easy read about the history of the information company. As much as you may know about the GOOG already, it details the order of events that founded a tool that has changed our daily behavior and intellectual thought process.

The breadth and shear size of the GOOG's capacity stretches your mind to even conceptualize. But what's even more inspiring is the audacity necessary to undertake such a task and the confidence to continue when everyone tells you that you're wasting your time. GOOG founders Page and Brin faced both in the late 90s, but they pushed on because they believed in their idea, they wanted to see if it was possible and they are smart as all hell.

The whole project started with Page proposing to his Stanford thesis advisor that he would "download the Internet to his computer." Read that again...it's absurd, especially at the time, but he accomplished it.

What I am most inspired by is how they figured out how to monetize their product. GOOG made money solely from liscencing their search capacity to companies during the early years. This was good, but hardly profitable or scalable. Then, one of their early investors realized that fundimentally, at its core GOOG was the yellowpages for the Internet. Seems simple right? No big deal? Huge deal.

By understanding this parallel they were able to realize that there was already a time tested system for making money with information - ads. People were already accustom to being served ads alongside their search information on yellow paper, why not online? And when you have that many people's attention and that many ads, you've created a goldmine, even if it wasn't your original intention.

If you're looking for what's next, look at what's now, look at what's new and think about how current human behavior might be served better (faster, cheaper, easier) in the future with these new capabilities.

I love the GOOG because fundimentally, beneath all of the processing power and technology, it's built on information generated by people.

"How can we say to drink it cold"?

2008-06-19T15:49:00.001-07:00

It's used to be that we were supposed to "Tap the Rockies," but I never had a clue what that meant. Now we're supposed to call our friends and yell "CODE BLUE!" into our cell at the top of our lungs.

I wasn't sure what to make of this, until last night when I came across this bottle:

Can you see the mountains above the Coors logo? Yeah, that's right, they're BLUE. You know what that means don't you? It means that this beer is ready to be drunk!

It's catchy, it's silly and sorta cheap, and you know what? I love it.

Anyone who's had a Coors Light knows that it's refreshing, it's basically water, but beer. And anyone tried to drink a C.L. before it was cold enough can tell you that it's NOT...GOOD. Wait till it gets COLD! You can just imagine the brand manager tasting his product warm and thinking, "Crap, how do we make sure this doesn't happen to our customers?!"

Welcome the "Code Blue" bottle label. A friend pointed out that it's basically Technicolor, our old favorite T-Shirt technology, repackaged for the same generation that has now grown up to drink cheap beer. If you press your thumb against the mountains they get white momentarily, then flash back to Code Blue. I found it an amusing, informative, silly conversation piece between friends.

But this brings me to why I believe in product design more than Marketing. The ads are effective, I remembered their tagline and repeated it to friends. You NEED Marketing. But fundamentally this brand impression was created by "Innovative" (shudder) package design. Someone said "Hey, we could make the label turn blue when it tastes good!" And they did, and I enjoyed it.

And you know what happened when the beer got warm? The Rockies turned white......and it tasted like SHIT.

Social or antisocial?

2008-06-16T19:25:00.002-07:00

Which one is this?

Well it depends on your point of view.
Would it be different if we were reading magazines?
How about if we were all watching TV?

What if I told you we are all playing a head-to-head game?

Bottom line, we might all be consuming slightly different content, or sharing in an asynchronous manner, but we're in physical proximity and there is an overlapping dialog (albeit stretched) of comments, jokes, music references and catchphrases.

To me it counts, but my parents might not get it and it would certainly have disturbed my grandmother.

Hi5!!

2008-06-16T15:21:00.001-07:00

A couple weeks back I had an encounter with the social network Hi5, but if you know me you already know that cause it spammed my entire address book.

In short: I signed up out of curiosity, decided to check who in my Gmail account was also a member and before I knew it I was congratulated for inviting 500 of my friends to join.
Panic sets in...who exactly have I just invited to a Latin American social network? Everyone.
Friends, friends of friends, current bosses, old bosses, people I applied to work with, girlfriends, ex-girlfriends, anyone and everyone I could imagine.

I was terrified, so I sent out a mass apology. And then then most exciting thing happened. Suddenly I had essentially gone "Live" on my network of contacts. If you think of an email as a temporary communication tether that links you to another person, but then expires as time passes, then for that Thursday I was momentarily linked with everyone I had ever emailed. This was simultaneously overwhelming and exhilarated.

I got emails from HS friends - notes from college classmates - humorous inquiries from former bosses - utter confusion from past clients. I was inundated with communication at a speed I had never experienced or imagined was possible.

Take a moment - sit for a second and think - about what it would be like if your name was sitting at the top of the inbox of everyone you have ever emailed - it was that nuts.

So while I wouldn't wish to do it again, in the end I don't regret it because people forgave me and it at least subtly resubscribed my presence in hundreds of people's lives.

It never gets old...

2008-06-16T12:53:00.002-07:00

Somehow flying over cities and picturing the lives being lives below me on a micro and macro level never gets old.

See there?...that's where people learn to play baseball. And up there, that yellow bloch, that's a school bus depot where transportation rolls out every morning as the sun rises. That circle at the bottom, that's a neighborhood community with waterfront views living as neighbors.

I enjoy thinking about life like this: both incredibly important, personal and at times lonely, and simultaneously small, interconnected and part of an ENORMOUS whole.

That sinking feeling

2008-06-14T15:37:00.004-07:00

I just arrived at the Travercity airport in Michigan to fly to Boston. They couldn't find me in the system and it turned out that I had scheduled my return flight for the wrong Saturday, a week from today.

I'm totally F-ed and everyone there knows it. They have me where they want me. They can charge me change fees, route fees, do-me-how-you-wanna-cause-you-can-fees. I feel nauseous. The worst part is this has nothing to do with me, it has nothing to do with the nice guy who is helping me, or his boss who is equally kind. I'm in MI, these people are nice, they understand the mistake I made, but it's not about us, it's The System I'm up against, and I'm screwed.

So the young kid warns me it could be expensive and calls the main number. He waits on hold and I want to puke. This is what airlines dream of: they have what I want, I have zero bargaining position and there goes my whole stimulus check.

He gets off hold, explains the situation and I prepare for the worst and then...he says "Really? How does that work? I'm confused but alright."

"It's free" he says, confused but excited. "You beat the system somehow! Man, I even feel like I won!"

Turns out that because of mileageplus and an identical flight path I squeeked out unscathed. But not without that terrible sinking feeling you get when you think you're aligned against the faceless, nameless airline industry.

Plight of the impatient techster

2008-06-09T12:57:00.004-07:00

Steve Jobs is The Man. It's not up for debate, it's just true.

He knows what we want, he gets it to us before anyone else and he kicks peoples' ass when they get in his way.

He also delivers it to us when we want it....NOW.

So how is his army of loyal followers supposed to feel anything but disappointment when he announces that the iPhone 2.0 will ship not now, but in a month. A whole third of summer without 2.8% faster internet, exact GPS location in a newly thinned case!

As Apple loyalists we've come to expect the safe, cozy comfort of the words "and all of this is shipping today and will be available in Apple stores tomorrow." Hearing those words is like coming home. While we used to be shocked and exulted, we've come to expect it because it's how things should be done. It's just right, right?

So thank you Steve, well done on improving your truly magical phone, but I have to tell you, because we're friends and friends tell each other the truth...I'm disappointed, I can't help it, you taught me to be this way.

Never too high or too low

2008-06-08T16:12:00.003-07:00

A lot of the research I set up is a lesson in managing chance. Recruiting, screening and planning are are what distinguishes research from man on the street interviews with random people But you're never in fully in control.

This past week I was in Madrid speaking to people about their lives and the first day of research was a let down. As we completed our first workshop you could feel the collective dissapointment in the room. This was the beginning, hopes were high, and it was uninspiring. Yet while others worried, I felt remarkably calm considering I was the person most responsible for the day's events. It didn't go well, but tomorrow would go better, almost certainly, because of the the things we had noticed and would improve the next day.

The next day we made large changes, the people showed up and it was a success.

Was I better, were we any better, the second day than the first? The content was better, that we were sure of, that is the point of iterative research, but I can't take full credit for the success of the second day any more than I can take full blame for the failure of the first. You try and try again, being careful never to get too high or too low day to day. In the end, on the plane ride home, I felt confident moving forward because I had failed and then succeeded, in that order, which meant we are headed in the right direction.

It's true...

2008-06-02T15:00:00.000-07:00

Business class actually DOES make you feel like a better person.