The only next step you can take is the one you’re sure of today. That step will influence future ones, some planned and some unaccounted for.
Thinking of all the steps required for our new project or idea can overwhelm us into a cycle of inaction, keeping us from the wisdom of what we know for sure. Plan accordingly, but in the moment, take the one step you’re sure of today.
There is always room for one more. One more dream, one more good idea or one more person seeking to make a contribution in the world. Often we excuse ourself from ourself by saying there is no room.
If you dreamed one dream, you can dream another one.
If you discovered a good idea, you can discover another one.
If you know someone making a contribution in the world, so can you.
There is always room for one more.
Many times, the answer to our problem is more available than we can perceive. An effective solution is within reach if we:
– Clarify our desired outcomes
– Understand our strengths
– Move forward with the one step we can do today
Let’s take for example….
My City wants to increase the amount of recyclables collected from each household. Seeking out new ideas from local marketing agencies, they were likely given solutions that included; a new app, marketing and educational materials, social media strategy, PR strategy, catchy campaign, web redesign and more.
Before implementing any new strategy, the City should first focus on collecting recyclables the same way they do trash.
Size difference: My recycle bin is a fourth of the size as my trash can, yet, my household recycles more than we throw away. If my recycle bin is given a quarter of the space as my trash bin, it sends the message that recycling is not as important.
Accessibility: Recycling habits should be reinforced outside my household. There are often trash cans scattered throughout the City – Recycling bins should exist next to them.
Comparison: If the City treated recycling the way they treated trash pickup, instead of treating it like a good idea, they could increase participation.
Your new initiative may need a brand strategy and campaign. But first, you have to recognize the strategies that are already within reach.
Have you ever made a juice and added a red beet? It turns the entire thing red. Upon realizing that even the smallest amount of red beet would collide with the colors of carrots and greens, turning it a “rusty” color, I started to wonder….
Do juicing companies consider color when creating their combinations?
I’ll let you be the judge.
Then I thought….
Maybe there is a market for a rusty juice. One similar to the juice we make at home. What would that look like?
Name: Rusty Juice
The name would be a constant reminder that our juices combine all the things that are good for you.
Tagline: All the good stuff.
The tagline would play on the idea that it’s not about what it looks like, it’s about what’s good for you.
Packaging: Darker tent bottles. Caps and labels would be color coded.
Create a “frontier” look – For the rebel who doesn’t follow the pack.
Market Advantage: Committed to people who want to have the healthiest juice available, not the prettiest.
Pros: There is a market of people willing to sacrifice pretty colors for the healthiest juice combinations.
Cons: The bright colors of competitors are attractive.
Would you buy Rusty Juice?
Our product, service or idea can be phenomenal, and people will still have their opinion. There will always be a commentator, and their role is to comment, even when it doesn’t seem necessary. Inevitably, someone will believe the design is subpar, that the experience could be better, or idea isn’t original.
The commentator is not the problem, it’s when we follow the destructive path of believing in unjustified critiques. Most damaging, is when we create or take action with the voice of the commentator leading the way.
Instead of creating for the commentator, create from your inspired self and know that the commentator will always be there. Remembering that the most critical commentator can be the one within ourselves.
Sometimes we can be too rational. too right. Not wrong enough. It’s a waste of time imagining the world as it exist — Be irrational and imagine the world as it should exist.
Our perception of time is a construct of the brain. And like every good thought experiment, time, under the right circumstances, can be manipulated. It is one thing to understand this theory in concept, it is another thing to witness it in action.
DOPE is an innocent film that did something mischievous. It managed to successfully place the viewer in two alternate time-zones, the 90’s and present day, without adjusting our perceived reality. To do this, the movie leveraged the power of visuals and sound.
Visuals….
Dual existence: The visuals were an intelligent mix of things that “could” exist in both time-zones (Hairstyles, clothes, etc.) For example, part of the movie takes place in a computer lab that looks like it could have existed in the 90’s.
Minimize themes: To keep the viewer from fully committing to a single time-zone, the movie did not lose itself in a dominant theme from either period. While the movie starred a teen cast, there was a relatively small use of social media, texting, cell phone use, etc.
Neutral: The scenes did not date themselves and were shot in areas that had a timeless quality to them.
Sound….
No compromise: The soundtrack for the movie matched the flavor of 90’s music without compromising today’s sound.
Lost in sound: Although our world is very connected, in DOPE, we did not get lost in the technology, we go lost in the sound.
Why it’s relevant….
These techniques keep the viewer absorbed in the 90’s, even though we know we’re in present day. This plays into the overall theme of the movie, which sets-out to shatter “outdated” and misguided perceptions about different groups of people. Just as the lead character cuts his 90’s hairstyle in favor of something more “updated” in the end, this movie challenges us to address stereotypes that don’t support the truth of who we really are today.
Are you familiar with Tidal? It’s a subscription-based music streaming service acquired by Jay-Z and backed by other megastars. It’s competitors are Spotify, Pandora and Apple Music, but its fans do not appear to be many.
Earlier, I wrote a short blog post about how to launch. The main idea is that you can’t compromise who you really are when you decide to share your product, service or idea. We will figure you out, disconnect, and you’ll lose.
Tidal compromised, and that’s why the perception of them being unworthy of music streaming dominance is perpetuating in the minds of others. To make this point, let’s look at their launch event.
What’s wrong with this picture?
1. Small – These artists appear smaller on stage than you will ever see them in performance. Their body language is in direct contrast to who they are when they’re commanding a stage. When someone you know starts acting out of character, how does that make you feel?
2. Comparison – Standing on stage, there is a natural comparison that happens. This can be damaging by sacrificing the perception of someone who may not be seen as favorable as the next artist. There is a diminishing of value that takes place.
3. Team mentality – There is no “I” in team. We need our favorite artists to be individuals, not followers or part of the pack. Teams are controlled by a coach and managed by referees. The allure with celebrities, in part, is a perception of boundless freedom.
It’s all about perception…
This was Tidal’s first chance to present themselves to the world, and every decision shaped perspective. Inconsistencies here translate into perceived inconsistencies that might exist with the Tidal service.
As a comparison….
Here is a picture of Drake at the “launch party” for Apple Music. In comparison there is focus (which I talk about here) and consistency.
Drake commands the stage and Apple demands attention.
When you launch, be yourself, it’s the reason we showed up in the first place.
Be yourself, it's the reason we showed up in the first placePannsy
When you launch a new product, service or idea, it has to be aligned to your truth. If you compromise, if you decide to play it safe or become something you’re not, you’ll lose. People will sense that something is off and a disconnection will take place on some level, even among the ones that decide it’s in their best interest to accept the delusion.