So you want to think like a genius? Start thinking like Leonardo da Vinci. I finished reading the recommendations and I can already feel the genius awakening.
I have a funny genius story. Last year I was called a genius by someone I worked with. This individual was not a creative person but seemed baffled by what I did, packaging, advertisements, web etc. My apparent strength in one area over her weakness appeared to be something mystical to this person. It's all about perception in this world. Next time someone calls you a genius appear stunned and ask why did I fail grade 10 math?
Next month Wal-Mart will be placing ads in Vogue magazine, yes Vogue!
"Wal-Mart is seeking to transform its image as a discounter after a rival, Target, spurred sales growth by offering exclusive products by designers including Michael Graves. Target, which has also sought more affluent consumers, bought all the ads in the issue last week of The New Yorker."
Wal-Mart has recruited John Fleming from Target to implement the new campaign. Did someone forget to tell Wal-Mart you can't pretend to be something your are not. Wal-Mart has always meant cheap crap, Alway Low Prices. I would never look to Wal-Mart has a place for style and design, it's Wal-Mart! If people want to shop at places that offer great fashion and design the options already exist. I'm not willing to buy or accept the idea that Wal-Mart will be a place of fashion and design and I bet many others feel the same way. When you tell any type of story there has to be a certain amount of willingness on the part of people to accept or believe it. Will people be willing to accept this new story?
Today 170 underprivileged kids were let into the CNE since being refused the previous day with their free day passes because it was for the wrong day. This story was on the evening news because they did not have buses to take them there today. Now how stupid is this, 170 kids show up with free passes and told to go home because it's the wrong day. They didn't have tickets for seats for a game or concert, all they wanted was entrance to the fair grounds. How much intelligence would it have taken for someone in charge to say it's okay come right in, apparently common sense is not very common.
Another clueless story, this city of Toronto couldn't open a splash pool until they found a lifeguard. When it did open it had two life guards watching the kids. By late afternoon they pool was closed because the two life guards had returned to the other pool across the street which remained closed for the morning. A brilliant reporter in this city asked officials why one could not stay at the splash pool while the other stayed at the pool across the street. That takes too much common sense.
Seth Godin has been talking about some of these events and how clueless we basically are. Also he recently posted how someone with common sense let him into the hotel fitness room even though it wasn't open for another few hours.
I was thinking about writing one of those Dear Mr... posts about brands and why I am not buying your products. Then I came across a blog which described it exactly, it's called "virtual consumption" when the consumers declares they love the advertising but fails to go out and buy the product. Why have a brand according to Kevin Roberts of Saatchi and Saatchi:
"You've got to remember, brands are only invented to charge a premium. That was the purpose of a brand; it didn't have any other. Recognize me, desire me, have faith in me, trust me, pay more for me." In short "select me."
But what if I can't afford you and really don't need you in my life even though it's a great product. Most of the time I look past it all and just go blank when looking at brands on a shelf and the decision basically comes down to price. I wanted one of those Michael Graves kettle but settled for a $10 stainless steel kettle on sale last week. Sometimes I just don't want to play the game, it's just water in a bottle and I don't care what you call it.
I have heard about the housing prices double in places like California and there is has been a big increase in prices right across the USA. Lucky for us in Canada prices have been increasing every year but homes still are affordable. With all this greed in our society does someone really need a monster home, more electricity, more gas, more gallons of paint for each room, more furniture to purchase and a bigger ego to fill it all. Growing up I have lived in different sized homes from a large home to a modest sized condo. I have not noticed any difference when living in any of these places but the real difference is in people's minds. Do you think you could be happy living in a micro compact home and driving a smart car. Link via Boing Boing
About three weeks ago it seems someone flipped a switch somewhere which unleashed an unusual amount of gun violence in the city of Toronto. There have been shootings and deaths every night, mostly gang related. The is completely out of character for this city and is baffling to many, including me. In an attempt to solve the problem the mayor has decided that we need more police to patrol the affected areas. The majority of these incidents have occurred in so called "government housing."
All these incidents have involved black youth which has prompted community leaders to admit we have a serious problem in our own community. The residents have expressed there feelings and reasons why youth have taken to crime. Many youth feel desperate, depressed and see no opportunity or help available for them. Just living in these communities places this dark cloud on someone's future.
After listening to this I have my story to tell about racism and prejudice in this city. When it was time to decide on a high school to attend I picked an all boys catholic school which I went to for track meets and was very familiar with it. There were three of us who decided to go to this school, two Italians and a Portuguese. We were rejected and could not understand why. We had good grades and there were no other reasons given. Well after some probing my father found out the truth from one of my teachers who just happened to be Italian. The reason ready for it, they didn't want kids from this part of the city because we were "garbage". This part of the city was downtown Toronto with hard working Italians, Greeks and Portuguese families. Now for the really scary part, the principle of this all boys school was a priest and he was the one who interviewed us. Literally those words were coming from the catholic church and a priest. Let me just say I haven't been in a church for a long time.
Now what chance does someone who is black and living in social housing suppose to be told? The mayor wants business leaders to help and provide opportunities for youth. Why doesn't the mayor call the catholic church, they love to help if they can send a basket around and collect some money. The real problem is the racism that exists in this city, as an Italian I have had racist comments directed to me during the past three years. All these comments from one group and you can count on them, the same group that priest also belonged to, WASP's. Don't think I see the irony in my statement, just curious why in three years why an African, Asian, Jew, Greek, Russian or other has not directed racist comments towards to me?
Toronto's mayor is named David Miller and police chief Bill Blair, real reflection of the cultural make-up of this city.
As I watched Dog The Bounty Hunter his son mentioned his dad was 50. Dog is 50? Then comedian Jerry Seinfeld came to mind when I heard last year he turned 50. Is the perception of what a 50yr old looks like changing? Can we pull out one of those Crest charts to identify what shade you should look like when you reach a certain age. I've also been told I don't look my age. I never knew there was an age chart out there as to what someone is suppose to look like at different ages. But built into our minds there seems to be this chart, it's our constant need to quickly decipher the world around us. Time to throw out that old mental chart because 70 is the new 50.
People seem to convince themselves that they know what it takes to be successful. Take Wayne Gretzky who was told he was too small and slow for the NHL and now is being told he won't make a great coach.
"It's kind of ironic when that when I broke in professional hockey at 17, that I was told I was too small and too slow and I wouldn't make the NHL. And now it's kind of flip-flopped and the sense is well you can't be a good coach because you were a great athlete."
I assume that there might have been people who told Peter Jennings he would never be a great reporter since he was a high school drop-out. If these thing were all true life would be too predictable and I would have made millions by now on the stock exchange. Oh by the way, do you think Michael Jordon was one of the best or popular players when a kid, I bet nobody paid any attention to him.
One of the best quotes I have ever heard "It's not who you are it's who you're going to be"
This online campaign for V0n@ge Canada is everywhere, it's so everywhere I'm sick of seeing it. It's so right in your face, in a head lock, down your throat and obey our command that I hate it. This reminds me of a similar advertising campaign Levi's did here in Toronto for Silver Tab Jeans. They had every billboard in the city, sides of building, sides of buses even homeless people had ads on them. What was the effect, just plain annoying. I don't care about demographics and all that crap, all I know is nobody wants to have anything shoved down their throats.
New book "Once Upon A Time in Italy" about Sergeo Leone and the rise of the spaghetti western. Just mention the words spaghetti, westerns, Italy and I'm sold.
"Frayling tells the story of the movie genre and the iconic director through researched text and interviews with Clint Eastwood, Martin Scorsese and Eli Wallach."
