The paradox of originality
Coming full range in what you do. To explore and apply a high level of imagination to a high level of knowledge. Originality. Here’s the paradox though The deeper you know something, the more used to how things are. Things are working, right? So why break them? Here’s why. Breaking off that thinking and finding new ways to apply your imagination can unlock greater originality in what you do and how you serve your market. David C. Baker calls this “being able to see the patterns”. Why? Because…
Beginners Mindset. Not.
“Approach things with a beginner’s mindset.” In an expertise/knowledge-based business, it’s the wrong frame. A beginner approaches things from scratch, trying to figure out the right questions. It takes them time to understand and comprehend things (quickly) because they’re trying to find patterns. A beginner explores with no clear picture in mind, Has no mastery. When you have expertise, it’s your responsibility to see and find patterns in an efficient way, meaning getting curious and asking…
Wishful thinking
Build a brand. Build a culture. Build leaders. Does this even make sense? As if by going thru a process, the result, no matter what, will be that: a brand, a culture or a leader. As you could manufacture any of those. It’s not like that at all. However… What you can do is build the systems to foster an environment where: Your customers build your brand. → Your brand is what they say it is (btw, there’s no such thing as “personal brand”). Your employees thrive to build a culture of trust. →…
Uncover your voice
You don’t get to “discover” your voice. It was always there, nothing to discover. Just like a baby. They have it there but can’t make sounds yet. They explore, see around, play to figure out how to make sounds. They listen. And again, they start playing and training their muscles. Inhale the right quantity of air to make their voice sound. Years laters, you explore. Module it. Train it again. Trust it? Sometimes. The world outside tells you to lower it, sound more like X, use certain words,…
Fear
Comes in many shapes, sizes and forms. Almost closing this deal.Almost moving forward on a project. Almost getting the gig. Until we feel powerless, overinvested, with the threat of losing what we’ve worked so hard for, that we give in and start lowering the price. Heck, we even think on working for free so we’ll get a bigger project after we showed our value. “What if lose it?” Ask yourself: How can you lose something you never had? This is what we’ve been taught. To not “lose” what we’ve…
What they don’t tell you of working for free (to “close” future deals).
The advocates of working for free to “prove your worth” and then “close” deals/gigs keep something important out from you: That you have to be extremely picky of who you’ll work with. It’s not simply “I’ll work for free to show you I do great work. Then you’ll pay me.” That’s a nice fairy tale (or bullshit). Reality is, it’s about who you’re talking to (or have access to). If you don’t have the right access, doing work for free is doing whatever you can for whomever shows up. It stenches of…
Lessons learned from saying Yes to free work
Lessons learned from saying Yes to “free work”, “show/prove your worth before charging” and “let’s start with this small/insignificant amount of money that will hopefully turn into a larger gig”. It’s bullshit. That’s what i learned. Here’s why. Most of these situations are unfiltered properly. You’re too excited/over invested into closing them, so you don’t qualify them thoroughly. → You do the free work and then “We’ll evaluate it and get back to you”. Which is code for “Ha! Thanks, moron….
Come original
“To come original it ain’t nothin’ strangeYou got to represent you got come full rangeFull range of emotion full range of styles” Come Original. 311 Coming full range. A call to arms to putting the best of you into what you create, but also to the exploration of the overseen / unseen. To come full range: to use a high level of knowledge with a high level of imagination. That’s how Marty Neumeier defines (in my words) what’s New To The World in his Originality Matrix in Metaskills: 5 talents…
Knowledge x Imagination
That’s the formula Marty Neumeier, brand and branding legend, defined for Originality. K x I = O “Originality comes from the exposure of factual knowledge to the animating force of imagination, depending on the quality of knowledge and level of imagination.” Metaskills: 5 Talents for The Robotic Age.2012. Marty Neumeier Meaning, originality is more of a spectrum, with different levels you can tune in. Interesting thing, the more imagination you use, the more original. The more original, the…
Praise you. Adapted from
“We’ve come a long, long way togetherThrough the hard times and the good I have to celebrate you, baby I have to praise you like I should” Praise You – Fatboy Slim. [Or is it?] Original is an spectrum. A first level comes to things that are only new to you. A next one comes from adapting things under a new take. Just like this song. A sample of “Take Yo’ Praise” by Camille Yarbrough mixed with many other samples. It takes things already known in a new way. The thing is, it’s original. It took…