Hi everyone.,
Aa happy 2020 to one and all.
With tragic bushfires in Australia raging and the sudden increase in tensions in the middle east, the first few days of 2020 might not bode well for the year ahead. However, we look forward with optimism and will continue to share the content we find interesting and interview our extraordinary guests
First up the Podcast We Loved
We are passionate about the big problems in the world that need solving.
Tony Fadell (@tfadell), sometimes called “the father of the iPod,” is now an active investor and entrepreneur with a 30+ year history of founding companies and designing products that profoundly improve people’s lives. Listen to his inspiring interview with Tim Ferris and if you only listen to one part just got to 1hr and 15 min in to hear the work he is going to confront our global plastic usage problem. Tony is now top of our list for the guest we must meet this year.
We found this online
The Mandalorian
Jon Favreau and Disney have just what most marketers strive to do everyday – create a meaningful brand that is embraced by all of society, or in this case America.
George Lucas, the creator of Star Wars was inspired by science fantasy serials of the ‘30s and ‘40s when he set out the create the perfect Space Western. With the Mandalorian, Favreau has embodied Lucus’s vision of Star Wars perfectly, from the serialized half-hour format, to the vast cast of bizarre characters to the “used future” aesthetic.
This is modern-day, mass brand building, that has the power to unite a divided nation, engage people regardless of difference and create a story we can all engage with share and delight in. .
Recommended to us
Year of Digital Products
It feels like we have been in the process of digital transformation for almost two decades. And certainly, over the last 14 years, I have been in presentations making the case why every company needs to think like a software or technology company. This clear and concise piece from Forrester not only summarizes the state play but makes the case for why by the end of the next decade every successful company will be a software product company or a hybrid software and physical product company. We agree and if you want to talk transformation give us call.
Series of the week
Tell Me Who I Am
Tell Me Who I Am is Netflix‘s latest original documentary offering a story so shocking that you might be left wondering whether it’s true. It is. The film introduces twin brothers Alex and Marcus Lewis, now in their 50s, who are each working through trauma.
The first act of the documentary is told from Alex’s perspective; as he reveals his loss of memory resulting from a motorbike accident when he was 18 years old. As he awoke in hospital with no memory of what had happened, what came before or even recognizing the woman standing by his bedside as his mother, the only person he did know was his twin brother Marcus. And what happens after that is well worth the viewing.
Mulling on this
Astrology In the Age of Uncertainty
This New Yorker article is a perplexing exploration as to the Millennials who see no contradiction between using astrology and believing in science and who are fueling a resurgence of the practice. This quote made us wonder about this impact of this trend of faith, purpose and science fact.
“It’s about negative capability. To endure doubt is ultimately the only thing you can do in life—to not strive for meaning or answers and to endure the state you’re in.”
Tools we’re using
What Emoji should I use for this?
Ever found yourself wanting to add an Emoji to a social media update, blog post, or marketing message to add context but left wondering the one you picked would have the right impact?
We just discovered this great little tool a browser-based app that helps you search and discover the right emoji in these ‘should I shouldn’t I’ moments. It’s for your social media updates, blog posts, marketing materials, and more. It is called Emojim.
Social Impact
The Amazon Effect is flooding a struggling recycling system with cardboard
This sobering piece, especially after the holiday season when packaging usage and disposal hits an annual high, made us pause and reflect on why as we start a new year our intention to live packaging-free is even more of an imperative.
That’s all for now.
