Musings on creativity, community, storytelling and leadership
I’ve flirted with resolutions for years. Focused in on 3 Words a few times. But as we prepared to close out 2017 and usher in the new year I got to thinking about what I wanted more of, and on the flipside, what I could live with less of. From those furious synapses came this manifesto for 2018.
How do you answer that ubiquitous and often innocuous question from friends and strangers, “How are you?”
Do you give more than a glib and expected answer? Delve into how you truly are at that moment and possibly share the bad along with the good? Whether because of time constraints or social norms, most of us rarely do.
It’s something I’ve been pondering a lot lately as I talk and share about personal brand - mine and others. If being authentic is at the heart of a brand that resonates and forms strong bonds, how far should we go in living an authentic life both online and offline? Is it showing and sharing the good, bad and ugly at all times? Or is it a choice we make per circumstance, per situation and with perception in mind? Is the soft underbelly that is exposed when we get to sharing vulnerabilities and fears a positive attribute or one that exposes you beyond your control?
Because with taking risks comes the chance of failure. With trusting others comes the chance of betrayal. With taking leaps comes the chance at falling. With putting yourself out there comes the chance of rejection. With taking big bets comes the chance of getting knocked on your…(you get the picture.)
And when those circumstances occur should they be cloaked in bravado or shared in raw truth – or somewhere in the middle? What is the perfect formula, that magical authenticity balance between confidence and vulnerability?
As you might imagine by this series of questions, my mind is often a chaotic place. To gain clarity, I turn often to words from the witty and wise – poets and thinkers, authors and speakers. Thanks to Brene, Ernest and ee for these words that keep my mind moving and my synapses firing.
I’ve been thinking a lot about resilience lately. What it means to move through ordeals, opportunities and adventures with your energy and your enthusiasm for your work, and life in general, close to intact. And in the midst of it, to remain creative and focused. This week’s Monday Manifesto couldn’t have come at a better time. Thanks to Brain Pickings as always for alerting me to it, and to illustrator Wendy MacNaughton and writer Courtney E. Martin for the wisdom.
I miss writing. For the pure unconstrained joy of it. Not being aware of structure and arcs and rules and just freeing words from my brain and putting them down in some permanent way. In order to have that freedom again, I need to bring back the discipline and order. Sounds a bit like a paradox, but it makes sense to my synapses. In trolling for a manifesto on writing I came across these words for wordplayers from author K.M. Weiland.
Happy Manifesto Monday to the writers of the world!
As I struggle to regain a rhythm, passion and purpose to writing for self, I have started to revisit words that have inspired me in the past. Words that soothed, sparked, warmed and fired up my soul. Some of my all-time favorites come in the forms of poems and manifestos. Right at the top of that list is Ralph Waldo Emerson’s poem Success. A grounding of sorts, I’ve always enjoyed its directness and simplicity – and call to live a life that matters in a time when there are multiple ways external forces are pushing a vision of success upon us.
Happy Manifesto Monday…
I’ve been dreaming in manifestos lately, and thought now would be as good a time as any to bring back Manifesto Monday.
Kicking this series back off is Austin Kleon‘s Steal Like an Artist – a manifesto for creativity in the digital age.
As I put on my future-focus lens for our annual Red Sky Summit (an event bringing clients, partners and peers together to inform, improve and inspire) earlier this month, several key themes emerged.
One being that as we approach 2016, we’re still waiting for several of the predictions for 2015 to emerge:
In looking toward 2016, it isn’t so much about the widgets we can identify as gaining relevance, but rather the sentiments and motivators driving how communication will evolve. Let’s call them the ABCs:
Authenticity and transparency
Brand purpose
Compelling content
Get ready, folks. There is a word that may soon become as annoying to the masses and those of us who inhabit the communication world as #blessed has become to me.
In any of its various forms — authentic, authenticity, authentically — it will infuse our vernacular even more in the coming year as individuals, brands and organizations strive for deeper, more meaningful and more relevant connections and content.
The rise of authenticity and its partner, transparency, stem from the access we are continually gaining to nearly any information we want at any time. With this access comes an expectation of being able to see behind the curtain, to get the full story, to learn what a product or company or person is really about — but on our terms and on our schedule. To fully embrace the expectations with transparency we increasingly have, companies will need to get comfortable with pulling back the curtain, over-communicating and doing so clearly and concisely.
As Hubspot CTO & Founder Dharmesh Shah shared,
“Today, power is gained by sharing knowledge, not hoarding it.”
Authenticity and transparency are tough to put into action if you’re not clear about who you are. In the wise words of Simon Sinek, start with “why.” People don’t buy what you do, they buy why you do it. So what’s your “why?” What is your brand purpose? What is that compelling reason you or your organization exist in the world? It’s more than a product or service, and it should inspire an emotion or reaction and infuse everything you do.
Discovering that purpose, your epic cause of existence, helps with the last component of what’s impacting the world of communication going forward. If the early part of the decade found everyone embracing all the bright, shiny objects that the digital realm dreamt up, 2015 was the year of content overload. As we head into 2016, the focus will be on making that content more compelling — and creating opportunities for brands to be publishers, for traditional media to work hand in hand with brands and for consumers to have multiple organizations competing to be their trusted source and curator.
“We see what you’re trying to share with us, but why does it matter? Give me context, give me a compelling reason to click, consume and care about it.”
Admittedly, the word “content” has always gotten stuck in my throat because “storytelling” has always felt more genuine and natural in regard to how we communicate and connect. And while I’m a big fan of acronyms that make sense and a believer in the power of alliteration, I still hold true to the axiom: all stories are content, but not all content is a true story.
Brands as Publishers | Publishers add Branded Studios
We’re seeing a shift in action. Brands are becoming their own publishers. A few examples we showcased at our Summit were Chase and its news and story platform, MakerBot’s video story series, and Goldman Sachs’ Our Thinkingchannel (particularly the Millennial interactive infographic). The traditional media is also jumping into the fray and establishing content studios to further blur the lines between news and advertising. These outlets include the Associated Press Content Services, New York Times T Brand Studio, Forbes Brand Voice, TheAtlantic Re:think, Conde Nast 23 Stories and CCN’s Courageous Studio.
While some see this as hell freezing over, I’m with Lewis DVorkin of Forbes who noted,
“Audiences want and value informative content from knowledgeable parties — that includes journalists, topic-specific experts and marketers. By clearly identifying the source you enable the reader to understand the filter through which the content was created.”
As for those competing for the filter and curator crown, Twitter finally launched its Project Lightning (called Moments), Facebook is upping its Instant Articlesgame, Apple is trying to keep pace with its reworked News, and now Google is getting into the mix with its Accelerated Mobile Pages Project.
The reason everyone is striving to be our source is because we are evolving to become “liquid consumers” of information. As Randall Rothenberg described in AdWeek,
“ The consumer is no longer grounded in one spot, one medium or one homepage — but has become a “liquid consumer” that demands “liquid creativity” from marketers, publishers, agencies or anyone who wants to find them.”
It’s a fascinating, challenging and amazing time to be both a consumer and a creator. While our opportunities to connect and make an impact grow, so do the barriers and challenges to cut through the noise with stories that matter.
I say: Bring. It. On.
That word – decade – seems to carry so. much. weight.
When looking forward, it seems an eternity. When looking back, it often feels like it flew. 2004 was the year I made the jump from my first love – journalism – to my second career – public relations. And a decade ago today – December 15, 2004 – the place where I cut my PR teeth opened to the world.
Tamarack Resort, billed as ‘the world’s newest all-season destination’ featuring mountain, meadow and lake, made a big push to snag the spotlight on its opening day and the years after. And for many in Idaho and across the Northwest, the high-speed quad ascent and downhill slide for the resort has played out over the decade in just as big a spotlight.
To have a front-seat to a startup like Tamarack is an experience I would never trade. (Well, maybe I would have traded in that sweet sweet ‘blonde in front of a fireplace’ headshot.) For two years I was part of a team of marketing and PR consultants who helped shape and share the message. Then for two more years, I was in-house holding on as Tamarack grew in that hockey-stick shaped way that startups often do.
The Tamarack story was never just about an outdoors playground. It was about rural economies, community development, history, construction, investment and financing, environmental considerations, celebrity, global brands …oh, and golfing, hiking, mountain biking, skiing and boating.
![FullSizeRender[5]](http://jessflynn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/FullSizeRender5.jpg)
Source: New York Times, Tim Neville
Among the lessons I’ve gleaned:
Yes, I do realize that what happened at Tamarack is also a textbook example of the hubris of that time. Those pre-2008 days when money was being spent and decisions were being made in heady moments. But I also know that good people put blood, sweat and tears into the startup… people whose names and faces we don’t usually hear about when the rapid rise and fall occurs with a startup. In the history of great destinations that are household names to many – there have been quite a few falls and rises.
To those people…who I was honored to call friends and colleagues… a toast to the journey we were all part of, to believing in the ‘why’ of a place and the dream of what it could be, and to the next chapter for Tamarack.
![FullSizeRender[4]](http://jessflynn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/FullSizeRender4.jpg)
Source: Los Angeles Times, Amanda Jones
![FullSizeRender[3]](http://jessflynn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/FullSizeRender3.jpg)
Source: USA Today, Gene Sloan
![FullSizeRender[7]](http://jessflynn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/FullSizeRender7.jpg)
Source: Bloomberg Markets, Anthony Effinger
Not sure if Theodore Roosevelt’s poetic words technically count as a Manifesto, but his Man in the Arena hits home for me so often. When I need a shot of confidence, when I need that extra oomph, when I need something to think instead of spouting off at competitors and doubters. These are the words I turn to…
You always remember your first. In this case, my first glimpse at a manifesto. Thanks to Brooklyn design studio Holstee for these words – crafted to inspire people to live mindfully.
What resonated most with me…. Do what you love, and do it often. Stop over analyzing. When you eat, appreciate every last bite. Travel often; getting lost will help you find yourself…go out and start creating.
Jess Flynn calls herself an ‘accidental entrepreneur’, embarking on her journey to … more
