Watching a Shirky talk always means leaving with a huge amount of pearls, but check out the above plus the quote below and tell me it doesn’t resonate with any creative endeavours you have been involved with:
“…they don’t care that they saw it in practice because they already knew it couldn’t work in theory.”
If you work with a client or in a corporation / organisation which doesn’t get what you’re trying to do even though you have showed them the solution, forget changing minds, time to change the company you keep!
Then surround yourself with people who take care plus improve each others output.
In 2004’ish we connected through a comment I left on your blog. You called and we chatted. You had a lot to say and I was hungry to learn. You shared stories, highlighted people and ideas I should be aware, plus taught me to explore ‘better questions.’
At the time I had just come out of working in the public sector and failing at my first business in the youth work and corporate social responsibility space.
In 2005 during one of our long phone conversations, we were discussing the intersection of my youth work and growing interest in the new media landscape. I referenced young people as ‘media snackers’ and on the call you purchased the domain and challenged me to do something with it.
It took another 6-9 months but in June 2006 mediasnackers.com was launched focussed on ‘how young people create and consume new media.’
Five years later it would have a supporting staff of seven, over a hundred podcasts, dozens of video podcasts, authored a book, have worked with a vast array of clients from local /national government, UNICEF, executive leadership bodies, Ubisoft, marketing agencies, charities etc. plus have delivered on multiple countries on five continents… all because you bought a domain!
Throughout the years since, you have continued to champion and challenge, commend and berate—our long discussions about tepid and sigh-worthy institutions plus traditional business models / thinking always igniting my creativity and amplifying my intentions—and I delighted in how you uncover insights utilising superb lyrics to make a point:
There is a crack, a crack in everything That’s how the light gets in
Leonard Cohen, Anthem
Thank you g for all that you have revealed and amplified for me.
For being my mentor.
For being a friend.
Mentors matter.
Good ones listen then uncover. Help you move forward or pause to think through a tough decision. They highlight pathways based on experience and intuition, revealing pitfalls and dangers along the way which more untested souls wouldn’t have understood existed.
I’ve been lucky enough to both have wonderful mentors in my life as well as also being mentor for 3 years on the Culture Hive Digital Marketing Academy plus on many occasions with new TEDx license holders in New Zealand.
Mentors can be friends, bosses, colleagues, family. Sessions can be structured or not. Often or little. What matters is that they add value. Reveal and compliment.
For nearly a decade, a huge part of my life has been devoted to a pro-bono endeavour of producing the community TEDx events here in the capital.
The decision to cancel this years event really hurt—read the full announcement here—as the 2021 event was going to be my last and boy I was aiming to go out on a high (with a 2,000 person event plus some wicked delegate experience ideas to boot as well).
Then explore new paid opportunities which align to my skill set and serves my individual purpose regarding enabling people to find and have voice through delicious learning experiences.
Am looking to work with kind humans who reach beyond their grasp and have complex problems to solve—I like intersecting disciplines, leading on collaborations and crafting outcome-based connections through content creation.
Big words for basically saying making cool and complicated stuff with nice people!
Let me know if you are in need of a DK-shaped human to assist in any creative project directing / producing.
And I will continue to offer and deliver speaker coaching (one-to-ones and group masterclasses) for select clients as well as developing out the fourth Creative Leadership NZ 2021 conference for the end of the year.
A conversation on growing robust businesses in the creative sector.
Had the esteemed honour to host the above panel for the good people at SPADA. It’s always a joy connecting with humans doing wonderful things and from a very selfish reason was very much needed that afternoon.
So if you’re interested what a few producers here in Aotearoa are up to press play and have a watch / listen.
As a creative producer, I craft delicious learning experiences…
…this cute line is my attempt to describe the intended impact beyond the generic title, and last week I truly got to manifest this goal.
Teulo has been a fantastic client: inviting me to MC their twice monthly global online talks (which garner on average about 350 souls), record and edit down their podcast series, as well as produce the above.
The brief was to develop an ‘in-studio’ recorded interview experience with a a specific topic-expert which would become the fifth module of a five part in-depth online series for architects and designers.
The process of developing the idea from brief to concept and then to product is a wonderful journey—with my propensity for details (have been told by more than a few how ‘particular’ I am), it amplifies the potential of achieving an output of the highest quality.
“Love how DK can hear my creative ideas and vision, then bring them to life. I have huge trust and respect for DK and really enjoy working with him, as he completely understands what I want to achieve with Teulo. Thank you!”
It all starts with client who trusts, then collaborators who embellish your plans with their own mastery (thanks FlashDog Studios and Mike Potton), on top of trusting in ones own ability to convert a shared vision into actuality knowing that iteration and deviation are oftentimes positives.
Am now hungry for more experiences and opportunities like this…
As the world continues to hobble forward through it’s pandemic / environmental / corrupt leadership crisis, please do take the time to watch the incredible video essay above on what I’ve always held dear: humans are innately good.
LESSONS
Be fiercely kind because…
There are decades where nothing happens; and there are weeks where decades happen.” ― Vladimir Ilyich Lenin
2021
Will be focused on the following:
Online production: have 20+ events already booked to MC plus producing podcasts for a couple of clients as well so building out the home studio to up the production values in these areas
Masterclasses, coaching and speaking: continuing to deliver in-person internal sessions on ‘purposeful storytelling’ whilst taking on 1-2-1 speaker coaching clients and also be open to speak on stage a few times as well (truly miss this)
Online course: putting together a virtual offering with the hope to launch mid 2021
TEDxWellington: my pro bono to bring the largest ever TEDx to the nations capital (going to be a 2,000 person live event) and shine a light on the incredible talent we have in the region then amplify them through the TED platform
Spent some time sprucing this website up a little using the new Twenty Twenty-One WordPress theme to really minimilise the design and visual clutter. Am still working out a few extra tweaks although on the whole nearly there and so much slicker.
So here’s a 2021 which elates, brings joy and softer changes.
We need to get ideas into action and we are keen to work collaboratively with you and other creative minds who are lucky to call Wellington home. We’d like to invite you to an ideas hui to brainstorm creative solutions to some of the city’s challenges following the economic impact of the Covid19 pandemic. We will take some of the best ideas generated at the hui, develop these further into tangible solutions and work to secure funding to turn them into reality.
Was great to see so many souls respond to the call of collaboration and the energetically run afternoon session certainly generated an array of ideas based on the challenges laid down.
It was shared early on that the ideas from the session would be directed towards the City Recovery Fund (a new amount of money made available and administered through the city council which TEDxWellington recently applied for). The criteria was displayed to the participants as part of the intro:
contribute to the immediate recovery of the City economy;
enhance or protect Wellington’s position as a leader in innovation and creativity;
seek to use innovation and creativity to support recovery, revitalisation and job protection or creation;
contribute to sustainable economic outcomes; and
align to the WellingtonNZ promotional campaigns.
The session however missed some crucial and foundational elements to catalyse appropriate ideas (and totally appreciate the challenge of managing any group of humans coming together for the first time within the 2.5hours allocated).
What follows is a list of those elements which needed more attention and which can also assist anyone else reading when approaching creative facilitation:
Framework: Outlining the language set and definitions to ensure clarity (for example, what do we mean by creativity? What scale of economic impact is expected from the ideas to aim for? What collaborative examples would illustrate success? etc.). Always good to share any of this before attending as well (in this instance, detailing that all ideas were to remain in the focus of the City Recovery Fund would’ve managed expectations).
Resources: This could be the things in the room (which was evident), also the expertise (who had talent in what areas to be activated), the budgets (if applicable beyond any one session), the time (how is it to be used) etc.
Constraints: Equally as important to what is available are the boundaries. The thresholds and hard deadlines (for applications), the range of grant amounts available, types of things not to explore (all which wasn’t discussed bar one which was at the end when an idea was dismissed as it was part of another plan).
Timescales: Having a simple timeline of expectations from ideation to formulation, to invite to hone ideas and collaborate right through to application and then expected decisions and delivery plus impact. Having a visible agenda helps here along with a shared example of how any work is to blossom into action.
Success / Metrics: There are several ways to answer this one from amount of ideas crafted, the quality, the potential of ideas which fit the framework / resources / constraints as laid out above. This can also be a broad as an invitation to explore based on the brief or a chance to connect with other passionate souls on the same issue. Who is going to measure this and again by what framework?
Intellectual Property: Crucial for trust building is setting clear and tangible creative control. In terms of internal workshops this matters less although named ownership or departmental association is welcomed for celebration. For cross-sector collaborations this is key along with is these ideas are going to be shared elsewhere and to whom with what attribution (it was mentioned towards the end of the session to add individual names onto the sheets of paper we were working on and would imagine that’s the strategy for identification of ideas in this instance).
Looking forward to receiving and seeing all the ideas from the sessions which was discussed as an action at the end of the session plus hearing how some of the ideas will be progressed.
At the time of writing, we have nearly four hundred cases here (no deaths) and taking this approach could ensure the spread is contained.
Nearly all of my paid work has been cancelled although I just got notified I was approved for the COVID-19 Employer Payment for the next three months.
I feel lucky to be where I am.
However, the whole world is sharing this experience and every country is approaching it slightly differently, although many are adopting as isolation strategy.
I’m wondering (out loud) what good can come as we collectively pause together:
SOCIAL
We weren’t ready for this. Some knew:
It’s becoming clear that a mammoth economic recession is coming, along with a radical disruption of societal systems. This is a start not the end, and our overlapping society of nations will have to rethink many of its operating structures.
There’s a collective growing literacy at understanding exponential curves, inter-dependent industries and sectors plus how much small percentage points matter when it relates to economies.
Everything is being revealed as fragile.
Although this does present an opportunity to reflect on what is important. How, after a certain level of comfort and freedom is gained, everything else is a bonus.
We’ll also be critiquing the stale idea of traditional working cultures as swathes of humans turn to digital methods to deliver and continue their workload. However, as the crisis abates, I feel there will be a massive hunger for the physical and in-person again.
There are no special cases when princes, politicians, celebrities are getting it. The real super stars are those illustrating the innate goodness of humans:
Wildlife have rediscovered usually polluted areas like the canals in Italian cities:
https://youtu.be/cm7Py-PsXV4
As time goes on, this global pause will provide precious data and critical evidence for scientists to go further in proving the impact we’re having on the world.
CULTURAL
Talking here about the wider understanding that we all share a common space and are part of an operating system which is now in danger of collapsing.
Our streets and towns and cities personify the quiet we need to reflect on what’s crucial. To ask questions which transcend a rigged monetary system, to recognise the importance of community and amplify the need for evolving the politics of our time.
This forced reset is also ironic, separating us all from symbiotic elements of family, friendship, food, nature, place, space etc. which make us, us.
Going forward, the medical (especially front-liners) and educational establishment needs to be elevated, celebrated and remunerated properly (along with others who are now deemed ‘essential’ like rubbish men, supermarket workers, warehouse workers etc.), whilst we dull the idea of celebrity in its importance.
This crisis simply illustrates how interconnected we all are.
Everything is linked.
All aspects of our well-being are joined to man-made constructs like capitalism as well as natural systems like the wider environment which need to remain healthy.
This is an opportunity to transform.
Become warriors and guardians of wiser and kinder system of living.
This joint deep breath, allows us a chance to redesign our intent as humans in focusing on the right things (rather than continue doing the wrong things righter).
The world has changed so much in three months, imagine if it we were intentional in rebuilding it.
Truly hope wherever you are reading this you’re staying safe and sane.
Your solitude will be a support and a home for you, even in the midst of very unfamiliar circumstances, and from it you will find all your paths.
We are heading backwards not forwards into any kind of gentler approach to help the planet heal.
And I’m really struggling to find the token approach to adding a few bus lanes into the road investment strategy as the way forward as a nation (which builds its reputation on the 100% Pure brand).
I’m currently subcontracting on a piece of work around stakeholder engagement in the capital regarding some ideas to accelerate Wellington’s transformation into a low carbon city to reach their goal of becoming zero carbon by 2050, this has honestly taken the wind out of the sails.
