highlights
dropping snippets or images from articles, blogs, and books, that specially resonates with me*
highlights
In the absence of religion and other community belonging, consumers yearn to find the brands they can use as signals for identity curation and kinship – signaling to other Glossier or Stanley cup girls that no actually, we’re the same. Brands do this signaling implicitly (owning Aesop hand soap reveals something about you - well-to-do, metropolitan... See more
People want to identify either something: a message, a vision, a lifestyle. That’s what great brands do the best at, they make people as a part of something particularly unique to that brand, which customers they can be included in.
Can you give an example?
Sure. In the past, Google encouraged its employees to use part of their workday for passion projects—without requiring them to align with the company’s strategic goals. One of the outcomes was Gmail, one of the most used apps outside of their search engine.
Sure. In the past, Google encouraged its employees to use part of their workday for passion projects—without requiring them to align with the company’s strategic goals. One of the outcomes was Gmail, one of the most used apps outside of their search engine.
Marc Posch • Useless Projects: Catalyst for Creative Ideas
When you free yourself from these pressures, your creative genius can rise to the surface again. Over time, these seemingly "useless" projects lead to fresh ways of thinking and help designers grow—both practically and metaphysically, as writer Maria Popova would say. And in the end, clients benefit from the designer’s exploration, even if the proj... See more
Marc Posch • Useless Projects: Catalyst for Creative Ideas
Before we talk about "useless" projects, let’s take a moment to look at a "useful" one. In a typical project, a designer’s creative potential often sits buried, like a dormant hydrogen atom, as compromises and decisions by committee guide the client/creative relationship. Many of the ideas that ignite excitement in the designer are worn down by the... See more
Marc Posch • Useless Projects: Catalyst for Creative Ideas
When you are able to create outside of any obligation, but out of total curiosity, experimentation, and freedom, that is where you are able to unleash more of your full, unique potential.
Whether that’s for design, art, or even business (e.g. like a random product), that is where the magical happens.
The idea is, the fewer constraints we’re exposed to, the more authentic the artwork becomes. While this may not be commercially viable right away, that’s not the point.
I want to initiate something that can bleed into future concepts—a platform, an incubator, where designers can show not what is, but what could be. It’s about experimenting with styl... See more
I want to initiate something that can bleed into future concepts—a platform, an incubator, where designers can show not what is, but what could be. It’s about experimenting with styl... See more
Useless Projects: Catalyst for Creative Ideas
inspired by a quote from design icon Charles Eames:
"My dream is to have people working on useless projects. These have the germ of new concepts."
"My dream is to have people working on useless projects. These have the germ of new concepts."
Useless Projects: Catalyst for Creative Ideas
DISTINCTIVENESS is the quality that causes a brand expression to stand out from competing messages. If it doesn’t stand out, the game is over. Distinctiveness often requires boldness, innovation, surprise, and clarity, not to mention courage on the part of the company.
Marty Neumier • The Brand Gap: How to Bridge the Distance Between Business Strategy and Design
A charismatic brand includes a dedication to aesthetics. Why? Because it’s the language of feeling, and in a society that’s information-rich and time-poor, people value feeling more than information.
Marty Neumier • The Brand Gap: How to Bridge the Distance Between Business Strategy and Design
For Teresa and John, the dark night—indeed all of life—is nothing other than the story of a love affair: a romance between God and the human soul that liberates us to love one another.