Everybody wants to have a relatinship these days

It used to be quite different, you know?

At one time, you'd know exactly what you wanted, you'd find the target, make the proposition and wait for a reaction. And when the reaction came, boy would you know! You could measure the impact, it was so clear...after all you pretty much defined the reaction when you made the proposition.

Now, so it seems everything has changed. That target and their reaction isn't so clear anymore. Not only that, it's not even clear what it is you want, or how to tell the target or even know who target is with any certainty. It's like Heisenberg just dropped into your conversation and now the closer you come to directing the message, the less you know who to tell it to.

All of a sudden you haven't a clue of what's going on! And since you don't know who else to ask, you ask the target of your attention.

And of course, they don't want to be dictated to. Oh no, they want to be equals. They want to have a say. They want...a relationship. They want to be part of your world, and if need be even change it; it's not enough to know what you do...they want to know your "vision". They want to share, grow and live along side you. It's no longer "do this cause it's good for you" or "do that, because I know better". Now you have to tell them a story...and then you even have to listen to theirs!

Like it or not, you want to survive in the world today, you gotta give them a relationship or they'll just look the other way.

It seems the old order is gone. Sure you still see a few old stalwarts around who don't believe in all this mumbo-jumbo, but there's less and less of them around, and more importantly less people listening to them. No sirree, there is a new order about things and who knows where this will lead?

So there you have it...you do realise I'm talking about communication in advertising and brand creation, right?

Ideas Shmideas

Our first assignment, given at the end of the day was to come up with 20 new ideas for the following morning.

Easy, huh? Well I wish I'd had fielded suggestions on this blog beforehand. On second thought, seeing that the only people who read this are me and that guy with the fetish for reading blogs that nobody but the author reads, it probably wouldn't have made a difference. Although, in his defence, it pretty creative how he manages to type with only one hand.

There were no restrictions or requirements given for the ideas, other than they were, umm, real, I guess. So for example, the idea that we should remove gravity so that cars are lighter and consume less fuel is only really valid if you can pitch it to God, but it's notoriously difficult to get an interview with him.

Now if some science guy happens to be looking over Fetish guy's shoulder while connecting the electrodes (there's no reason to think that fetish guy can't be multi-disciplinary in that sense) and sees this, he might say that that's a perfectly valid idea; all you have to do is create a local bubble in space-time where gravity is altered... Yeah, well it's just as difficult to get interviews with Space-Time Bubble Inc, so get back to those electrodes.

So when, like me, you have the same capacity for creative thought as a particularly retarded toadstool, your brain turns to your immediate surroundings and what appears to be ideas, is just a well-guised bitch list of things that happen to annoy you. So I used up my entire 20 ideas on the train trying to invent creative ways to prevent my bum from going numb, my feet from falling asleep, how to shut up the guy talking on the phone; Of course, whenever an attractive woman walked on the train, I had the bright idea of x-ray goggles...as of course did every other guy.

Some of the students came up with pretty impressive ideas that were leaps and bounds beyond numb bums, but if wouldn't be right if I tell you what they are. Of course, I could be convinced otherwise if I get the cut of the profits of whichever ideas you steal. It's still not"right" in the traditional view, but in these new ways of thinking, you never can tell...mainly because these new ways change constantly to suit whatever the speakers point of view.

Other students also came up with great ideas, I think. But they described them in Dutch, so I couldn't really tell. But hey, that's what yet when studying in Paramaribo.

The first rule of being creative is...

Well, I have no idea. But it should become apparent - as well as all the other rules - over the course of the next 9 months. During the same amount of time it takes to create a new human, I will learn that, for example, "Everything is an opportunity". For what, I'm not exactly sure.

Hmm, that could be rule number 1. And rule number 2 would probably have to be the cliche that there are no rules. And since there are no rules, I can choose to define some anyway.

"Opportunity seeking is not like problem solving"...it's not like shrimp cocktail either, but it would take way too long to go through all things that its not.

It's all about "looking at negative space...the stuff that's not there". Don't worry, you'll know it when you can't see it. And when you don't see it, you'll recognize it as something you can do, but don't know whether you want to!

Finally, it seems that even the uber-creative industries can't slink away from the omni-present need to "create value" which is the mantra from business to IT consulting to...I don't know escort agencies.

The difference is that there is "movement" from the initial criticism to when value is added. Well, to be honest, there is movement in escort agencies as well, but its more up and down then across.