A soundbite generation...

We love things fast. We love things now. We love things straight to our hands. We love things broken down in tiny chunks. A soundbite...something to summarise and reflect the point, it's there to aid memory and recall, and also, what if people were creating perfect 140 character little soundbites for, I don't know, Twitter perhaps? As a tech savvy generation, we love nothing more than to share our thoughts, likes, daily goings on through the mysterious world of social media. Which, when it works well, I totally love. Communication can be everywhere and it gives people a freedom to showcase their opinions or share what they're currently interested in. As I said, "if it works well", meaning that people don't abuse it for negative, bad lashing out! Fair enough, if you've got a little bit of beef you could vent it, but when it gets personal, there's your finishing line. Back to soundbites! I actually think they are truly genius. When listening to a talk, a lecture, a seminar, whatever, having a soundbite that summarises it all is actually quite an amazing thing. If you, as a speaker, can summarise your 20minute talk into a sentence, big congrats to you, embrace the challenge! It may sound easy, but there's a reason in the first place that they had 20minutes to talk on that particular subject. I personally think, that in a world where there is so much information flying around, plugging a little soundbite at the beginning, middle and end (apparently it takes people 3 times for things to really sink in), will actually help people to remember the key point of what's being said. All in all, do you really think that someone is going to remember the 20 minute talk in it's entirety? Go on, help a friend out...

Hello.

Goodbye.

Goodnight...

A visionary vision...

Oh man! I've had a busy few months and I wrote this a moon ago and I never meant it to slip my radar, but sometimes in life things do! So, here, a couple months late, is my latest post...

At a recent church service, a gem of a phrase was spoken... "visions are born within the heart." It's true, visions are not simply plucked out of thin air, but instead, conjured up over years of thinking, heartache, yearning, excitement, you name it, you've probably felt it! There is a vision or many visions for everyone and I think people should really go after establishing their own. Visions help focus and focus helps life planning. People often say 'go with your head or go with your heart'. It's always confused me slightly, how can people choose between two things that go so well together? Surely you need both! The heart for passion, vision and love. The head (brain) for logic, ideas and strategies. The two are so perfectly compatible. But saying that, when will we ever truly know what our vision is? As a group, we love many things and dip our toes in a lot of 'pies'. We like change. We like new-ness. We like challenges. So how can we delve into what OUR vision is? Having a vision usually implies a singular, long-term idea, something to strive for. But, (big but) what if a vision is a vision of lots of interlocking visions? For me, I've got short-term visions and long-term visions. Different aspects of life, different walks of life. I know that because these are always on my mind (consciously or subconsciously), they're constantly a part of me. Wherever I am, whatever I'm looking at, I'm forever collecting little trinkets of ideas to add to the pile. Think big, do big...

(p.s. I'm not suggesting that life has to be filled to the brim with plans and organisation, go live a little and enjoy spontaneity. Team them together for perfection.)

A day for conversations about barefeet...

April 10th, a brisk but sunny morning! As I ventured barefoot towards the station, a mere 7 minute walk, my feet were already feeling the pain of every little stone on both the road and pavement (yes, I tried both). So much so, I almost put on a pair of flip-flops. The flippant idea didn't last long when I thought about the real reason; "I'm going barefoot so that kids don't have to". One day where conversations will be sparked about a global issue by the simple action of not wearing a pair of shoes. I'm surprised at myself that only 5 minutes into my day did it hit me about the realism of what it's like to not wear shoes. Not only are the children's feet in Third World countries tougher but also, their terrain is probably 10 times worse than my suburban pathway. I had a few double-takes and odd faces, but no real conversations. All along my journey I was thinking, "come on Brits, be courageous and ask me the question everyone else is thinking... Why the barefeet Miss?" The majority of the rest of my day was spent at Southbank having lots of wonderful chats to passer-by's inquisitative about our mini barefoot festival. Barefoot music, barefoot kids entertainment, barefoot art, we had the lot! It's interesting how just one simple act can mean so much...

Walk on, or not...

I walked past the Shoreditch Grind on a post office excursion, and in the back of my mind I thought 'that place looks cool, I should check it out some time.' Weeks went by and I still had not been back. I just so happened to be heading in the same direction again, but this time, I promised myself that I would grab a coffee and enjoy the treats of my new surroundings. The Shoreditch Grind did not disappoint! Usually if something looks good, it is good. Simple! So far on my travels, of all the cool places I've been into (I'm quite a sucker for a cute looking cafe/coffee shop) they have all stood up to or exceeded my expectations. If you walk past something that interests you, I strongly advise that you definitely pop in. You never know when you may walk past it again...

Summerness in a dress...

tba's dresses are definitely to be adored. I eagerly await each new season, hoping one day to be a proud owner of one of their oh so pretty frocks! Whilst having a peek at a few of my favourites from their SS12 collection, take time out of your busy, cold, greyish day and imagine a warm summers day with a delightfully cool tipple and plenty of time to bask in the sunshine, bliss...

Dubious dubiousness...

I'm often quite dubious of new Twitter followers, I find it a little strange when random people/companies/bands start following you. But then it struck me! How else, in a world of endless, unlimitedness will anyone ever find anyone... So you might as well start following friends of friends and friends of friends of friends to get your name out there. Social media is a crazy, speedy, 'straight to the hands' method of spreading. It's the ultimate word-of-mouth, ground level marketing, whether you like to think of it as that or not, alongside a means of communication. When a TV show, band or brand gets mentioned, boom, there's your instantaneous marketing done! Pretty simple really...well not entirely. As a company, you have to take the good with the bad. Some may eliminate all bad, but some take the better option, learn from the bad, to make the extra good. I would like to see businesses really cherishing their customers and inviting them to join in on their journey. And some, through the use of social media are really doing this. Take Topshop as an example. Not only do they post about new products, but they also pick up on fashion trends, artists and quirky finds. It's all a little task about building the Topshop lifestyle, and they've cracked it, customers like to be in the loop about what it is to be a true Topshop customer. The products are one thing, but the lifestyle brings longevity...

The wonderful world of little rectangles...

I don't quite know how but I ended up spending an entire afternoon researching little rectangles... you know, business cards! So, I have a love for branding and the stationery that sits so perfectly alongside, more to the point, the kind of rustic, natural looking stationery. I don't really need a business card, but whilst researching my mind was endlessly putting together my perfect business card. My mind likes to dream big, which I'm not against, it's just the unfortunate situation of not having all of the equipment needed. So I think I will tame the ideas, slightly, and make the most of what I do have around me. In the mean time, here's a selection of all the lovely business cards I found! My research took me here, there and everywhere, so I'm afraid I can't remember the links, but to all of the ones shown below, a big well done to you for creating such magnificent little pieces of artwork! Here goes brain, let's get creative...

 

The anatomy of a cupcake...

Genius! All put together on one surface and snapped away to create this masterpiece... I love the concept of the chart/diagram/whatever you want to call it, as I am a keen baker but also because it is so simply yet creatively done. It has that oomph of colour that cupcakes so dearly desire. Perhaps it will inspire you (and me too) to be more inventive with your cupcake baking. Remember, cupcakes love a bit of colour...

The Anatomy of a Cupcake by Small Batch

Eleanor Roosevelt! What a woman...

Eleanor Roosevelt was not just a First Lady of the United States, she was also a woman who wanted to stand out and stand up for those who could not. I recently came across this quote from her... "You gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You must do the thing which you think you cannot." Such wise words! It hit me, do I face fear straight on? My answer, no! Like most, we tend to avoid fear and the unknown. But why? Truth be told, we never really know what's going to happen until we embrace it. It could be fearful, it could not. But what is fear ever really going to do to you? Possibly kick out some adrenaline, maybe a scary second or two, or perhaps, be the best thing you've ever done! My challenge to myself and you all... Wholeheartedly look fear in the face, maybe it's a small fear, maybe it's a big fear. Whatever it is, embrace it, enjoy it and most of all, live it...

So it's 2012 hey...

That's right, it is now officially 2012! Who'd have thought it hey! In all seriousness though, it doesn't feel like a new year to me! One day down 365 to go (yep, it's a leap year this year folks). Anyway, people like to mark a new year with newness, generally along the lines of: do more exercise, eat healthier etc. I've never really had a new years resolution before, I'm not sure why, but this year I've decided to embrace the newness and be a little bolder in my cultural side. Meaning, try to read more books (I read a grand total of 2 non-curricular books last year!), try to see more live music and go on a few more adventures. I know it doesn't sound very fixed and rigid but I want to have a little sense of spontaneity in there. And as time goes on, more items can be added to my culture building exercise. So here goes 2012, I'm expectant of a superb year with many exciting opportunities...

A bit of a firework spectacle! Happy New Year from London...