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April 10, 2009
brand redux, creativity, place
It's possible that part of the problem is, I've forgotten what makes me unique. I've forgotten what my brand was always about.
I never got into this biz because I was the worlds greatest programmer...because I was amazingly good at math, at logic. I think somewhere along the line I forgot that being a geek is not necessarily 100% about being left-brain, analytical. Some of it is about being thoughtful. Creative.
That's what this whole Internet thing was supposed to be all about. The math, the programming, the databases...all of that was just the bricks and mortar. We still needed to architect the buildings. And beyond that, we needed to dream the buildings, envision the buildings...envision the types of things we could build, that were more than four walls and a roof. What point is it if the paint is different and the windows are in different spots? And what difference does it make to me to try to be the world's greatest carpenter? It's not going to happen...and that's not the point. That's not what I'm good at. It's the imagining...what could we do, to solve these problems in new, better, different ways? Let somebody else worry about the execution...what's the concept?
Now I realize that you can't start out by being the idea guy. You have to do your time in the trenches, laying bricks and snapping chalk lines, because there are a whole lot of bricklayer positions and not many architects and only a handful of artists. But, you hang out in the trenches, and you don't worry so much that you aren't the best bricklayer. You learn about it, but you have to remember, focus on your strengths. What's your core strength? What's your core value, your brand, the thing you bring to the table? And for me, it's that imagination, that creativity.
Instead of spending so much time feeling frustrated about the execution, I've forgotten that the idea is really the thing...the idea lets you work smarter, not harder. And that's where the fun, the passion, the enjoyment really comes from.
I'm starting to understand my brand. It's funny because you live 31 years, you work all this time at different things and go in different directions, and it takes this long just for things to start to jell. You have your youthful idealism and the gritty reality of work and the understanding of business and the experience of the way the world works, and just now, just now, does it all start to make sense.
Anyway, I'm not quitting my job or doing anything crazy, I'm just beginning to come to an understanding of what "me" is, and that's kind of exciting. Exciting to exist within the world as it is now, but to really feel like I'm starting to get what it's all about, what I'm about, and that makes it a lot more fun.
Posted by Mark at April 10, 2009 01:02 AM
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