• Inspiration.

    Posted on February 6th, 2012 by and currently 15 commenting.


    The Erics, looking for inspiration.

    Hello! Hope you’re excited about the week ahead of you. I am.

    About a year or so ago, I posted a blog asking YOU a simple question. And since I LOVED the answers and they all inspired me, I am asking again…

    I really need you guys today.

    I love writing. Think I have shared this before, but I believe writing inspires thinking and exploring and sharing. And thinking and exploring and sharing are good things.

    If you are reading this and hanging out with us, I have to believe you think we add value in your life.

    So, I have a question for you:

    If you and I could spend an entire day together — or if you and anyone from Brains on Fire could spend an entire day together — out walking in the sunshine or drinking some beers or sitting on the side of a mountain, what would you want to talk about?

    I need a little bit of inspiration today. I guess we all do some days. And because I am crazy about you, I’d love for that inspiration to come from you.
    Send me some questions or just your thoughts. I promise I will use your inspiration wisely.

    OXOXOX,
    Robbin

  • http://twitter.com/vigor Joseph Szala

    Is the role of “form follows function” often disregarded for the sake of pretty design?

  • http://www.facebook.com/silas.godfrey Silas Godfrey

    I would like to talk about the best environment for a creative to be creative. Building on that, what are the best ways for a designer to take a little break that may inspire new solutions.

  • Sarah Russell

    Walking side by side out in the brilliant sunshine, next to the Cornish coast; I’d ask you what you thouht the key questions were for helping an individual or business define their vision/ purpose and passion.

  • http://wordswillsaveme.wordpress.com Teresa Basich

    The power of color. :)

  • Morgan Lyons

    What makes you laugh? What makes you cry? Emotions and actions pretty much seem to travel along that continuum. I think from that we’d be able to determine what might help you communicate with whoever you’re wanting to visit with/establish a relationship with. Oh, can could we turn off our email while talking?

  • Hugh

    Seven of the ten poorest counties in the United States are in the OTA states of South DakOTA, North DakOTA, & MinnesOTA. With an aging population and a decline of traditional agriculture and manufacturing, this region will continue to struggle with population decline and economic concerns. Yet, even if you take the metro area of Minneapolis out of the equation, there are still nearly 4 million people that live in OTA. These are some of the most resourceful, hardworking and community-focused individuals on the planet.

    Over the past three years, we have built an event called OTA Sessions that seeks to leverage the creative leadership of this region to address the real world challenges we face. We’ve also been blessed with thought leaders from throughout the world, including you!, who have joined us as creative catalysts.

    If I had the day, drinking a beer, I’d like to talk to you about how we engage the world around a concept of creative philanthropy.  The idea that the challenges of this region (and others) could become a focus of the excess generosity and creative capacity of people throughout the country.

    How do we encourage crowdsourcing not for advertising or product innovation, but instead for creative community building?

  • -=W=-

    Need inspiration? I’m a regular customer of a local sushi restaurant. They recently gave
    me my own set of chopsticks in a nice personalized wooden box – not to take home but
    to keep at the restaurant. Whenever I show up, they bring me my chopsticks
    all clean and ready to go with my meal. What an amazing impression created by this simple, inexpensive gesture.

    If I could spend the day talking with Robbin, we could discuss all the creative ways to give people their own chopsticks.

  • http://twitter.com/tarajerika Tara Cabullo

    What to do when uninspired.

  • Anonymous

    Hey Robin

    I would talk about what needed to be talked about.  

    That’s probably not too helpful, but let me explain.

    I find that talking with an agenda is helpful in the boardroom or office meeting space.

    IT can be helpful at home when deciding what colour to paint the walls.

    However, when out walking, taking in multiple stimuli and exploring, I find that conversation is best left unfettered to roam free.

    This way, you can explore what comes up, allow your brain to freely make links between the shape of a pier, a carving that you saw in a museum, the cool painting you saw on the wall of that museum and the role of color in forming an emotional branding bond.

    It’s how I love to have meetings over coffee with inspiring people. Begin at one place and explore until there’s no breathe left (or light remaining to get home).

    Hope that helps!
    Neil

  • Mcmullenjess

    Let’s talk about how to give others their own Ah-ha moments around the importance of being real with our clients/prospects.  How do I get others to see the gigantic power of small acts? What have you seen that works? 

  • Neil

    People Relationships, especially relationships with those we love. 

  • Kirsten

    If you could recommend a silver bullet to telecoms companies that would convince their customer base and market that they were the best thing since the DVR, what would it be?

  • Robbin

    Dear All, Once again, your comments and your writing has really inspired me to think. Great stuff!

  • Robbin

    Oh Hugh. You are the third person who has shared this same desire with me. I am starting to believe the universe is telling me something. That would a great conversation to have.

  • http://twitter.com/suddenlyjamie Jamie Wallace

    Late to the party, but what I’d like to talk about is the power of slowing down. 

    So many of us are hurtling through our lives in a way that blinds us and numbs us and leaves us wondering, at the end of the day/month/year/life – “What happened?” 

    Competitive markets encourage (demand!) that we are faster, smarter, bigger, louder, brighter, and more prolific than everyone else. We are attempting to sate the appetite of a beast with a bottomless hunger.

    What if we slowed down? What if – one by one – we started to pull back, stop rushing through our tasks and our lives, take our time, step out of time? What if the pattern became a trend that became a wave that became a revolution? How would our lives change? How would life as we know it change? How would humanity change? 

    It would be the perfect topic for a slow and meandering walk along the beach or through the woods, don’t you think? ;)