The Stage of a Journey: Rest

Meditations on Respite I was thinking about a remark from Tom Ford, that, to him, the greatest luxury is “sleep.” According to Dawn Mello — in a dinner conversation with her and her pal, Dawn A. Clark — when she was working with Tom Ford, at...

I’m Okay, You’re OK.

What is Okay, anyway? I was thinking about the notion of OK, what’s that mean, really? The state of Okayness seems mediocre — it’s a condition where things are simply “all right,” alright. All is right? What’s rightness, a place of...

The Sound and the Fury

The Acoustical Messages of Place In my study of experience narrative design and the experiencer in place — for me and for others — I ponder the notion of sound. As a designer of places to be, to tell stories, to share ideas and products, to evoke comfort,...

Wowness

The Quest for Amazement I’m a Scot; and “wow” is a Scottish word from the 1500s. I find another reference of equal interest, the Southern New England Algonquian [Narragansett] framing, the “powwow.” powwaw “shaman, medicine man,...

Soul

SOUL, STORY, BRAND In the history of the work of strategy and design, when it comes down to it, what have you done? Is it about the roaring financial success you have achieved? Or is it about the learnings, the journey, the sorting of experiences? For my practice it...

Zen and Branding

The Contemplative Walk My earlier studies of Thich Nhat Hanh revolved around the walking meditation — grounding into the earth, walking, breathing, contemplating the open stride; that mindful, mindless walk, open-to-the-moment ambulatory meditation. Being in,...

The WATCHER

What Are You Looking At? In the journey of examination, the notion of self study is part of that voyage. But who’s with you, who’s helping; who’s reMinding you? I think that each of us has an ancient soul, something that goes back and back, far into...

JOURNEY, THE STRIDE OF BRAND

WHAT IF YOU’RE THE BRAND? We’ve written a lot about the brand of you. The truth of the brand will lie in the journey; in exploring any brand, our path is journey — what route has it been, what telling to the past, the present, the future? That goes...