Nobody wants to read your shit

I read this book a while ago, it’s called Nobody wants to read your shit by Steven Pressfield and it’s brilliant… Then the other day Dave Trott posted an excerpt and it all came back to me… I love this, Steven says it’s the most important lesson he ever learned, and he learned it when […]

Happy Mediums

A lot of advertising has become plagued by clichés, category norms, comfortable territory and accepted ways’ of doing things. Unfortunately for brands who have fallen victim to this, similarity is the road to obscurity (and a huge waste of marketing budget) as they become lost in the crowd Finding happy mediums, familiar territory and compromise’ might keep […]

It’s ok to…

We’re hiring quite a lot of new people at GDS, and that’s brilliant because there are so many new brains and new skills and new faces to get to know. It’s also difficult. It’s difficult for those newcomers to know what to expect, and what’s expected of them. Of course they get told all the […]

Brexit Pt II

I’m hesitant to post anything about the referendum. I respect all of you for whatever you voted, it’s your democratic right to do so, our forefathers fought to give us that right. Just like the Labour/Tory situation, one side felt morally superior and were more willing to post their views publicly. A majority, albeit a […]

The concept of happiness

I actually attack the concept of happiness. The idea that – I don’t mind people being happy – but the idea that everything we do is part of the pursuit of happiness seems to me a really dangerous idea and has led to a contemporary disease in Western society, which is fear of sadness. It’s […]

Opinions

Opinion is really the lowest form of human knowledge. It requires no accountability, no understanding. The highest form of knowledge is empathy, for it requires us to suspend our egos and live in another’s world. It requires profound purpose larger than the self kind of understanding. Bill Bullard

Hasten slowly

Grant yourself a moment of peace, and you will understand how foolishly you have scurried about. Learn to be silent, and you will notice that you have talked too much. Be kind, and you will realise that your judgment of others was too severe. Hasten slowly, and you will soon arrive. Ancient Chinese proverb

Recalibrate what success looks like

Everybody thinks they have to build fucking Uber. Recalibrate what success looks like. Vaynerchuk is marmite, sometimes I love him, sometimes I don’t… this however is good. Worth a watch.

Personality vs. Attitude

Don’t confuse my personality with my attitude. My personality is who I am. My attitude depends on who you are. Frank Ocean

Money vs. Power

Such a waste of talent. He chose money over power. In this town, a mistake nearly everyone makes. Money is the Mc-mansion in Sarasota that starts falling apart after 10 years. Power is the old stone building that stands for centuries. I cannot respect someone who doesn’t see the difference. Francis Underwood

What do you stand for?

If you stand for nothing, you'll fall for anything

3 ways to make a living

Whilst not strictly true, the sheer brilliance of this scene is worthy of a post. Irons and Spacey doing what they do best in Margin Call. I’m also particularly fond of The Music Stops scene:

Brexit Pt I

What a cluster fuck Brexit is. This popped up in my Facebook feed earlier today and I had an immediate knee jerk reaction to it, nothing is ever this clear cut: So, without any further ado-ing, here’s the full post for your delectation: Alright, you filthy animals. I don’t normally do this, because I […]

Advertisers are taking the piss out of you everyday

You can’t buy your privacy back.

Not only is he Bond, he talks a whole world of sense. Look at the Kardashians, they’re worth millions, I don’t think they were that badly off to begin with, but now look at them. You see that and you think, ‘What, you mean all I have to do is behave like a fucking […]

Being a fucking idiot is a valuable commodity

We’re at a place where the idea of being ‘elite’ is somehow considered a negative. Whether it’s Paris Hilton or Kim Kardashian or whoever, stupidity is certainly celebrated. Being a fucking idiot is a valuable commodity in this culture because you’re rewarded significantly. Incuriousness has become cool… It’s celebrated. It doesn’t make sense to me. […]

Mad Max

I see so much of myself in Max. Love this scene.

The Banker and The Fisherman

An American investment banker was at the pier of a small coastal Mexican village when a small boat with just one fisherman docked. Inside the small boat were several large yellow fin tuna. The American complimented the Mexican on the quality of his fish and asked how long it took to catch them. The Mexican […]

That’s life

I’m not one of those complicated, mixed-up cats. I’m not looking for the secret to life… I just go on from day to day, taking what comes. Frank Sinatra

Selling ourselves. Selling everything.

I still cannot understand the logic behind why there is such an obsession with celebrity in western society today. Such bizarre voyeurism from both the paparazzi and the people who support them. Daily Mail, I’m looking at you. What are we doing? Selling ourselves. Selling everything. The happiest day of my life – oh, […]

It’s not my problem

I think we’ve been through a period where too many people have been given to understand that if they have a problem, it’s the government’s job to cope with it: ‘I have a problem, I’ll get a grant.’ ‘I’m homeless, the government must house me.’ They’re casting their problem on society. And, you know, there […]

Social Media is Bullshit

The self aggrandising world of social media. By and large, it’s bullshit.

Do you know who I am?

At the start of the exam, the invigilator says, “You have exactly 2 hours. I will not accept any papers after this time has elapsed.” Two hours later, the invigilator calls out, “Time’s up, Ladies and Gentlemen.” One student is still scribbling away ten minutes later when the invigilator has all the collected papers in […]

My favourite Blair-Clinton exchange

my favourite Blair-Clinton exchange

False standards and reclaiming the metrics of success

A snob is anybody who takes a small part of you and uses it to come to a complete vision of who you are. That is snobbery. And the dominant form of snobbery that exists today is job snobbery — you encounter it within minutes at a party when you get asked that famous, iconic […]

Ballmer on the iPhone

Let’s not even discuss what happened with Nokia.

Motivation comes from within

You shouldn’t have to look to others to provide you with your source of motivation. True, meaningful motivation must come from within. You must have a deep seated desire to accomplish your goals. If you aren’t filled with passion for what you do and you aren’t intrinsically motivated then there are no words that another […]

Fuck you Facebook

Reason for leaving (required)

Secrecy

I have grown to love secrecy. It seems to be the one thing that can make modern life mysterious or marvellous to us. The commonest thing is delightful if one only hides it. When I leave town now I never tell my people where I am going. If I did, I would lose all my […]

You’re still a rat

The trouble with the rat race is that even if you win, you’re still a rat. Lily Tomlin