Design in the Moment

Guest: Mindy Budgor, the first woman Maasai warrior. Mindy, dubbed Tause Punda or Peacock Donkey, became the first woman to complete the rites of Maasai warrior training last summer. She has a professional background in entrepreneurship and marketing and is documenting her incredible adventure in her first book GOAT HEAD SOUP. Listen as we hear about her adventure as well as thoughts on:

Technology making donating easier, Thandi Wine, An Update on the Daily Talk, Toms shoes, Bike Culture in Denmark,

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Today we take some time to discuss a couple topics that have slipped by in the last couple weeks. We talk about the changing attitudes of business, a city of mystery, great music and end with a culinary note. Agree? Disagree? Let us know what you think.

Saatchi CEO- This article led us to talk about how financial stress is effecting business. When you have to start letting people go, you reshape their lives. And that can be kind of intimidating. It’s important during this time, to treat people (employees, customers and all society) with respect and care. We’re coming into an age where more people follow a higher purpose. Money isn’t the sole focus of businesses anymore. Leaders guide and inspire. They have an obligation to promote creativity instead of fear.

MIT’s Legatum Center- This article spurs us to talk a little more in depth about the shift in focus. Recently, people have been having a much harder time getting money from banks to start a business. This program helps to start connecting some of the ideas with the capitol and advice they need. It promotes the rise of new ideas, which will in turn start to stimulate economy. It shows, again, that when we all start working together for the greater good, we really can create change.

Air Powered Motorcycle- We think motorcycles in general are pretty neat. They’re the closest thing to make you feel like you’re flying. This air powered one is really interesting. even if we’re not quite sure how it works yet. The use of an air tank makes is almost like scuba diving on wheels, above ground. Hopefully this kind of green thinking will start to influence other motorcycle companies as well. We’ll keep an eye on where this goes.

Marfa, TX- Marfa is an interesting little town. There’s not a whole lot there. It was discovered by Hollywood as a prime filming location. Since then, it swings between being super busy during filming and being abandoned. Very few people actually live in Marfa. And most visitors seem to be drawn by its emptiness and absurdity. It’s a tiny piece of humanity in the middle of nowhere. To further punctuate this, Prada has built a fully stocked store/ art piece here. It’s a complete store, but you can’t buy anything. Creating this isolated bit of preciousness speaks to the brand’s ability to explore and become a little vulnerable.

It Might Get Loud- This movie is a collection of interviews and collaborative experiences of Jack White, Jimmy Page and The Edge. One of the things that struck us while viewing this movie, is how articulate they each are. They speak animatedly about their roots and the music they love. It’s pretty cool how the magic of music can transport people. These very distinct creative personalities have a little trouble relating to each other at times, but are definitely in awe of one another. They appreciate each others differences and learn from them. We loved watching each one play guitar with such different creative processes.

Save Food from the Fridge- This is such a beautiful and interesting idea. It’s a wooden rack system outside the refrigerator that keeps food at its freshest. They store certain foods together that help preserve each other. the aesthetics drew us, but we also like how it promotes your connection with the food. We would love to see how this kind of thinking could be used at grocery stores, such as whole foods.

Historical Food Tour of Paris- In the Napoleonic time, when France was wealthy, Grimod wrote a guide to the local restaurants. This article retraces those steps, looking for any places that might be the same or similar. This journey reminds us of how much dining influences life. The act of sharing food and new experiences creates a connection and helps the mind start to free up. This is part of the reason that companies take clients out to eat. Or why creative teams brainstorm over dinner. Taking that a bit further, the act of actually cooking the food becomes an exercise of creation. making something new from many parts.

Let us know what you think of these designing moments.

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Guest: PJ Loughran, the founder of Kerosene Creative Services. PJ has 15 years of experience across a wide range of creative disciplines. Along with toiling away in the interactive world, PJ has built a career as a professional illustrator. He has created more than 2000 illustrations for clients including Sports Illustrated, GQ, Rolling Stone, Nike, Harper Collins, Burton Snowboards and a cover for Time Magazine. PJ is also an accomplished saxophonist, singer and composer. Since 2001, he has performed for audiences across the country including opening spots for R.E.M., Maroon 5, REO Speedwagon and others. Listen as we chat with him about media, entertainment, marketing and education.

Flixster buys Rotten Tomatoes, Media Spending Changes, FreeAllMusic.com, Apple buys Lala, Mini’s Big Boxes, Papergirl Art Project,

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Hello and happy holidays! We hope everyone had an excellent year. We are excited to be closing out our first year of podcasting in a brand new studio. Going forward we will be recording in the beautiful Shirk Studios at 700 N. Green St. Today we are doing our end of the year review and touching back on some of our more memorable discussions.

Take a listen to some of our highlights-

How we began and how it’s effected us- We started to take a new view about how to be more human.

Veneering ideas and businesses versus being holistic- We can’t just wallpaper a room. We have to fix the insides. We have to push back a little when clients want to do the short term fixes and help them create the richer experience.

The economy- How do we take the lessons were learning now and hold on to them? We have to stand up for our point of view even when things begin to change.

Car Talk: Tata Nano, Mini Cooper…- Cars tend to be a good metaphor for design and design reality.

Music: Beatles, Regina Spektor, Polly Scattergood, Allan Tousaint…- Music is another good metaphor for the conversation of creativity and pushing boundaries.

Travel- Spain, NY, Germany, New Orleans, Italy, France, Sweden…- Traveling gives you a new perspective as you experience the unique textures of each place.

The Age of the Unthinkable by Joshua Ramo- This book creates a sense of out of control-ness, but gives us insights on how this connectedness can not only be understood, but also be influenced.

Great Guests- Gabe Bridger, Chas Hermann, Chris Bernard, Rich Letchinger, Howard Ecker, Brian Timpone, Barry Krause, Tom Stat, Howard Behar- We realized that another voice in the conversation would bring new insights and that everyone has something to share. Our guests have been wonderful and we loved having each one of them.

Our favorite piece of the year would have to be the Daily Talk, chalkboard newspaper. Its simplicity and humanness impacts the society around him. Sometimes the non-digital route is the most effective.

This year has taught us that just having the conversation is important. Smart people don’t have all the answers, but just talking about these things and how they influence us as people can start to open minds to new possibilities.

Thank you for joining us this year and we hope to see you next year!

Let us know what you think about these designing moments.

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