Swenson Mag Vol.03 - English by Kevin Le Goff

minimalist ISSUE 2020

Team

Publication Director Charles Fourault Creative Director Kevin Le Goff

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Editors

About Swenson

Photographers

Nicole Bianchi, Charles Fourault, Ruben Lenten, Des Traynor, Jamie Ramsay, Deborah Rippol

Ethan Gulley, Alexandre Tabaste, Chadwick Tyler, Fred Goris, Nichole Ricketts, Zach Hetrick, Jeff Henrikson, Cory Gehr, Paul Barberra, Gary He, Geordie Woods, Sam Nixon, Matthew Carbone

Featured

Scott Belsky, Thomas Middleditch, Jennifer Brook, Amir Mohamadzadeh, Max Vallot & Tom Daly, Sebastian Westin, Jonathan Azoulay, Deborah Rippol, Baptiste Manson, Cory Gehr, Escape from Acapulco, Nate Pinsley, Des Traynor, Nicole Bianchi, Ruben Lenten, Jamie Ramsay

Translation & Proof-reading Lindsay King, Virginie Gore-Coty

Thanks to

Vassili Verrecchia, Jean-Charles Samuelian, Amir Mohamadzadeh, Lindsey Latham, Virginie Gore-Coty, Johanne Corre, Francis Patin, and all the people who supported and believed in Swenson since the beginning.

Swenson, is a community of entrepreneurs, creatives and passionate people.

Swenson Magazine is designed at The Swenson House. Printed in Italy.

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Disclaimer

Any reproduction, even partial (texts, photos, logos, graphic elements), is strictly prohibited without authorization. The opinions expressed herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of Swenson Magazine and its team. Swenson Magazine took care to contact each of the authors of the photos used in this magazine. If you claim ownership of a photo and have not been identified, please contact Swenson. We will be happy to formally mention your name in an upcoming edition. nÂ° ISSN : 2497-7063

Vol.03 Edito

The Adventure Continues Since we launched in 2016, our mission has been to create inspiring places and content for a community composed of entrepreneurs, creatives, artists, athletes, or anyone looking to find a new sense of balance in their lives. A community enthusiastic about inventing tomorrow’s way of working today. Swenson Magazine has been dedicated to these very men and women from its outset. A handful of them have already shared deeply moving stories, including Joe Gebbia, Mike Horn, Patrick Dempsey, Arthur de Kersauson, Stuart Butterfield, Susi Mai, Rand Hindi, Fred Jourden, James Lafferty, Vince Perraud, Leila Janah, Dare Jennings, Jason Fried, Rick Ridgeway, Ryan Kingman, Patrick Long, Lauren Hill, Chad DiNenna, Morgan Maassen, Jeff Rosenthal, Alex Strohl, Molly Benn and many others. They are the ambassadors of a generation that has not just watched, but been an integral force, behind the changes sweeping through our societies around the world. It’s a world in Scott Belsky aims to grow everyone’s creativity, an ambition that has driven him since founding Behance in 2006. And if you ask Jennifer Brooks, creativity is becoming a more and more collaborative affair, as her research studying the highest performing teams around the world can attest. Above all, these new-generation teams are on a quest for meaning, leadership, and impact. Young entrepreneurs, creatives, movers, and shakers are looking to leave their mark. Ownership and empowerment are worth far more to them than a generous salary in a big, Fortune 500 company. It’s a generation that isn’t afraid to move mountains, test its limits, or get out of its comfort zone by turning their lives upside down, like Jamie Ramsey did by quitting the City in London in 2014 to run across the American continent without assistance, covering more than 17,000 km. It’s solitude that fuels the creative force behind this generation. The founders of District Vision extoll the benefits of solitude and reflection with a holistic approach to athleticism that blends running, yoga, and meditation. Yet, for this generation, solitude is not a synonym for isolation. Community is a powerful lever, one that Amir Mohamadzadeh uses to his advantage regularly as the co-founder of ROSEWOOD, a social first agency he launched in 2013 in the ever-creative and effervescent city of Los Angeles... ...Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York, Brooklyn, Paris, Stockholm, Amsterdam… We adventured across these 7 cities to bring this new volume of Swenson Magazine to life, to bring you into the dynamic energy pulsing throughout the world, so that you, in turn, might be inspired by it. And if Los Angeles or Stockholm are too far, you’re always welcome in our home, your home, at the Swenson House in Audierne, France.

Charles Fourault Chief Editor

Table of contents The Frame 10 Creative Visionary with Scott Belsky No algorithm for success with Thomas Middleditch

Modern Minds 26

Inspire with Jennifer Brook Social first with Amir Mohamadzadeh

Playground 44 Mental story with District Vision A Nordic journey for sustainability with Sandqvist

Talents

Mindset 64

The Ownership Generation with Jonathan Azoulay Empowerment: 3 Keys to Successful Business by Deborah Rippol

Expositions with Cory Gehr Acapulco Sun in Your Ears with EFA

Places

Future of deisgn with Nate Pinsley

102

Instructors 116 Understanding direct and indirect competition with Des Traynor How to Build Trust With Your Audience by Writing Conversationally with Nicole Bianchi

Balance

126

Flying high with Ruben Lenten Running the Americas by Jamie Ramsay

FAILURE TO COMMIT IS AS BAD AS FAILURE TO START

01/ THE FRAME/ 10

Creative Visionary with Scott Belsky No Algorithm for success with Thomas Middleditch

Creative Visionary

Scott Belsky

Behance Founder

est selling author.

haps the best known. Ac-

Serial

entrepre-

quired by Adobe in 2012 for

neur. Venture part-

upwards of $150M, today

ner at Benchmark. Mobile

millions of creatives use the

product strategy lead at

platform to display their

Adobe. All part and par-

portfolios, and it has be-

cel of Scott Belsky’s track

come a tool to track and find

record of entrepreneuri-

top talent across the crea-

al achievement. If Belsky

tive industry. After acquir-

doesn’t ring a bell, he soon

ing Scott’s company, Adobe

will. Scott’s self-proclaimed

asked him to help reboot

passion is making the crea-

their mobile product strate-

tive world more productive,

gy, a role he held until 2016.

connected, and adaptive to

Above and beyond his work

new technologies. There’s

as an entrepreneur, Scott’s

no better proof of this than

side hustles include work as

the projects he’s lead and

a Venture Partner at Bench-

pursued. Behance is per-

mark, one of the world’s

Resourcefulness is more important than the resources leading San Francisco based venture capital firms. Not content to simply invest, he supports his teams as an active advisor, with personal stakes in consumer driven companies such as Uber, Pinterest, or Warby Parker. And although heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s turn Behance over to Adobe, Scott remains active in creative fields, organising and empowering the creative class through 99U, an annual think tank and conference devoted to the industry. Arelentless advocate for technology, creative potential, and an entrepreneurial powerhouse, Scott has also authored an international bestselling tome, Making Ideas Happen and a second book is slated for release at the end of the year. Swenson caught a slot of time with this serial entrepreneur to talk about their shared values and vision.

The Frame Scott, you have a longstanding relationship with Ado-

these challenges? How are the tools you’re developing

be. Can you tell us more about this new chapter at

playing a part?

Adobe and the new position?

When I close my eyes and think about what the creative

Well, sure! For many years, my passion has been imagin-

world should look like in three to five years from now, it’s

ing products for creative people. In a day and age where

very different. I see a suite of cloud-first tools, so we’re

labor is commoditized and automated, people need to

not chained to the desktop anymore. They will help us to

capitalise on creativity. So building tools and services for

work whenever we want. Just imagine the power of tools

creatives, or anyone, to express that creativity is extreme-

like Photoshop working on phones and your iPad. You’ll

ly important to me. From a gut perspective, and specif-

really be able to pick up your work wherever you left

ically for Adobe. Adobe acquired my business, so a lot

off, regardless of what device you’re using or where you

of my own vision has been blended into the company. A

happen to be inspired. I also see less middlemen, such

lot of my team is still there. And I’m just so very passion-

as headhunters or agencies. Imagine a world where cre-

ate about helping the company’s and product strategy

atives have more access to opportunities so companies

evolve, so when I was given the opportunity to return,

can hire them directly, on their own terms, and pay them

you know, I just felt like it was one of those opportunities

directly. Finally, I see a world where creatives lead their

I couldn’t pass up.

own careers better. They’re more equipped in terms of managing and hiring people. They’ll be more efficient

Fostering creativity is what drives you and everything

on the business side of their work.

you do. Behance was your vision for “organizing the

Another big thing I’m focusing on throughout all the

creative world”. How would you define the creative

product teams at Adobe is driving efficiency and pro-

world today and how has it evolved since you founded

ductivity. Making sure that people can accomplish more

Behance in 2006?

with less effort. If you look at the creative workflow today

I think that when I started Behance, most creatives

in a product like Photoshop, or any creative tool for that

worked at agencies or were freelancers, so they always

matter, there’s so much mundane, repetitive work. It’s the

felt like they were at the mercy of circumstance. They

kind of stuff you’d rather hand off to someone else to do

would try to get gigs whenever they could, and there

for you. It’s not creative work. This is the type of stuff we

was very little attribution to who did what in the creative

should be automating thanks to technologies like Arti-

world. I think that Behance, along with other sites too,

ficial Intelligence and better product design, so it just

has helped match great talents to great opportunities.

makes you more productive.

Rather than feeling like their career is compromise if they go solo, Behance helps them get credit for the work

How do you see AI and VR technologies changing cre-

they do, so they can go off on their own and have a thriv-

ative workflow?

ing career. I’d say that’s the biggest change. Nowadays,

One of our big focuses as a company is experience de-

people recognize that they can’t just have their work on

sign. That’s not just screen design for web, mobile, or

their own portfolio sites, they need to have it in a net-

tablet, but it’s designing for new mediums like voice

work so it can get found and they can build a network

and augmented reality. I’m challenging our teams to

amongst their peers. It’s also exciting to think about the

think about where experience design will be tomorrow,

fact that Behance has been integrated into the creative

not where it is today. I want to be sure we help equip all

tools people use, and that’s another point of progress

kinds of creative professionals to succeed in these new

we’ve made in the last ten plus years.

mediums. That doesn’t necessarily mean building new tools, it means improving our current tools by adding

What do you think the creative industry’s next chal-

new functionalities. For example, if you’re making an in-

lenges are? How are Adobe and Behance addressing

terface in Adobe XD, our experience design product

Scott Belsky and you want to plug that interface into augmented real-

through different mediums and building what I like to

ity, what can we do to automatically render that as a 3D

call a “holistic brand”, that’s differentiating. It helps to

interface? Those are the types of questions we’re trying

distinguish you from all the other competitors in the

to figure out. It’s hard to learn a new tool, it takes a long

space. It also makes you a lot more than just the primary

time. But if you’re a designer and your client comes to

product you’re selling, and it builds relationships in ways

you and says, “Hey, I also want you to make a voice ver-

I can’t even describe. It’s a powerful thing.

sion of this app for Alexa” or “I want to make this as an interface that works in augmented reality,” you as a de-

You bootstrapped Behance for several years before

signer need to be able to do that without much trouble. I

raising money. Do you think that founders focus too

think that’s one of the opportunities and responsibilities

much on raising money these days? Rather than find-

we have as a company: to help designers do that sort of

ing creative solutions to stand out in the market and

thing. We’re building workflow to help creatives do that.

build competitive advantage?

As one example, we’ve done that for Photoshop. You can

Another saying of mine is that “Resourcefulness is more

take something out of Photoshop into a new product we

important than the resources.” With too many resources,

call Dimension and it can automatically map it onto any

you won’t develop the resourcefulness that makes you a

3D object. Instead of having to spend all that time think-

great leader and a great company that can endure any

ing what a logo might look like on a soda can, or some

sort of hardship. As an entrepreneur, I had to bootstrap

other 3D object, this product does it for you, perfectly.

Behance and I learned about the granularity of our business, how it works and what the pace was. There was so

Let’s circle back to your experience as an entrepre-

much that I learned having to do that, so I think there’s

neur for a moment. At Behance, your growth strategy

something to be said for that.

was medium-agnostic. Your mission was to “organize the creative world”, so to speak, through digital plat-

Since 2010, you’ve been a seed-stage investor, putting

forms, events, conferences, or even books you au-

money into companies such as Uber, Pinterest, Warby

thored. When you’re a startup trying to focus on one

Parker, Outdoor Voices and more. You’ve also met a

product, this may appear unusual. Why did you adopt

lot of entrepreneurs thanks to your work as a venture

a holistic strategy, much closer to a brand develop-

partner at Benchmark. How do you define entrepre-

ment strategy?

neurship today?

I have a saying, which is that Behance is mission-centric

It’s hard to generalize. A lot of people are jumping in be-

but medium-agnostic. We never diverged from our mis-

fore they’ve had the experience of learning how a busi-

sion, but we were willing to use any medium possible to

ness is built, and that’s fine! It just means it takes longer

accomplish it. That’s how modern brands are built, par-

to figure it out. Much of entrepreneurship is about stick-

ticularly when people talk about their content strategy or

ing together long enough to figure it out. The hardest

when they hold events to build relationships with their

part is keeping a team together, because you may feel

customers in the physical world. For instance, more and

like you’re struggling while everyone else looks like

more digital brands are opening brick and mortar stores

they’re succeeding. It a team sticks together long enough,

to establish a physical footprint. It’s all about building

they may become experts and be very successful in what

a brand that hits all the senses. I wouldn’t advise every

they're doing. But it takes time and patience and that's

startup to make paper products, host a conference, and

rare. The more experience an entrepreneur is, the more

build technology. I think that can kill you. But if you can

they know. I always get excited when I meet people who

pull it off, whether it’s through outsourcing or partner-

are taking the plunge, and obviously I think that entre-

ships or third-party services, delivering your mission

preneurship is one of the greatest sources of making the 15

The Frame

Building something from nothing is one of the most rewarding things you can do.

world a better place. Building something from nothing is, I think, one of the most rewarding

Entrepreneurship is one of the greatest sources of making the world a better place

things you can do. A mistake a lot of entrepreneurs make is building something because theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re passionate about it, not because they have empathy for the customerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s pain point. I always encourage entrepreneurs to focus on developing empath for the pain points before jumping in and creating a solution.

Scott Belsky

“The middle stretch of any endeavour is the most important, but often the most ignored and misunderstood. We love to talk about starts and finishes, but not that in-between.”

I recently watched one of your videos, “What are you willing

about the middle of adventures and bold projects. It’s about hav-

to be better at?” on YouTube. I was intrigued by your idea

ing endurance and getting through the difficult parts of build-

of considering oneself a product, too, and thinking about

ing a business or creative project. The middle stretch of any en-

how you have to improve yourself, whether you’re a founder,

deavour is the most important, but often the most ignored and

a manager, or a creative. How would you coach an entrepre-

misunderstood. We love to talk about starts and finishes, but

neur to think about himself and not just on the product he’s

not that in-between. Every business or creative project is "go-

developing?

ing great" until it fails. The bumps along the road are endured

Well, I think it’s really about understanding your strengths and

in isolation. We don't talk about the middle because we're not

weaknesses. It’s about knowing what you’re really good at and

proud of the turbulence. This book sets out to change that.

doing it more, and making sure you put yourself in a position

Aside from the book, I am of course working at Adobe, trying to

within your company where you're doing what your best at. But

help develop and improve product strategy. It’s a fun mix lead-

it’s also recognising your weaknesses. What are you willing to be

ing the creative team at adobe and then writing about how cre-

bad at? What areas aren’t your strong suit? For example, me, I’m

ative teams stay together and persevere long enough to achieve

not very tolerant of process. I’m not the best person to ensure

something. That's a very good combination.

that a process is followed and I need to surround myself with really great operations and program management type folks. They really keep me on track and can help force the process when I might let it flip. And that's something I've figured out myself and that sort of knowledge is gold. Because that really helps you build a great team around you and make up for whatever you're missing. Can you share a few words about the book you’re finishing? Sure! The book is my big focus right now and it’s slated for release in early October. The title is The Messy Middle, and is all

No algorithm for success Thomas Middleditch Actor

“I want to support environmental causes and be an activist, and my investments are a good way to do so.” Small screen actor by day, entrepreneur by night. Thomas Middleditch, the Canadian star in HBO’s Silicon Valley, doesn’t just play an entrepreneur as Richard Hendricks. He’s actually a real-life investor, environmental activist, and outdoor lover. We ventured out to West Hollywood, where we chatted over Teriyaki Salmon Bowl’s to talk success, passion, and his master plan in an unconventional movie industry.

The Frame

Thomas, can you start by telling us a bit about

didn’t happen. Then I went to New York, and now

your background and how you broke into act-

I’m here. Opportunities opened themselves up as

ing?

I pursued comedy. I could go on forever, but I’ll

I was fortunate enough to have found a drama

get boring quickly [laughs]!

teacher that saw something in me and cast me in plays. I was a student in a school with an improv

No, that’s interesting! We meet a lot of entre-

troupe, which was great because it was pretty

preneurs and successful people, we want to tell

rare. I’ve been doing improv for over 20 years. I

their stories above and beyond that.

grew up in Canada where there was a sketch com-

Yeah, sure! Well, I think about that, from time to

edy group called “The Kids in the Hall”.

time. Allowing myself some time to remember

The comedians, they were like gods to kids my

“Now I’m here, but I started out in a small hip-

age. I wanted to be just like them, and that pursuit

pie town in Canada doing community theater.”

lead me to Toronto and then to Chicago, think-

There are a lot of stops and starts. No one is go-

ing that I would be successful in the Second City

ing to hand you things, you have to be proactive,

troupe (editor’s note: the comedy club and school

make it happen, and hope that people see that

of improv known for producing top talent), but it

what you make is good.

But if you’re too flexible, you let yourself be governed by your product or anything

Thomas Middleditch

There’s no algorithm, no set way of doing it.

slimmer than I care to admit.” What I do instead

Young comedians or performers, they ask me

is say that I want to work with directors that im-

how I did it. I don’t have an answer for them. In

press me. I’d learned to bring the walls down a bit.

hindsight, i know what worked for me. In Toron-

In an industry as nebulous as this, your version

to, that meant doing sketch comedy and improv

of success has to change quickly because you get

as much as I possibly could. In Chicago, it meant

put on a totally different path than you thought

the same thing but being involved in places like

you would be on. I didn’t know I was going to be

Second City. In New York, it was the same thing,

on Silicon Valley on HBO. I didn’t know this show

though I was started to get commercials. I was

would succeed. That wasn’t the plan, so...

starting to write stuff. If you’re proactive, people will notice if you’re a

How do you deal with this?

content producer as opposed to just waiting for

It creates a lot more opportunity. In Hollywood,

something to come your way. Part of it is not

it’s always good to be associated with success.

wanting to be stagnant, but when it comes to

If you demonstrate that what you do is good

comedy, it’s about wanting to do funny stuff and

and that you’re capable, that’s even better. Once

putting it out there in different ways.

you’ve got one good thing, you get a lot more

So yes, you can go from theater to theater and do

good things. You can never really tell where the

it live, but why not make your little whatever? I

good thing is going to come from. A good exam-

mean, I was doing it. YouTube was around but it

ple is HBO. I was working on an animated show

wasn’t the thing it is now. There weren’t channels

with the co-creators of Silicon Valley because I

and a whole culture around it. That’s evolved.

had made a similar animation and I pitched it

It’s kind of foolish to ignore what that could do.

to a bunch of people who thought it was great.

There are people who have essentially made their

We were still developing the pilot and they say,

careers on YouTube and have probably made a

“Hey, we’re working on another show with HBO.

whole lot more money than I ever have, regard-

It’s called Silicon Valley and we think you’d be

less of what you think of their content [laughs].

interested.” That big dream felt impossible. Low and behold, the animation didn’t happen, but

Sure! Do you see your life as an entrepreneur?

because of that relationship, they literally wrote

Do you have a master plan? When you started,

Richard (editor’s note: Silicon Valley’s main char-

were you like “in 5 or 10 years, here’s my goal”?

acter) as a part for me and I got it.

Totally! Earlier on, I had much more defined

My point is that those type of things can’t be

goals. Overtime, though, you realize that so much

planned. I wouldn’t have gotten that serendipi-

is out of your control. It’s more about doing many

tous, transitional moment if I hadn’t made those

things you like and hoping they have positive re-

cartoons and been proactive making those things

percussions, than saying “I specifically want to do

that kept me up all night for weeks on my time.

this,” which doesn’t materialize most of the time.

It’s really similar to what Richard does in the

If that was your only goal and it doesn’t material-

show with his startup. What’s more difficult is to

ize, what will you do next?

know when you should be afraid. A lot of people

Of course, I had personal goals like, “Yes, I would

have failed in the business writing scripts and

like to work with Quentin Tarantino or Wes An-

making movies because they stick pretty rigidly

derson, but I’m aware that the chances of that are

to how they think things should be. 21

« Hey, we’re working on another show with HBO. It’s called Silicon Valley and we think you’d be interested.» 22

I wouldn’t have gotten that serendipitous, transitional moment if I hadn’t made those cartoons and been proactive making those things that kept me up all night

They become inflexible, and it becomes im-

movies and work on other things. It doesn’t

rands around the city and you’ve got to focus

possible to work. But if you’re too flexible,

take too many things to eat up all your time.

for two hours. That’s way more stress to me.

you let yourself be governed by your product

I’m dealing with that right now, and what I’m

or anything, and that’s not good either. You

doing is finding time just to be human. I have

Speaking of side projects, we understand

have to find the right balance.

other passions, too. I’m a private pilot and I

you have a pilot license. What do you like

love flying airplanes. I’m also investing in

about being a private pilot?

How did you balance your show on HBO

startups. It’s not easy to balance all these and

A bunch of things. Most of all, planes, the

and your side projects?

I had to overcome stress. When you work

sound of the engines. I like researching dif-

It’s been great working with HBO so far. We

on a show, you work crazy days, thirteen to

ferent planes and flying them in the switches

only shoot for about four months of the year,

fourteen hours, but you may only have a few

and stuff. Talking on the radio in terms and

so how we use the other eight months of the

takes. In between takes, you may work a little

all that is fun too.

year is up to us. We can be casted in other

less, let’s say 8 to 10 hours. It’s like running er-

What’s more difficult is to know when you should be afraid

Being able to get in a plane

is up to Canada this sum-

and go somewhere is the

mer. There’s a little airport

best feeling. North Ameri-

in my hometown i haven’t

ca has a ton of small little

landed in yet, so I’m going

airports you can just fly

to explore the mountains

into. Last year I flew to

of British Columbia. Or

Zion National Park, it’s the

maybe I’ll fly to the East

most beautiful thing. It’s

Coast, I’m touring with

hard to convey the free-

a friend doing comedy

dom and excitement and

there, so I would fly from

the challenge of it.

here all the way to Con-

Tomorrow I fly to San

necticut, then New York,

Francisco just for the day,

D.C., Philadelphia.

but the next big journey 23

The Frame

Even been scared? Yeahhh. One time last year I was flying in Utah, and there was crazy turbulence, I was bouncing all over the place, my head was hitting the plane roof and my wife was not having a good time. I tried landing on a private little air strip. There was the airfield, a little bit of space, then mountains. So with all the with, the turbulence, I tried landing on my final approach. I was about 100 feet from the ground and the wind just pushed me. It was a very scary landing. You mentioned that you’re investing in startups. What kinds of projects do you invest in and how are you involved? Everything I invest in in Silicon Valley has to have a green impact, somehow. I want to support environmental causes and be an activist, and my investments are a good way to do so. That said, you can invest in anything from food, such as Beyond Burger, to clean water projects. I’m less interested in apps or manufacturing projects. Again, part of the absurdity of being on the show that I’m on is that I’ve been afforded a lot of success, so through a few contacts, I can go to San Francisco, get a tour of things, then come back. I don’t have millions and millions of dollars, so I take three or four $25K investments a year and that’s already a good deal flow for me!

Thomas Middleditch You mentioned your environmental activism. What else do you do? I’m trying to put my money where my mouth is in the sense that I’m trying to invest in companies with a green impact. As an actor, I try to make sure that it’s part of the conversation. I also work with organisations. I’m a long time supporter of the Sierra Club. I think there are also individual choices we can make and it might sound absurd for someone who flies a private plane, but I only eat meat once a week, and I don’t eat red meat anymore, either. The list goes on. The movement is gaining steam and it’s becoming more exciting because people are genuinely looking to make more good food. Let’s come back to your career to wrap this up. You’re basically your own CEO, the entrepreneur of your own career. How have you done this? I think some people in the entertainment business are in it exclusively for the business element, and there are some people that are in it exclusively for the art. I think a bit of the both is the best way to do it. You have to look at it a bit tactically and sometimes narcissistically, like working on your brand. That’s how it is. Sometimes, I think it would be nice to stop a bit and focus on the man I’m looking at in the mirror.

02/ MO DERN MINDS/ 26

Designing Tools For the Worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Creative Energy by Jennifer Brook Social first with Amir Mohamadzadeh

Designing Tools For the Worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Creative Energy Jennifer Brook

Photos: Alexandre Tabaste

Staff Researcher at Dropbox

In early modern Europe, revolutions in papermaking, bookbinding, and printing changed the way information circulated. The result was a shift in the way people acquired knowledge, interacted with one another, and, well... worked. And if you ask Jennifer Brook, Design Researcher at Dropbox, the rise of technology is a similar revolution that will impact the future of work and the way we unleash creative energy far into the future. Interview.

Modern Minds

Thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a difference between building products that resonate with people who use them, versus products built on a whim

Jennifer Brook Dropbox is one of those technologies that has

Were you always interested in design and in-

woven itself into the fabric of our daily lives.

ternet culture?

What excites you about working for the com-

No! I spent most of my 20s living in a treehouse

pany right now?

I helped build. I worked in bookmaking and

Dropbox’s mission is to unleash the world’s

printmaking studios, crafting out in North Car-

creative energy by designing more enlightened

olina. It wasn’t until my late 20s that I became

ways of working. As a Design Researcher, I do

curious about design and entrepreneurship.

fieldwork that investigates the cultures and val-

A subscription to Fast Company opened my

ues of highly collaborative teams. Our goal is to

eyes. I started to make connections between

understand working conditions and cultures.

the history of bookmaking and technology. In

When we talk about conditions, I mean where

Europe, the confluence of papermaking, book-

and how we work, who we work with, and our

binding, and printing created the foundation

beliefs about how work should or shouldn’t

for modern society. I realized the same kind of

get done. Culture directly informs those con-

change was occurring with new technologies in

ditions, and therefore has an impact on the

our day and age. All of a sudden, it clicked. I

types of tools workers need. So, there are tools

wanted to be in the middle of publishing tech-

and there are conditions. If we can better un-

nology in contemporary forms and thinking

derstand the conditions, we can better design

about the way it was changing. When I moved

the tools. And the better designed the tools, the

to New York City, I was offered a job with the

more creativity we can unleash. That’s where

New York Times working as an information ar-

Dropbox comes in.

chitect interaction design. Mobile technology was just starting to rise and accelerate and for a

Helping workers solve meaningful prob-

long time, I was the only person working at the

lems...that sounds like a big opportunity for

NYT on those sorts of problems. That meant

Dropbox. Is there a recent project that illus-

that early in my career, I had interesting oppor-

trates your point?

tunities. For example, I spent about a month

Helping others solve meaningful problems

working inside Apple on the first version of the

is the biggest opportunity we have. It’s why I

NYT’s iPad app. A few weeks after, I presented

decided to go in-house after a stint as an inde-

the NYT’s app on stage at the iPad press confer-

pendent consultant. You’re challenged to find

ence in Cupertino with Steve Jobs.

problems that excite you enough to work for long periods of time. A recent example is research we conducted with a staffer in the UN Development Program. He manages 30 to 40 field offices all around the world, and Dropbox helped him create an open culture. Staffers in Haiti or Namibia could see what other offices were doing, and they were all working together to solve meaningful problems across time zones and borders. I felt inspired by their stories.

Modern Minds

"A cultural shift is happening in the creative process. There’s a shift away from the notion of a “genius designer” or a creative, singular vision to a more collaborative approach."

Wow. Steve Jobs himself. How did your experi-

be doing any kind of task moment-to-moment or

ence with Apple and the New York Times influ-

day to day but they knew exactly where they were

ence you?

going and the kind of world that they wanted to

It exposed me to research practice. We were able

create. We observed them work together and then

to make decisions at Apple, even though we were

debriefed with them. Our vision of the working

isolated from peers, evidence, or data, thanks to

conditions and systems of those dream teams is

the research we had conducted the previous sum-

very clear now. We know what kinds of models we

mer. In fact, I had asked our Head of Research if

must aspire towards if we want to build software

we could conduct studies of people using our mo-

to support incredible co-creative and collabora-

bile apps. We had no idea what our users were do-

tive work. If we succeed, we have a chance to build

ing, why they used our app, what they were trying

tools that resonate within dream teams, and may-

to accomplish. We spent a summer deep diving in

be even elevate other teams too.

to their world and attempting to understand how they were using mobile. That contextual knowl-

Based on your research, what makes dream

edge helped us make more compelling, informed

teams different?

decisions about the product when we went to

Two things happen simultaneously. First, there’s

Apple. That experience taught me that there’s a

always a culture maker. It might be one person

difference between building products that reso-

or multiple people, but they actively shaping the

nate with people who use them, versus products

team’s culture and elevating the team. Second,

built on a whim. There’s huge value in research

most of these teams have explicit social contracts

and evidence-informed product builds. I decided

with one another. It’s a cultural norm amongst

from then and there that I never again wanted to

homo sapiens. We form groups, we create implicit

work on product design if it didn’t involve a qual-

norms about how to behave and the way we are

itative research process. And because I took that

going to work and communicate. These teams,

vow, it often meant that I was the one doing the

however, we consciously explicit about their

research! After the New York Times, I worked as

norms and shaped them together. It’s fascinating.

an independent consultant for about four or five

They didn’t feel passive or like they didn’t have

years helping companies through their research

the ability to control their own relationship, but

process.

took an active role in shaping and creating them together. If we apply the same logic to Dropbox,

So now that you’re at Dropbox, how do you con-

we can, as a company, act as a culture maker in the

duct research?

world and positively shape the conditions of work

Dropbox likes to facilitate complex, creative work.

through explicit norming.

That means we have to understand how complex, creative work is done. In the same way that Nike studies athletes to build products for the best basketball, football, or soccer players in the world. So, we study exceptionally successful and collaborative teams. We try to figure out what makes them tick, so we can translate their ways of working into the tools we build to help other teams work at their level. Last year alone, we studied eight teams in education, theatre, design, and marketing. All of them are incredibly mission driven. They could 33

Do you have a method for explicit norming?

Modern Minds

We’ve developed a toolkit. We actually use animal pictures! We play a game that helps us to speak about our individual values. It starts off as a simple conversation. First, we focus on a positive collaborative work experience, then on another that was frustrating or challenging. In both cases, we pick an animal that embodies each story and that helps us express our core values quickly. If we’re then going to work together, we’ve ultimately had a conversation about what works for you and me, how you and I like to work, and what fuels us both. We can then anticipate where conflicts or mutual admiration might arise. Ultimately, animals pictures are just vehicles for metaphor. Metaphor is useful in the co-creative process because it’s a shared language, you can learn a lot about someone quite quickly because we create deeper conversations quickly. Animals are evocative for people. We project our best and worst selves onto them. Our intention with a tool like this is to licence under Creative Commons and share it with the public. I’m a researcher and I still consider myself a designer, by my philosophy is that we should invite more people into the design process and I want to create the tools and conditions to do so. The animal picture toolkit is just one way to encourage more people to have creative conversations. Co-creation seems like something Dropbox takes very seriously. How has that impact the product as it evolves from a storage solution to a suite of co-creative tools? A cultural shift is happening in the creative process. There’s a shift away from the notion of a “genius designer” or a creative, singular vision to a more collaborative approach. It’s a different mindset. So digital products and services must follow. Dropbox needs to follow, too. That’s why my team of design researchers and I are developing an understanding of the culture and values of the most high-performing, collaborative teams, so we can apply that knowledge to Dropbox, which has been repositioning itself as a tool for collaboration and not just file sharing. All this knowledge will help the organisation develop better co-creation products for its users, such as Dropbox Paper, or new functionalities that are coming. Stay tuned!

Jennifer Brook

"Dropboxâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s mission is to unleash the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s creative energy by designing more enlightened ways of working. Our goal is to understand working conditions and cultures."

Social First. Amir Mohamadzadeh

Photos: Ethan Gulley

Cofounder of ROSEWOOD

Apple Music. Katy Perry. iTunes. lululemon. Red Bull. Sony Pictures. Nike. AEG Presents. Toyota. Interscope Records. ROSEWOOD’s roster list of successful social media campaigns reads like the who’s who of heavy hitters in branding and marketing. For these experts in story creation and elevation, the digital space is just another canvas on which to play. And it comes naturally to this social-first marketing agency. Co-founder Amir Mohamadzadeh invited us to grab a coffee just before the agency’s “Family Meeting,” so we tweeted, liked, snapped, insta-ed and shared ourselves down to his office to take the pulse of the creative space in L.A., and the management principles needed to work with young and talented creatives.

Modern Minds Hi Amir! Thanks for the invite. Before we start, can you tell us a little more about the “Family Meetings” you hold every month? Sure thing! We launched family meetings about 6 or 7 months ago,

Millennials. To unlock their potential, you must inspire them, and to inspire them, you must empower them

when there were 32 of us. Now there are 40 and it’s one of the only opportunities we can get everyone together. On every last Wednesday of the month, we gather to talk about three things: transparency, family, and celebration. “Transparency” is when our leadership team shares what’s on our mind and where our business is going. “Family”, meaning team members are encouraged to share personal milestones and new team members share their story. Lastly, it’s important to “celebrate” our work, so each team shares a few big wins they’re proud of from the previous month. We work at a super fast pace, so it’s difficult to stop and proverbially smell the roses. In our company culture, slowing down for a sec to spend time with and appreciate our team is a must. Since starting in 2013, we’ve doubled our number of employees every year. We were scaling so fast, this meeting seemed like a good solution to keep everyone connected. You created ROSEWOOD in 2013 with your co-founder, Matt Bauer. What’s the story behind the agency? I graduated from Pepperdine University in Malibu in 2011 and was immediately hired by Nike Basketball to work on Kobe Bryant’s brand, specifically. Over the course of 2 years, I worked on designing and executing Kobe’s brand marketing strategy in L.A. I spent a lot of time developing consumer insights out on basketball courts, with high school athletes, just chatting and playing ball. The more I spent time with them, the more I understood what they did in their free time, their motivations, how they trained, etc. Those high schoolers were checking Instagram close to 100 times a day. Instagram allowed people around the world to post their passions

Having a strong launch is, in my opinion, the most important thing to make sure you get right.

and develop an engaged follower base. Athletes, photographers, models, trainers, musicians, artists—they were all growing massive social communities. The high school athletes followed their basketball heroes on social and studied every single post—everything from copying LeBron’s weight room exercises, to buying the same drink Kevin Durant had in his hand. Social was a tool for personal storytelling and consumer discovery, so as a marketer, that insight opened my mind immensely. This is the point when the concept of ROSEWOOD began forming. At the time, there were very few, if any, “social first” creative agencies. You couldn’t find any one agency boasting to

Amir Mohamadzadeh

Modern Minds be “the best in the world at social media.”

sweet smell, explaining the name “rosewood”. My dad is from

Remember that back then, traditional marketing hadn’t shift-

Iran, and in ancient Persia, the game of chess was highly re-

ed much in light of these new tools. No one was really thinking

garded by royal families, because it is a game based on strate-

“Is this the new TV commercial? Is this the new billboard?”

gy. To possess strategic thinking abilities was very important

Nike was one of a handful of companies investing strongly in

to Persians. So when outsiders travelled to Persia, they would

its social footprint, and I had built a great relationship with

gift a chess set made of rosewood to the royal family, to be in

one of the guys who had pioneered digital content in his past

their good graces.

and at Nike—Matt Bauer.

At ROSEWOOD, everything we do is like our namesake: pre-

Matt oversaw social and digital at Nike in L.A., and we col-

mium and strategic. I like telling that story because it helps

laborated often. When I was working on Kobe’s marketing

me make a point about side projects: if you have one, my ad-

campaigns, he would contribute his expertise in digital and

vice is to learn to play chess, because you always have to be

social. He was also an early adopter of Instagram and a very

one step ahead. Many people say you have to try and fail, try

talented photographer and creative. Come early 2013, I texted

and fail. Well, that’s an ‘OK model’, that’s fine. I get you have

him one evening, “Hey man I have this idea, let’s grab break-

to fail to learn. But if you ask me, if you do the right research

fast tomorrow morning.” We met at a local spot called Jack-

and plan as much as possible, you have a stronger liftoff. And

son Market and I shared my vision of ROSEWOOD. He had a

having a strong launch is, in my opinion, the most important

strikingly similar idea and vision as to where the industry was

thing to make sure you get right.

headed. So BAM, just like that, we became partners. We spent 6 months doing our homework then quit our jobs at Nike in

How did you position ROSEWOOD as a premium agency?

September.

Have you managed the global experience as part of the

Part of the homework even happened at Nike. I was eventually

brand?

tasked to lead Kevin Durant’s footwear launch in L.A. and all

The best brands in the world, Nike or Apple, for instance,

of these consumer insights encouraged me to propose, “‘You

leave a strong first impression. ROSEWOOD is no different.

know what? We’re going to put together a full marketing cam-

It’s very important that our clients feel premium storytelling

paign for KD only using his social media. 100%!” Matt agreed,

through every touch point they have with our team. From our

of course. For most marketers at that time, social was the af-

email etiquette, to how we run meetings, deliver a pitch, pro-

terthought. They’d build out TV campaigns, billboard cam-

duce a shoot, interact with talent, all the way to watching the

paigns, press campaigns...and at the end, they’d ask, “What

final deliverable on Instagram. It’s all by design. It comes back

should we do on social?” It wasn’t first. I wanted it to be first!

to our name and reputation.

Our approach worked—the campaign was wildly successful and innovative for it’s time. By then, it was clear to Matt and I that there was a gap in the agency marketplace, and ROSEWOOD would fill it as a social-first agency. You mentioned that before quitting Nike, you and Matt took 6 months to do your research. How important do you think it is to test your idea as a side project first? Let me start by explaining where the name ROSEWOOD comes from, ok? It’ll come full circle. Rosewood is one of the most premium types of wood in the world. Known for it’s brownish color and darker veining, this wood has a strong, 40

Amir Mohamadzadeh Amir, you’re 29 years old. You’re a first-time entrepreneur

money. They care about “what I’m working on” and “what my

with an agency that works for some of the world’s best

contribution is”. It’s a very ME generation. And by the way,

brands. You have 40 employees. You mentioned earlier

I’m a part of it too.

that you were a basketball player, what did you learn from

Our philosophy and culture is “the best idea wins”. When we

sport in your management?

have extraordinary brainstorm opportunities, we give people

I’ve played basketball for 19 years and I’ve always been very

the microphone, no matter how senior or junior. We’ve oper-

competitive. To complete and win in a team sport, you have

ated that way since day one because it’s the only way you can

to truly know your teammates and what motivates each one

inspire this generation. We don’t have many processes, I sup-

of them. When I was captain of my high school team, I was

pose we should probably build a few more. But there’s a struc-

introduced to the concept of putting myself in other people’s

ture in place that enables managers to empower our people.

shoes. Instead of one speech that inspires the entire team like

We have a phenomenal leadership team to oversee each de-

we see in the movies, the reality is that the captain needs to

partment, and within that, it’s just a matter of empowerment,

build a personal relationship and understanding of each key

ideas, and execution. I think that’s the right culture. We don’t

player. In doing this, I was able to lead and motivate team-

necessarily need a process for everything because with great

mates with a customized message that I knew would unlock

leadership, it’ll run itself.

their potential. And it worked. It’s quite similar to what I do today. Mentor and manage in-

What brands are you working with today?

dividually, not collectively. If I don’t immediately understand

We aim to work with the innovators and brand leaders in each

someone’s stance or actions, I shift my perspective and put

industry. Truly, our favorite partners are those that allow us to

myself in that person’s shoes. What is inspiring this person

try unconventional ideas. We’re rule breakers and we want to

to act this way? You’d be amazed to see how quickly solutions

disrupt as much as humanly possible.

are revealed. Stephen Covey said it perfectly, “seek first to un-

Right now, we’re working day and night in the music and en-

derstand, then to be understood.”

tertainment world. We develop strategy and content across all social media platforms for one of the world’s leading music

Your agency is composed of mostly millennials. The aver-

streaming services and online digital media stores. Talk about

age age of your employees is 25. How do you manage your

a dream partner—they inspire us to dream big. To launch

team and that kind of ambition?

their Snapchat account, we built a drone, mounted an iPhone

Wow! That makes me want to write a book on it! If we want to

on it, and developed a remote controlled mechanism to tap

be the leading social-first creative agency, we need to hire in-

the video record button while soaring through the air. It was

dividuals born and raised on social media. Our motion graph-

the first ever Snap Story published from a drone, and it was

ic designers, our account managers, our strategists, it doesn’t

right here in Venice. We also produce original social content

matter the position, you’re an expert in social and you grew

with a handful of incredible artists, producers, actresses, ac-

up in it. You were a member of Instagram when it launched,

tors, and directors.

Facebook, Snapchat, musical.ly, etc.

Live-music entertainment is also huge sector for us. We de-

How do you manage millennials—you empower them. I say

velop creative for AEG Presents, the largest producer of mu-

that for a very specific reason. It’s the psychology of this gen-

sic festivals in North America and second-largest concert

eration. To unlock their potential, you must inspire them, and

promoter in the world. Our team is working on everything

to inspire them, you must empower them. That’s what makes

from global tours, to local shows, to renowned festivals like

change. Even if they’re not ready, if they have no leadership

Coachella and Stagecoach. To create stories during those epic

experience, if they’re not 100% ready to take on that difficult

cultural moments is unlike anything else.

project, empower them! In our experience, this generation cares more about what they are creating and less about the 41

Modern Minds

« Our philosophy and culture is the best idea wins »

What’s next for ROSEWOOD? In our industry, we have to think about innovation every single day, especially as consumer behavior and platforms evolve. A new social platform could arrive and consume an entire consumer base in a matter of days. What is now and next for ROSEWOOD, is that we are building one of the world’s most talented groups of thought leaders and millennial creatives who are filled with passion and desire to disrupt. With our team of A-players, truly, the possibilities are limitless. We have a few plans up our sleeves, primarily around a very special type of innovation lab and original content. More to come.

Amir Mohamadzadeh

03/ PLAYGROUND/ 44

Tools for Runners from Head to Toe with District Vision A Nordic journey for sustainability with Sandqvist

Tools for Runners from Head to Toe Max Vallot & Tom Daly

Photos: EChadwick Tyler, Fred Goris, Nichole Ricketts, Zach Hetrick, Jeff Henrikson

Cofounders of District Vision

Running. It’s not every day that 2 thirty-something former highfashion executives decide to launch an American brand to developing tools for runners. But that’s just what District Vision’s founders, Max Vallot and Tom Daly, have done. Determined to create products that are just as functional as they are performance enhancing, both Max and Tom believe in a holistic approach to athleticism, one in which mental well-being is the foundation of every form of physical exercise. The duo is building an active community around running and yoga, two complementary disciplines and their respective passions. We met up with Max and Tom in New York to discover more about their approach and community.

Saint Laurent. Acne. Demandez à n'importe quelle fashionista, et elle vous dira Saint Acne. Ask any fashionista, que ceLaurent. sont deux marques super hype. and they’ll tell you those are two very Si vous demandez à Max Vallot et coveted Tom brands. If you ask Max Vallot and Tom Daly, ils vous diront eux que ce sont Daly, les those just happen to be their previous employmarques pour lesquelles ils travaillaient ers. NowInstallés living in àNYC, two les friends avant. Newthe York, deuxmet at college London. amis seinsont rencontrés à l’Université de Londres. Il y a trois ans, ils ont décidé Three yearsleur ago, propre they decided to launch their de lancer marque, dans une own brand in an industry they both know well, industrie qu'ils connaissent bien, mais but in amanière more passionate and meaningful way. d'une plus passionnée et singulière. “I was at Saint before, and Tom was at « J'étais chez Laurent Saint Laurent à l’époque, Acne Studios,” says Vallot. “We’veStudios known each et Tom travaillait chez Acne » other for more than 10 years and both of us raconte Vallot. « Nous nous connaissions

depuis plus de 10 ans et nous avons tous les deux pris conscience que nous étions reached a point in le ourmonde life where wemode were disdéçus de ce que de la satisfied by what the fashion life wasen giving us. nous apportait. A cette époque, 2013, Around time, in 2013, Ipour tried la meditation for j'ai testéthat la méditation première the time. Meanwhile, was introduced fois,first pendant que Tom Tom lui, s’est rapto the running community in New York and beproché de la communauté du running gan to run marathons. à New York et a commencé à faire des marathons. Nous avons alors tous les Both us found escape from our dayjobs jobs deuxoftrouvé uneanéchappatoire à nos and realizedetthere’s kind existait of commurespectifs avonsa different réalisé qu’il nity out there. not just about making un autre typeOne de that’s communauté en destuff anUne illusion of exclusivity.” horsand de creating la mode. communauté dont le but n’est pas de produire ni de créer une illusion d'exclusivité. » 47

Playground

Only 27 and 28 years old at the time, the two decided to quit their jobs.

ing oneself.” And as Vallot explains, the

“For a lot of people, running is medita-

two are eyewear nerds, with a penchant

tion,” he adds. “In my opinion, that’s only

for Japanese made eyewear.

partially true. I think running and medi-

Because there wasn’t anything particu-

tation are two different things. Running is

“We realized that it was time for us to do

larly interesting being developed in sport

a competitive sport whereas meditation

eyewear, the duo saw an opportunity.

is about contemplation, way of under-

Existing brands weren’t reflective of peo-

standing and exploring your own mind.

ple’s lifestyles, inspirations, or desires.

Running is a way of exploring your own

So they jumped. For instance, their “Na-

mind, but it’s not the primary goal of

gata speed blade is an ultra-lightweight

running. Runners today, especially those

nylon and titanium frame construction.

competing in marathons and ultramara-

Our D+ lens is hand cut and polished in

thons, are increasingly interested in unu-

ning community.”

Japan for unrivaled visibility in various

sual and somewhat unorthodox training

performance conditions.” And of course,

methods. They do the physical work and

District Vision is first and foremost a

leading runner crews from around the

training, put in 100+ miles per week.

world were invited to partake in the R&D

They have the latest and greatest shoes,

process.

the latest in sports drinks and fuel. But

our own thing and that activewear was still dominated by a few big brands but no smaller interesting alternatives were emerging”, declares Daly. “We wanted to create a more interesting perspective, mixing Max’s experiences with yoga and meditation and mine in the urban run-

community, and a brand second. It offers its members a holistic experience of running and meditating thanks to decided events and tools, thereby redefining the idea of the modern runner’s toolkit. That, in turn, became the founding principle

Since its start in eyewear, District Vision’s

looking deeper into how the mind affects

product lines have expanded to run-

training.

ning socks, yoga mats, and other perfor-

for the brand.

mance-oriented tools. Above and beyond

The first tool in the kit is performance

as a wellness company, working to pro-

eyewear. It took the team two years to develop their eyewear with engineers in Japan, working with feedback from runners all around the world. “We wanted to explore products other brands aren’t seriously considering, while adding our own vision and philosophy to it. We’re interested in a holistic approach, in our approach is connected to self-exploration, not just winning, competing, and push48

the runners around us were interested in

product though, the brand thinks of itself mote running and meditation. What’s the link between meditation and running? If you ask Vallot, it’s focus and perseverance. Running is mental and requires discipline. It’s often underestimated. As a transcendental meditation enthusiast, Vallot sees this as District Vision’s singular contribution to the athletic community.

"It’s the “X factor,” the unknown factor so hard to quantify.“

Max Vallot & Tom Daly

Playground

Max Vallot & Tom Daly

To going after this “X factor”, District Vision has organized med-

evolution. Whether you are a fashion or a food brand, people

itation workshops and trainings. It’s what they call the “Mindful

want to learn, they want go through experiences that help them

Athlete Program”. They’ve also promoted Mike Spino’s training

grow.”

method. “Mike Spino was the executive director of the Esalen Sports Center in Big Sur, California. We’re big followers of

Learning, then, is something Daly and Vallot are going to run

his method and his book Beyond Jogging: The Innerspaces of

with. The four person team has been hard at work on many

Running (1976). In it, he articulates an idea of conscious athleti-

projects since 2015. “We launched a new product program with

cism—a holistic fusion of mind and body, using unconvention-

socks, and we’re developing trail running shoes with Salomon

al methods of meditation, yoga, movement therapy. That the

for Fall 2018. It’s still too early to open our own shop cause even

kind of story that continues to inspire us and drive the whole

if the company is profitable. We prefer to grow organically and

project.” Indeed, so inspired that the duo decided to reprint the

stay independent and self-funded. Our current focus this year is

book a few months ago.

about expanding the District Vision experience while concentrating on the US market for now”.

Vallot and Daily admit, however, to not having any specific formula when they started out. A few runners simply asked them for an introduction to meditation, so they started off teaching reading exercises, restorative positions, honing in on body parts and anatomic regions relevant to running in terms of energy flows. “We looked at the different parts of the feet, the ankle, the joints, the lower back,” Vallot says.

« And helped to build understanding of how they work together. The goal is to look at the mind body dynamic in a deeper way. » And that holistic experience is the essence of District Vision. “People are no longer interested in just products,” Daly says. “They need to feel there is a deeper connection to a brand. Learning is at the heart of it all, it’s at the center of the whole

â&#x20AC;&#x153;People want to l go through exper them g

learn, they want riences that help grow.â&#x20AC;&#x153;

Photos: Sandqvist

A Nordic journey for sustainability

With its forests, rivers, and vast yet sparsely populated areas, the Avec ses forêts, ses rivières et ses étendues encore totalement sauNordic landscape is a huge source of inspiration for both design vages, le paysage nordique est une source d'inspiration sans combrands, long associated with the outdoors, and fashion brands, mune mesure pour les marques de mode ou de design spécialwho draw upon the region’s knack for simple sophistication. isées dans l’outdoor, qui y puisent une sophistication simple et Sandqvist is known for both. The bag and accessories company épurée. C’est le cas notamment pour Sandqvist, marque de sacs has built its reputation by crafting beautiful and functional bags et d'accessoires qui a construit sa réputation en fabricant de sacs that blend Nordic heritage with an aspirational, urban lifestyle. beaux et fonctionnels, qui mélangent l'héritage nordique avec un style de vie urbain et ambitieux. Created by 3 friends from the Swedish countryside, Sandqvist’s vision has always been “to make long-lasting products, from high Créée par trois amis de la campagne suédoise, Sandqvist a toujoquality materials, in good working conditions.” Global expansion urs eu pour vision « de fabriquer des produits durables, à partir over the past 15 years has fueled the brand’s ambition to become a de matériaux de qualité et dans de bonnes conditions de travail market leader while remaining committed to its values: sustaina». L'expansion internationale de ces 15 dernières années a permis bility, aesthetics, and quality products. à la marque de devenir un des leaders du marché, tout en restant We sat down with Sebastian Westin, one of the company’s three fidèle à ses valeurs : durabilité, esthétique et qualité des produits. co-founders, to talk about the brand’s success and plans for the Nous nous sommes entretenus avec Sebastian Westin, l'un des future. trois cofondateurs, pour parler du succès de la marque et évoquer les projets à venir.

Sebastian Westin

Cofounder of Sandqvist

Playground What’s the story behind Sandqvist?

ties, and that’s fueled our mission.

Sandqvist was founded in 2004 by Anton Sandqvist. Before

Last, we want to be as sustainable as possible. When we

embarking on an entrepreneurial adventure, he worked at

started out, we didn’t have the design skills to design our own

a large multinational where his creativity was stifled, but he

bags, so we created rough prototypes with very simple and

liked building things in his spare time. One day, he stitched

pleasing designs that appealed to most people. Now we have

together a bag he could use for his computer and work, us-

more options for both function and sustainability thanks to

ing an old industrial sewing machine in his basement. He’s

eco-friendly fabrics such as vegetable tanned leather, recycled

a country boy, so he wanted something robust enough to

polyester, or organic cotton, for all our accessories and bags.

survive his daily routine but stylish enough for the city. His friends ended up loving his bag, so he produced a limited series and distributed them in some hot shops in Stockholm. At the time, Anton’s younger brother Daniel and I were working on a few fashion projects and a free lifestyle pop-culture magazine in Sweden. Anton approached us to rent a room in our office to grow his business. We’ve all known each other

It’s taken us two years to reach that benchmark, and we’ve

from our childhood, since we grew up in the middle of Swe-

worked very hard to source the right fabrics and partners. But

den, despite the fact that Anton is 9 years older than me. So,

if we develop a new product, with a new fabric, you can be

naturally, Daniel and I started working with Anton on mar-

sure it’s a sustainable one.

keting and branding in 2006. If we wanted the brand to be

By Autumn/Winter 2018, all the synthetic fabrics we use will

successful, we knew what we had to do: attend trade shows,

contain recycled fibers. These are important steps towards

create lookbooks, run photoshoots. As the brand matured,

our goal of become a world-leading example in sustainable

our designs shifted, influenced by our interests in fashion

fashion. Sandqvist is a member of the Fair Wear Foundation

and the Swedish countryside. For four years, we developed

(FWF) and committed to working only with suppliers who

the brand in our spare time. It wasn’t until 2010 that we were

have implemented the

able to start working full-time on the project. So we rented

FWF Code of Labour Practices. The FWF code stipulates

another office, which doubled as a shop. It would become the

minimum requirements for working conditions based on

Sandqvist flagship store.

International Labour Organization (ILO) and UN principles.

Sandqvist is first and foremost a family business, though we’re

We want to do this in a way that is fair for everyone involved,

not so small anymore. Today, we produce more than 100,000

and with care for the environment. This means taking respon-

bags a year, have 53 employees, and have 5 shops in 4 loca-

sibility for the impact of our products throughout their life

tions: London, Berlin, Guttenberg and Stockholm. We’re cur-

cycle, on both people and planet.

rently exploring shop options in Paris and Amsterdam. And we’re distributed by over 500 retailers across the globe. A lot has happened these past 7 years. It’s been a really fun journey. What is Sandqvist’s mission? Since launching Sandqvist, Anton, Daniel and I have always shared similar values. We wanted to produce bags the way we wanted to produce them. Let me explain. We’re from the countryside. Out there, you fix your bike when it breaks. You don’t just buy a new one! So first and foremost, we wanted to create durable bags. We also love the outdoors and have always been active hikers, fly fishers, and mushroom 58

We’re currently at 80% sustainability and our goal is to reach 100%.

pickers. That’s why we wanted functional bags for our activi-

Sebastian Westin

"In the next 5 years, people will expect products to be sustainable, they wonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t wait around for them."

Playground Sustainability is now a brand mandate. How has this

heritage. For F/W 2018, we are going to show a lot of new out-

changed since Sandqvist was founded?

door bags, so don’t worry, we won’t be on the runway anytime

When we started talking about sustainability 8 or 10 years

soon!

ago, it felt much more difficult. It was a serious cost for the company. For example, it used to be that we needed to pro-

The outdoors is a big trend today. How would you explain

duce a huge quantity of bags to make using organic cotton

consumer’s desires to escape and bring nature into their

profitable, but now it’s much easier. Organic cotton is farmed

lives through the brands they wear?

without chemical pesticides, artificial fertilizers, or geneti-

When we talk about luxury today, it’s not about gold or bling,

cally modified crops. Switching to organic cotton has a real

it’s about having free time and fresh air to breathe. The same

positive effect on both the environment and people working

can be said of high-end vehicles, which are less functional and

in the cotton fields.

more aspirational, used to escape the city and go explore the

Today, being sustainable is not unique. What’s unique is to be

countryside. But escaping doesn’t necessarily mean heading

100% sustainable, which is our final goal. A lot of new brands

to the Himalayas. You can head to the countryside nearby, or

aren’t doing anything to be sustainable and aren’t communi-

the forest where your grandmother used to wander. It’s nice

ty on the new imperative and I find that really really wrong.

just to get outside. These days, luxury is about experience.

Launching a company without thinking about sustainability

That’s why we have a magazine, The Sandqvist Journey, to

is an error. In the next 5 years, people will expect products to

share our community stories and trips. It’s also a good way to

be sustainable, they won’t wait around for them.

bring our customer’s closer to Sandqvist’s journey and values.

Nature and the outdoors are an integral part of Sandqvist’s

What are the next steps for the brand?

identity. How do they influence the brand today?

Our ambition is to become the #1 sustainable bag brand in

Nature and the outdoors have always been our biggest influ-

the world. We don’t want to be the biggest company, but we

ence. If you take a closer look at our photography, you can see

do want to be top-of-mind. That’s our goal within the next ten

Anton, Daniel, and I or our community members. We want to

years. We will continue to focus on sustainability and push-

show the real Sandqvist, the way we live and the way we com-

ing ourselves to reach our goals. We’re profitable, so the other

municate. Sweden is one of the best countries in the world

goal is to open more shops in key markets while making new

when it comes to nature because it’s a free-access playground,

and better bags. We have just started our journey and there

replete with wild forests, mountains, lakes, and a long coast-

so much more to do, so many more bags to design. So excited!

line. Our bags reflect the way we play. We don’t make mountaineering bags, they’re built more for one- or two-day trips. We recently realized that if nature is still a huge inspiration, we have to push ourselves out of our comfort zone and expand our brand identity. That’s why we launched our first women’s collection in 2015, in order to find a new target group. We also crafted a few collections influenced by sports and current trends. Even if that’s a slightly departure from the way we communicate, we always come back to nature when it comes down to it, because that’s pure Sandqvist. Currently, we’re focusing on crafting more women’s bags, which already represents 50% of our sales. It’s a creative challenge to blend our brand DNA with more fashion elements, but we’re confident we can do so while remaining true to our 62

Sebastian Westin

Today you have 53 employees. How did you manage your growth internally? We’re growing quite fast. We don’t want to grow too fast, but prefer to grow organically. It’s important for us to have a good atmosphere at the office. More importantly, we’re growing with our own money. We aren’t like a startup, we’ve never raised any money. This has allowed us to have fun, be fair, be inspiring, and care for the environment. Our organization is horizontal, so if we diverged and started doing stupid stuff, our staff would put their foot down.

"Today, being sustainable is not unique. What’s unique is to be 100% sustainable, which is our final goal." 63

04/ MIND SET/ 64

The Ownership Generation by Jonathan Azoulay Empowerment: 3 Keys to Successful Business by Deborah Rippol

The Ownership Generation Jonathan Azoulay Cofounder of Talent.io

A paradigm shift

startup and pursue funding rounds.” In spite of the situation, he decided to launch his business in a market that’s a little less about tech and a In 2005, Jonathan started working as a recruiter little more about what he knows well: recruiton an off chance at the end of his studies. “At the ing. “I started my own recruiting business, Urtime, I didn’t know the field at all and I wasn’t ban Linker. We specialize in tech jobs because in the least bit interested. I started working in I wanted to stay close to innovative companies a British headhunting firm because a friend of and sectors.” And so Urban Linker was born. mine worked there and he got a bonus for re- With a more modern marketing approach and ferring someone! In under 24 hours, I knew a recruitment process centered on user-experithat the company culture wasn’t going to cut it.” ence, it is a breath of fresh air in an ossifying, Nonetheless, Jonathan ended up staying a little ageing market, dead set on meeting the expecover 3 years in order to “learn from a big compa- tations of a new generation of talent looking to ny and to prove to myself I could make it.” fill challenging tech jobs. To take his mind off things, he took off around the world, just when the global economy was wobbling. “After my trip around the world, I could only think of one thing, which was to start my own company. Unfortunately, it was 2008 and it just wasn’t the best time to launch a 66

Mindset

“We have a really different approach than traditional

than 2,000 recruitments. The goal? Become the most

recruiting firms. It’s really not in their DNA what we do.

influential and successful engineering recruitment ser-

I’d say that’s why we were enormously successful from

vice in Europe in the next few years.

the get go.” From its outset, the firm expanded quickly to 20 employees and established itself as a leader in

The secret to Talent’s success? Creating value on both

tech and digital jobs. Yet, curiously enough, tech hadn’t

sides of the recruitment chain by focusing on the us-

yet “disrupted’” the recruiting market. And given the

er-experience and by making selected candidates pro-

ever growing need for his company’s services, with an

files visible for one month only.

market growing more tense by the day, Jonathan took a keen interest in the subject. “At the end of 2014, I started to think about building a selective recruiting platform, the only possible way to create a scalable model for my business.” At first, he shared his ideas with his entourage. One of his friends advised him to speak with a few entrepreneurs out in Silicon Valley working on the same technology. “Those fellows were Nico and Amit (editor’s not: Nicolas Meunier and Amit Aharoni, the founds of Talent.io). In the end, we decided to pursue the idea together. Even though we didn’t know one another, we were a good fit.” Jonathan had recruiting experience, and Nicolas and Amit had tech expertise after building out a platform they had sold to TripAdvisor. They started off working remotely in 2015, Jonathan in France and Amit and Nicolas in the United States. “We agreed on a test phase and gave ourselves 100 days to see how it worked. We met our goal in only a week, which gave Amit and Nico the impetus to move to Paris sooner than intended.”

« Many platforms look to create value for only one of two parties. By fostering conditions for rapid recruitment on the candidate side and the quality of selected profiles for the hiring side, you can avoid the famous problem of the chicken and the egg. Your growth is a lot stronger! » Talent.io is a real revolution an a recruiting market that has, until recently, been dominated by job boards, recruiting firms, or even professional social networks, all of which are less and less suited to a rapidly shifting market. Jonathan puts it this way: “It’s proof that millenials really are looking for meaning!” Indeed, 20 to 35 year old employees give a lot of weight to their future employer’s purpose or mission. Above and beyond that, they expect autonomy, leadership and flexibility, all indicative of a societal revolution that Talent.io has been living from the inside out. More than 80% of its employees are under 30 years old.

Since then, the startup has raised over 10 million euros, bought a German competitor and now has over 90 employees in 3 countries: France, Germany, and the United Kingdom. “We created an extremely efficient model. Today, one out of every 4 candidates on Talent finds a job.” In only 3 years, the startup has successfully closed more

"We’re building a world based on a new foundation, a more creative world that encourages taking initiative"

M L S

MEANING & LEADERSHIP Since the industrial revolution, most companies have developed a very hierarchical, top-down management model that has curbed creativity and the capacity for fulfilment, if you ask Jonathan. “Massive loss of talent in big corporations is just that. We’ve entered the age of the masses and people need another way to self-actualize. The very strict framework offered by big corporations isn’t attractive to younger generations. When you launch a business today, the biggest challenge you have is to put governance models in place that will allow you to recruit the talent you need. It’s not enough to create conditions for autonomy and responsibility and then just leave your talent alone. But if you create rules to encourage projects and and conditions for leadership, now that, that works.” It’s a model in its own right. One that Talent.io’s founders have fostered since they launched. “We wanted to build an organizational structure that would allow our employees to have a different kind of relationship to their work. It’s hard to channel that energy sometimes because it creates high expectations, but it’s incredibly exciting!” For Talent, that meant creating a specific company culture, one open to the search for meaning. And it can be summed up in a few values, well-known by the entire team : Take ownership Think team - Make impact. Two concrete measures bring these values to life.

Opening up capital to employees.

Talent’s founders, it was important to link their teams to the value they created. “It means everyone is rowing in the same direction and with the same mission. When you launch a startup, you’re working with a blank slate. So if everyone wants to write the story with you, you can building something even bigger and better, much more quickly!” Above and beyond that, you have to create an environment conducive to communication in order to encourage leaders to emerge, gathered around what Jonathan calls “collective intelligence.”

Ownership

At Talent, the company revolves around a single word: ownership, or pushing employees to become intrapreneurs and run their own mini-projects. “It could be a new form of training for sales teams, improving workspace, it’s all collected online in a dedicated tool and anyone can propose a new idea.” Anyone can take charge, without financial reward. To take ownership of a project, the process is straightforward: first, define a project and its initiatives, then set up an advisory committee with at least 5 other people affected by the project, pitch the project to the entire company and follow-up on results and impact. “Among other things, it allows for very engaged middle managers and it helps to reveal leaders who help the company to move forward in a very entrepreneurial spirit. It gives meaning to their work.”

Mindset

"It’s proof that millennials really are looking for meaning" For Talent, the ownership process has allowed everyone to un-

it’s a perfect model, but for those looking for meaning and per-

derstand that in order to advance professionally in the startup,

sonal fulfillment in their jobs, it’s a model that fits perfectly.”

they must participate in acts of “collective intelligence” and prove their ability to manage projects. Jonathan adds, however,

For Millennials, who will make up 75% of the workforce by

that this may not suit everyone. “There are a lot of detractors

2025, empowerment, or the opportunity given to an individual

of the ‘startup model’ and this new mode of management.

to have an impact, participate, and make a difference, is key. It’s

But the employer-employee relationship just doesn’t work

also the force behind the current societal revolution and at the

anymore. We’re building a world based on a new foundation, a

heart of the modern company. Without it, talented players will

more creative world that encourages taking initiative. This new

leave or take a leap and create their own businesses, all-the-

world may not be a good fit for everyone, but that’s why the two

while continuing to create the future.

worlds shouldn’t be mixed.” The model is virtuous, in Jonathan’s mind, when all interests are aligned and things are well-balanced from the start. “It’s an exacting model, one that requires a lot of engagement and sacrifices that not everybody is willing to make. I’m not saying

Jonathan Azoulay

Empowerment: 3 Keys to Successful Business Deborah Rippol

Head of Talent at Alan.eu

It might surprise you, but communication, responsibility, and transparency are the keys to successful businesses. Why does a business succeed? Because it can solve important problems quickly and better than anyone else. At Alan, weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re convinced that inappropriate shows of ego, things left unsaid, uncertainty, and an inability to exchange with colleagues create stress and slow down processes. But to escape it all, a business needs a few well-balanced ingredients and a strong culture. Before taking you behind the scenes, we should remember that thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s no magic formula. Before working at Alan, I worked a several different companies: IBM, Startup Weekend, WeWork and Buffer. The choice of organizational structure and method of team management are critical and have a strong impact on the future of the business...no pressure! That said, there are just as many organizational models as there are companies and markets. Rather than copy-paste certain practices, adapt them to the way your company functions and who you are as a business.

From past experience, I can say that successful companies share 3 traits

Communication Responsibility Transparency 73

Mindset Is your culture explicit enough? Even if your internal org structure will evolve, your culture is durable. It’s the foundation of your organization. While at Buffer, I learned what a strong internal culture can do, even if 100% of employees worked remotely and without any offices. The team started by defining its values and uses them on a daily basis for all important decisions, including recruitment. When opinions differ, values help the team to stay united thanks to a shared foundation. A company’s culture must be understood, shared, and respected by the entire team. The problem is that most professionals think that team culture is something implicit that comes naturally. However, if it’s not written down, it’s open to individual interpretation. Here at Alan, the 3 pillars of our culture are at the heart of everything (productivity, recruitment policy, ways of working) . Our founders wrote them down on Day 1. So, let’s get to the heart of the matter: how have we built communication, responsibility, and transparency into our organization? Get rid of elephants in the room To be as efficient as possible, we defined our approach to internal communication as precisely as possible. What communication channels do we use? With what frequency and for what objectives? What are our recurring meetings? How do we share information? These are the questions we needed to answer to allow information to circulate without getting lost or stuck.

Deborah Rippol

I won’t get into the nitty gritty details, but here are two main elements

Present your arguments

Each team member must explain and share the reasoning behind his decisions with the others. It allows him or her to get good feedback from peers and take advantage of all the good ideas other people might have. In other words, to take advantage of collective intelligence.

Hello written memos

Goodbye meetings. Meetings take time, break us out of deep work, and give an unfair advantage to skilled rhetoricians. We like the old school feel of writing things down. In other words, we’ve replaced meetings by “issues” in GitHub. More than 1000 issues have been raised and resolved here. Read more about it here.

Mindset

Trust your teams Your teams will return the sentiment a thousand fold. Here at Alan, we shared our business objectives and power is shared amongst all our members, no matter what their role. Don’t confuse this will “delegating”. We got a whole lot further and give our teams the keys they need. The goal is to really involve each employee in the everyday running of the business. Everyone can make decisions quickly no matter their seniority. And this level of autonomy draws the best talent. They’re looking for freedom and want to make an impact. We all aim for excellence in our work and grow very rapidly. Break your big goals down into weekly goals Defining your goals is essential. They shouldn’t be too big, and more importantly, they must be reachable. No problem is too big or too ambitious if you can break it down! Every Tuesday at Alan, we set a goal and sent it the next day to the entire team and our shareholders. We make decisions quickly and are super motivated by the sense that we’re constantly moving forward. Our teams take on significant challenges without apprehension, everyone moves at the same pace within the company. Cultivate transparency Whether positive or constructive, feedback is the best way to help every individual improve and to avoid forced harmony within a team. The idea is that everyone needs feedback so everyone should ask for it. How do you give quality feedback? 1. Focus on behavior and not personality 2. Be as specific as possible 3. Avoid negative terms. You want a positive outcome! Using ‘but’ has a tendency to make the other person defensive. 4. Put your ego aside. We can talk about failures just as much as success.

Deborah Rippol

Set up individual meetings At Alan, we hold 1:1s every morning every two weeks. These meetings are a way of checking in about goals we’re working on. It allows two people to discuss, learn, and progress. At our company, we take a walk around the block during our 1:1s, and typically ask questions like “What motivates you?”, “Are we working on the right things?”, “If you were in my shoes, what would you change?” It creates an impressive amount of harmony amongst team members. It’s also the best way to help brilliant ideas surface, get out frustrations, or to talk about what can be improved, so it’s a positive feedback loop. To make good decisions, teams have to know about everything. Whether it’s a fundraising round, recruiting, or new projects. Even our salaries are public information. It helps us avoid frustration and keep everyone engaged. No organizational structure is universal. Ask yourself the right questions when it comes to your team and the context in which you’re working. Be analytical and not naive. What will help you succeed? Inspire yourself, read, discuss, meet, and gain food for thought from outside the business in order to find your own formula for success.

"Don’t confuse this will “delegating”. We got a whole lot further and give our teams the keys they need."

05/ TA LENTS/ 78

Expositions by Cory Gehr Acapulco Sun in Your Ears with EFA

Cory was born and raised in Los Angeles, California. After obtaining his degree from the Academy for Creative Media at the University of Hawaii at Manoa, he now resides in Redondo Beach, and works as a Content Creator at ROSEWOOD. Through a photographic and cinematic lens, Cory depicts his unique eye for capturing the essence of humankind alongside mother nature. With an established passion in capturing the surf and outdoor cultures, he has recently delved into a wider variety of subjects to photograph - some of which include music artists and concerts, fashion, and commercial features. He is continuously looking for new opportunities to challenge his capabilities, as well as to network and collaborate with fellow artists and creators in communities across the globe.

Cory Gehr Photographer

Talents

Cory Gehr

Talents

Cory Gehr

Talents

Cory Gehr

Talents

Cory Gehr

Talents

Cory Gehr

Talents

Cory Gehr

Talents

Cory Gehr

Talents

Cory Gehr

Escape From Acapulco Music Band

Houston, Ici Escape. On a recent visit to Paris, Swenson met up with the band

“Our influences are pretty diverse, but we understand

Escape from Acapulco, or EFA, for those in the know.

one another because we all have a mutual love of funk

Band, or band of brothers? It’s hard to tell with this tight-

and pop. Earth Wind and Fire or Chic are great, but Des-

knit group whose singer Kevin and drummer Waren are

tiny’s Child is terrible!”

real-life siblings. And if you ask them about how they decided to style their band, you’ll immediately understand

Waren closes his eyes and sums it up as “letting the

the quirky universe of these rabble rousers.

drumbeat thump out the tempo that gives you an irresistible need to get up and dance...or quite simply, the

“Escape from Acapulco is a mix of two film titles: John

music you love. A good bass, slick guitar riffs and kitsch

Carpenter’s Escape from New York, with its somber fu-

synths with Kevin’s subtle but provocative voice.”

turism and its synthetic VHS soundtrack, and Richard Thorpe’s Fun in Acapulco, a comedy starring Elvis Pres-

Kevin and Nicolas craft lyrics in English, “so everyone

ley as an extreme diver in Acapulco, with his funky mul-

can understand. We all have an anglophone musical cul-

ti-colored dress shirts and catchy songs.”

ture, so naturally, we thought it would be easier to sing in that language. It’s also allowed the group to sing for

In the beginning, the band was no more than a group of

Emma Watson, the object of her very own song, and who

friends who just wanted to have fun, write music, and im-

seems to be the object of Waren’s (secret) affection.

press the girls, like any set of respectable teenage boys. They swam through several musical styles and influenc-

The group is currently recording their new EP slated for

es before forging their own. “One thing lead to another,

release in September on their own label, IMPER BLAZ-

we matured, and our style changed and reached its abso-

ER. “We want to take our time to refine the record and

lute peak, which is the sound everyone knows EFA by to-

come back with something super strong.” Their sched-

day.” A unique, wacky, and chipper mix of pop emerged,

ule is filling up quickly with several concerts this sum-

one vaguely familiar and reminiscent of the 70s, punk,

mer, but as Kevin says, “we’re setting aside a lot of time to

and garage. Each member of the group has his own per-

record and compose.”

sonal flourish. Nicolas the guitarist is more into funk and Mathias on the synthesizer more pop while Waren on the drams and Kevin the lead singer are more house or electro. 100

FIRST ALBUM Mathias : L'école dû micros d'argent from IAM Kevin : Back in Black from ACDC Waren : Nuttea FAVORITE TRACKS Waren : Everybody Get Down of Alfonso Mouzon // Kevin : Valerie of Steve Winwood // Mathias : I can't go for that of Hall & Oats // Nicolas : Street Life of Randy crawford MORNING MUSIC Kevin : No no no of Nathan Melja // Matthias : Mister blue sky of Electric Light Orchestra // Waren : Bonne journée from Rohff // Nicolas : Time to get away of LCD Soundsytem BEST MEMORIES Solidays soundsystem ! WORST MEMORIES Making a baby cry

101

06/ PLACES/ 102

Future of design with Nate Pinsley

103

Exploring the future of design Nate Pinsley

Managing Director of A/D/O

For years, Brooklyn has been a hot spot for creativity and design. So it’s no surprise that car manufacturer, MINI, self-titled as “the emotive design company”, opened a creative space, A/D/O, in early 2017 at Greenpoint. A 23,000 sq. ft workspace unlike any other, A/D/O gathers a community of designers and creatives to explore the future of design. Nathan Pinsely, the managing director of A/D/O, invited use for coffee at the space to better understand the what makes the creative process so unique there, and the link to MINI.

104

105

Places

Nate, can you tell us a little bit more

ing across disciplines like architecture,

exceptional work, cultural performances

about the A/D/O initiative?

graphic, product and fashion design. Our

and events hosted in the space.

A/D/O stands for Amalgamated Drawing

definition of design is broad, and our

Office, which was the 1st MINI design

community space reflects that. We tested

What is MINI’s goal in opening this

team name back in 1959. Today, the idea

the idea prior to launch and received pos-

kind of space?

behind A/D/O is to offer the company a

itive feedback in Brooklyn. Some people

MINI’s goal is to become a brand that im-

creative space with a new approach to in-

have even said that being at A/D/O re-

proves urban life thanks to its products

novation. MINI is becoming a global life-

minds them of grad school!

and services. That means we’re devel-

style brand. So, rather than doing things

oping a range of products and services.

secretly behind closed doors and attempt

You don’t define A/D/O as a coworking

One example is MINI Living, a co-living

to understand future trends that way, we

space, but a creative workspace. What

solution in Shanghai. Another is MINI

want to engage the creative community

does that mean?

Fashion, an initiative for exploring the

and designers in a mutually beneficial

Our institution has a strong research

future of fashion design. And yet another

conversation. A/D/O is a place where

agenda. Above and beyond the hospital-

is Urban X, a startup incubator investing

people can come work on their projects,

ity, creative fablabs, and the amenities we

in tech companies. Those activities com-

share studio spaces, experience, and

offer to individual designers, we house

bined represent a serious investment into

events. Everyone is free to work on their

research programs and residencies at

our growth as a diversified technology

own stuff, but the idea is to link people

A/D/O.

and design company. That’s why A/D/O’s

through shared curiosity about the future

The space has hosted over 200 events

purpose is to get out front in terms of re-

of design.

since we opened in January 2017. The

search and insight gathering. All the new

That’s what makes us a little bit differ-

space’s raison d’être is the Design Acad-

businesses and products we are develop-

ent. We are not just a creative coworking

emy, a program intended to nurture ar-

ing and fostering in different industries

space.

tistic development. The DA offers events

are guided by a very clear understanding

with very different flavors and formats, all

of what the future will be.

Why did MINI decide to open A/D/O in

of which are experimental, yet united by

Brooklyn?

the idea that we are looking for the future

We had the option to open the space in

of design through interesting intersec-

a few different places around the globe.

tions with science, politics, or economics.

We did a search for creative capital and considered many factors. Ultimately,

For example, last month, we hosted

Brooklyn drew us because it has the larg-

NASA research scientists and doctors

est community of creative professionals

working on air, the way we are interact-

per capita of any city in the world. We’re

ing with air, how we use it, how we treat it

interested in industries that employee

and how it supports us. Our aim at A/D/O

thousands of creatives here. Above and

is not simply to support your everyday

beyond that, NYC offers a lot of cowork-

design thinking, but to stimulate a con-

ing space, but very little of that is specifi-

versation about what is going to happen

cally dedicated to the design community,

in the future, 5 years or 10 years from now.

so there was a clear opportunity for us to

106

create a common space for disciplines

These topics are front and center in all

that don’t often interact together, rang-

of the classes, workshops, exhibitions of

"The space’s raison d’être is the Design Academy, a program intended to nurture artistic development."

A/D/O

Other car manufacturers are building

from the early days of A/D/O is that the

graduated from the program and half of

similar initiatives. For instance, Jaguar

best way to get people deeply engaged

the companies are focused on hardware.

Land Rover has opened a coworking

with new ideas is for them to participate

We invest about 100k USD and take equi-

space in Shoreditch, East London. As-

in person. Encapsulating our long con-

ty, all while providing access to our com-

ton Martin is now offering design con-

versations and debates at A/D/O is diffi-

munity of experts, with the firepower of a

sultancy services. How do you explain

cult. Yes, we can sum it up in an article or

global brand behind it. Other incubators

this trend, and how is MINI different?

a 30s video, but we don’t believe that’s the

don’t have that.

There are a lot of forces spurring the au-

best vehicle for the ideas we discuss. In

tomotive industry to innovate. The possi-

our eyes, the optimal vehicle is an event

Last question. What is your background

bilities for change and growth are huge. I

in which we invite 40 experts from the

and role within A/D/O?

would say that MINI differentiates itself a

field and a number of people from our

I started my career in consulting, help-

number of ways. First, we are a commu-

own team to participate. It will have a

ing companies think about how they can

nity and we create a whole experience

much more impact on their work. A/D/O

tackle future challenges. But I’ve worked

focusing on real business. People don’t

is a free access space, so don’t hesitate to

with small startups and bigger compa-

just pass through A/D/O then leave. For

drop in!

nies. Here at A/D/O, I’m an internal entre-

many, this space is an office, a studio, and

preneur. That means I create connections

a fablab. A/D/O supports them in creat-

between the A/D/O team, organized as

ing things that have being created any-

an independent business, and then pro-

where else. We’ve also made a deliberate effort to hide the brand. We don’t want to talk about ourselves because our goal with this space is to run outside of ourselves. Once you cover the entire place with your brand’s current story, you’re working in the present. But if you want to open to what the future may hold, even if it is surprising, or different, or unexpected to what you are today, you have to quell your ego and be humble.

"Our goal is to stimulate a conversation about what is going to happen in the future, 5 years or 10 years from now."

vide structure and ideas on how to create community here. The other part of my job is to think about how to turn what we have here at A/D/O into something much larger, a global program with impact, to tackle some of the biggest challenges the world is facing today.

Got it! That said, what’s the link between the brand and A/D/O on a daily

You mentioned MINI’s startup incuba-

basis? And how does innovation from

tor, Urban X, also based at A/D/O. What

A/D/O fuel MINI teams?

is its mission?

At A/D/O we generate tons of insights,

Urban X’s mission is to "engineer the

discussions, debates, new topics and

city as a service." We hunt for companies

trends. To be honest, we’re still thinking

working in urban tech, meaning any-

about how to share what happens here,

thing ranging from sensors and mobility

whether that’s MINI teams or the world.

to new products and services for the con-

It could be digital content, reports, or

sumer. This could be anything that im-

published books. What we’ve learned

proves city life. Over 20 companies have 107

Places

The space was renovated by Brooklyn-based nARCHITECTS to foster the brand's unique vision. Visitors enter through a patio filled with colorful outdoor furniture and arrive in an open, industrial-style room with communal seating. The warehouse's undisputed centerpiece is a massive periscope in the middle of the room, which provides close-up views of the bold rooftop mural by artist Mike Perry.

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A/D/O

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Places

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A/D/O

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Places

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A/D/O

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Places

Nate Pinsley - Managing Director of A/D/O

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A/D/O

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07/ IN STRU CTORS/ 116

Understanding direct and indirect competition with Des Traynor How to Build Trust with Nicole Bianchi

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Understanding direct and indirect competition Sometimes your customers really want to use your feature or product, but they also want something else that simply isn’t compatible with it. People really want to be slim and healthy, but they also really want soft drinks and fast food. McDonalds and Weight Watchers are selling wildly different products, but they’re competing for the same customers. This is what we call indirect competition. Your direct competitors are targeting the same job-to-be-done with the same solution as you. If you want a burger, McDonald’s and Burger King will both satisfy that job with the same outcome. Unlike indirect competitors, secondary competitors compete on outcomes. For example, video conferencing and business class flights compete on outcomes as they’re both hired for the same job – business meetings – but solve the problem in a different way.

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Des Traynor

Cofounder & Chief Strategy Officer of Intercom

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Instructors

In indirect competition, there are two different

To address these concerns, he added a message

jobs a customer wants to do, but the jobs them-

schedule downplaying the importance of clean

selves are competing with each other. Software

code and up-selling his product. He sent the fol-

products experience these types of conflicts all

lowing message to non-users on day three: “If no

the time:

one is using your product, who cares how clean your code is?” On day seven, he sent another well-

“I want to allow payments in my product, but I

timed message: “This morning your team can add

want to minimize the amount of third-party inte-

more code, or add more customers. Which do you

grations we rely on.”

want?”

“I want to add this analytics tool, but I also want to

These messages were effective. Many resulted in

optimize response times.”

installs. Some resulted in technical debates. But

“I want to know how my team spend their time,

most importantly all of them produced extra in-

but also to show we’re a trusting work environ-

sights into their business, which is what you need

ment.”

when you’re starting out.

It might go against logic, but humans are perfectly

Know your real competitors

okay with maintaining multiple conflicting opin-

Jonathan Klein, the former president of CNN,

ions and desires. We want to have our cake, and

once identified his network’s indirect competition

eat it too.

this way: “I’m more worried about the billion or so people on Facebook every day versus the 2 million

There are two conflicting forces here. The at-

people watching Fox News.”

tractiveness of the outcome of your product vs the other product. Your marketing should work

The point is customers don’t experience your

to make the alternative outcome less attractive,

product in a vacuum. They experience it along-

or reposition your product so the outcome is no

side every other product, service and idea fighting

longer in conflict.

for their attention. Some of these will compete with your brand and some will contradict it. Un-

Manage your indirect competition

derstanding all these forces helps you counter

A customer of Intercom was perplexed. Hundreds

them with your marketing efforts.

of companies had signed up for his A/B testing product, but very few had taken the plunge beyond a trivial test. All the customers really wanted to use the product, knew how to use it, and understood the value. He used Intercom to message these users and identify what was going wrong. The problem? As much they loved the idea of A/B testing their app, they also loved clean, legible and maintainable code. They didn’t like adding JavaScript into their application to create meaningful tests, so they didn’t use the product. 120

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But humans are perfectly okay with maintaining multiple conflicting opinions and desires. We want to have our cake, and eat it too.

How to Build Trust With Your Audience by Writing Conversationally The other day, I was checking my email when I came across a suspicious looking message. It began with the line, “Dear Sir/Madam”. The first paragraph read, “Please pardon me if I intrude into your privacy, and may I humbly solicit your confidence in this transaction. I came to know about you in my private search for a reliable and reputable foreigner to handle this confidential transaction.” Wow, that writing sounds like something straight out of a Dickens novel. I quickly clicked delete, suspecting that it was a scam. You’ve probably received emails like this too. And maybe you’ve also chuckled at their standoffish, overly formal tone. It seems to be a trademark of these types of spam emails. However, not too long ago, no one would have laughed at that style of writing. It’s the style most people would have used if they wanted to come across as polite and professional.

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Nicole Bianchi Writer

There are many variations of passages of Lorem Ipsum available, but

The generated Lorem Ipsum is therefore always free from repetition,

the majority have suffered alteration in some form, by injected humour,

injected humour, or non-characteristic words etc. It is a long established

or randomised words which don’t look even slightly believable. If you

fact that a reader will be distracted by the readable content of a page

are going to use a passage of Lorem Ipsum, you need to be sure there

when looking at its layout. There are many variations of passages of

isn’t anything embarrassing hidden in the middle of text. All the Lorem

Lorem Ipsum available, but the majority have suffered alteration in

Ipsum generators on the Internet tend to repeat predefined chunks as

some form, by injected humour, or randomised words which don’t look

necessary, making this the first true generator on the Internet. It uses a

even slightly believable. If you are going to use a passage123 of Lorem

dictionary of over 200 Latin words, combined with a handful of model

Ipsum, you need to be sure there isn’t anything embarrassing hidden

you are writing to a single reader, a close friend, not to a crowd of people.

And then came the Internet. Over time, everyone from bloggers to big corporations realized that a conversational style of writing is a much more powerful way to engage and connect with your audience.

“For those of you who are interested, you can learn more details here.” “If you’re interested in learning more, you can get all of the details here.” It’s only a subtle change, but the second sentence sounds much more personal and friendly than the first one.

Formal writing hides your personality and can make your audience doubt your sincerity. It sometimes comes across as pretentious and is also plain difficult to read. If you want to connect with your readers or customers and get them to trust you, talk to them as you would to a good friend. Kurt Vonnegut once observed, The writing style which is most natural for you is bound to echo the speech you heard when a child…I myself find that I trust my own writing most, and others seem to trust it most, too, when I sound most like a person from Indianapolis, which is what I am. The good news is that writing in a conversational style can be a lot of fun. The bad news is that sometimes it can be difficult to unlearn the style you were taught in school. That’s why in today’s post I’m sharing with you my 8-step checklist to conversational writing. It’s the same checklist I use to make sure my writing sounds like I’m having a conversation with a friend at the local coffee shop, not like I’m delivering a college lecture or trying to scam my readers out of their life savings. You can use this checklist when you’re writing a blog post, an email, copy for your website, or, really, anytime you want your writing to resonate with your readers.

1. Write to a single reader

The first step to making your writing sound more conversational is to imagine 124

Instructors

In fact, your English teacher probably taught you a similar academic style when you were in school. Flowery language. Long paragraphs. Precise grammar. No contractions.

Compare, for example, the difference between these two sentences:

I learned this tip from John Steinbeck who advised, I have found that sometimes it helps to pick out one person — a real person you know, or an imagined person and write to that one. And, yes, that means to never open an email with the words “Dear Sir/Madam”. Bonus tip: Think really hard about who your audience is. What are their hopes and fears? What do they struggle with? What kind of jokes or cultural references would make them laugh? After all, you’d probably talk differently if you were having a friendly conversation with a group of retirees at a resort than with a group of young startup founders at a conference.

2. Use the words “You”, “We”, and “I”

Since you’re addressing your reader as an individual, you should use the personal pronoun “you” as much as possible and also refer to yourself as “I”. Usually, it’s obvious where you can use these personal pronouns. But sometimes it’s a little more difficult to spot. Here’s an example. Let’s say you wrote a sentence like this, “Often people find it difficult to move forward in situations like these.” You could make this statement more compelling by bringing the reader right into the sentence: “Often you might find it difficult to move forward in situations like these.” Words like “might” or “probably” can help you qualify the statement so you don’t come across as preachy or lecturing.

In fact, depending on the context of the paragraph, you might want to include yourself along with the reader in the sentence: “Sometimes we might find it difficult to move forward in situations like these.” This makes you sound even more like a friend to your reader.

3. Eliminate passive sentences

Passive sentences are one of those telltale signs of academic and technical writing. If your high school grammar is a little rusty, you can read a quick review of passive sentences here. Essentially, in a passive sentence, the subject receives the action rather than performing it. For example, politicians and business executives like to use the passive voice when they want to avoid claiming responsibility for a mistake. They might write, “Mistakes were made.” It’s a neat little trick because this sentence avoids taking responsibility by failing to tell us who made the mistakes. Note that you can’t fix a passive sentence by tacking the subject onto the end. “Mistakes were made by all of us” is still passive. So how to fix it? Just write, “We all made mistakes.” Now the sentence is active. If you have a WordPress website, I highly recommend installing the Yoast SEO plugin. It will point out your passive sentences when you write your posts or content for your pages. If you’re not writing on a WordPress website, you can use the Hemingway App.

4. Use as many contractions as you can

If you’ve ever wondered what English would sound like if we talked without contractions, check out the film adaptation of True Grit starring Jeff Bridges. The movie is set in the Old West, and most of the time the characters avoid using contractions when they speak.

5. Engage your readers with rhetorical questions Imagine you’re talking with a friend. You probably look for cues that they’re listening to what you’re saying. Maybe they nod their head or murmur an approving “mmhmmm”. You might even try to get an immediate response from them by asking a question like, “Don’t you agree?”

When used correctly, questions are a fantastic way to draw your readers into your writing too. First, don’t go overboard when you use them or your reader might feel like they’ve been hauled into an interrogation. Second, try to avoid lazy, open-ended questions, like “Who wants to learn more about chatbots?” Your reader can sarcastically answer, “I don’t.” Instead, ask rhetorical questions that have an obvious answer. Here’s an example: “How much time could you free up if a chatbot answered your customers’ questions?” One of my favorite ways to turn a sentence into a question is to add “right?” onto the end. For example: “No one likes waiting in line for hours at the DMV, right?”

6. Keep your sentences and paragraphs short

Long blocks of text are intimidating to read, especially if you’re reading on a mobile device. I try to write paragraphs that are no more than three to four sentences long. And, hey, that’s usually the way we talk too. Ever heard someone who just talks and talks, never letting you get a word in edgewise, and never taking a breath? It’s exhausting to listen to a person like that. Look through your writing to see if there

In conversational writing, it’s okay to break grammar rules occasionally. Sometimes sentence fragments can give your writing an added punch.

7. Choose your words carefully

As an extension of tip #6, try to make your sentences as simple and clear as possible by carefully choosing your words.

Sharing personal stories in our writing helps us connect with our readers and show them there’s a human behind the screen. In the digital age, human connections are more valued than ever. That’s why sites like Humans of New York are so popular. When you use stories in your own writing, make sure that you hone in on a theme that elevates your story from being just about you. A universal and uplifting theme will make it relevant to your readers as well. Show them how the story can apply to their own lives.

For example, instead of padding your sentences with extra words like “by examination of the following situations we see that…” you could just write, “The following situations show…” In his Six Rules for Writing, George Orwell observes, Never use a long word where a short one will do. If it is possible to cut a word out, always cut it out…Never use a foreign phrase, a scientific word or a jargon word if you can think of an everyday English equivalent. Additionally, depending on your audience, you can use popular slang to make your writing sound “on fleek”. Yeah, you do need to be careful with that one. It might make your readers roll their eyes. Remember that the goal is to mimic your voice, not a random teenager’s. Think about what phrases or slang expressions you use when talking with friends or that your audience uses. Bonus Tip: You can use the Yoast SEO plugin, the Hemingway App, or Readable.io to check your writing’s readability score. A readability score tells you roughly what level of education someone would need in order to read your piece of text easily. A lower level will be more conversational compared to a higher level that would be understood only by graduate students. Read my post How to Edit Your Writing: An Effective 7-Step Process for more tips

8. Become a storyteller

When we talk with our friends, we share stories about our personal lives. Even something as mundane as missing a subway connection can become a story that makes us laugh together.

Elmore Leonard

So if we want our writing to sound like everyday speech and not as if we’re stuck in the Old West, we should use words like “you’re” and “I’m”. Even if you’re already using contractions in your writing, it’s a good exercise to run through your article one more time to see if there are any more you can add.

are any long-winded sentences that you can shorten or divide into two sentences. Are there any long paragraphs that you can separate into multiple paragraphs?

"If it sounds like writing, I rewrite it."

It sounds unusual to say the very least. Just imagine if you tried to go a whole day without using a contraction when you spoke. Yeah, it would probably be quite difficult.

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08/ BA LANCE/ 126

Flying High by Ruben Lenten Running the Americas by Jamie Ramsay

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Flying High What does a Dutch professional kite surfer know about challenge, entrepreneurship, and leadership? Turns out, quite a bit. Ruben Lenten has made a name for himself by pushing the sport to the extreme and risking it out on the water. Radical, high-powered moves in gale force conditions are his signature, and heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s the father of a maneuver known as the megaloop, an incredible feat in which the kite is steered around in a tight circle with the rider ascends high into the air. We caught up with Ruben to talk about the sport, business, and his side projects.

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Ruben Lenten

Professionnal Kitesurfer

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Balance Your personal motto is “Ride hard, fly high.” Is that how we should sum up your personality? How did you get into extreme kiteboarding? It’s been my motto for a long time and I love it. Kiteboarding has been my life since I was 10 years old. Flying kites, playing with the wind and being out in nature felt so good to me that I put most of my time and energy into that. It’s resulted in an epic career full of adventures, competitions and setting myself apart from the rest as an extreme kiteboarder. Going big is the best feeling in the world to me, so that’s why I’m drawn to extreme kiteboarding and shaping the sport. You also often say, “No risk, no story.” But do you experience fear? And how do you turn adrenaline into a positive feeling? Fear is awesome. When you turn it into respect and focus, it becomes a good tool. I’m not afraid of anything really but when fear comes, I turn this into something positive. In order to break boundaries you have to push harder than anyone ever has before. Magic only happens out of the comfort zone. So, when you feel fear, it’s only because you’re out of your comfort zone to learn or earn :) Both are positive. I need the right combination of ingredients to fly higher, faster, further, and harder than I ever have before. My body, mind and gear need to be in place when epic conditions appear on the radar so I’m ready to charge. The more epic the conditions, the more epic the adrenaline rush. Pushing it in extreme conditions makes me feel alive. Ten years ago, you invented the megaloop, and it made Ruben Lenten a powerful brand. Today, you’re expanding your personal brand with collaborations, your own products, and even an app. What is your vision for the brand’s development in the coming years and how do you manage it all while kiteboarding and traveling around the world? As a kitesurfer, you have to be creative on the business side. The sport is still fairly small, so your budget is often limited. I started my own brand, LEN10, and it’s growing with the sport. I enjoy building a stylish, quality and different brand through products, events, and content. We are now also offering the LEN10 Experience, a new brand that focuses on sharing time and knowledge with our clients through oncein-a-lifetime trips where we coach them to the next level with kiteboarding. People absolutely love it and it works very well. So more of this to come. Your latest product, Oceana, is your first ecoboard and a call for sustainability. You’re an Ocean ambassador. Do you think sustainability is our biggest societal challenge? Yes, together we can drive change and change is drastically needed to reduce our carbon footprint to make our planet last a little longer. That’s why I love using my voice, network and ideas to support spreading information on the subject. By educating people and companies about how to reduce, reuse and recycle we can create positive change. 130

"Fear is awesome. When you turn it into respect and focus, it becomes a good tool."

Ruben Leten

What is your next challenge?

forward to working it out and making it

for time and energy so that your job re-

My next challenges are organizational.

happen.

mains enjoyable and keeps fulfilling you.

Basically, how am I going to accomplish

Life is not about retirement, it’s about

my dreams, while finding structure

What advice would you give entrepre-

fulfilment. Do what feels good and do

that allows me to focus on things that

neurs?

what you love… up or down, rock your

matter and work around the world and

Don’t fall for the money trap, life is more

world! Learning or earning, all good!

kiteboard. I want to jump over a heli-

than money. Focus on what you have, on

copter and a flying seaplane. I’m looking

what you can do, and don’t forget to plan 131

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"Magic only happens out of the comfort zone."

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Focus on what what you can do get to plan for ti so that your job able and keeps

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at you have, on o, and donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t fortime and energy b remains enjoys fulfilling you.

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The Marathon of a Lifetime Jamie Ramsay

British Endurance Adventurer

Jamie Ramsay’s “switch” story is perhaps one of the most extreme we’ve ever heard. While working in the City in London, Jamie started to realize that he spent most of his time daydreaming while gazing out the window, thinking of what he could be doing outside instead of in front of his computer screen. One day in 2014, he dropped everything to take on an insane challenge: run across America. A feat accomplished by run-

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ning over 17,000 km alone, without assistance, over a period of 475 days, 367 of which he spent running. Since then, Jamie has found his calling and blazes his trail through the craziest challenges and most hostile races on the planet. We met up with Jamie while he was recovering from the Cape Wrath Ultra, a 400 km trail race set in Scotland, to talk about his incredible life change, his training, and what keeps him moving no matter what the race conditions.

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Balance

Jamie, when the going gets tough on your adventures, what keeps you moving? The key to keeping my focus during my longer adventures is treating everything I am doing as an opportunity to test my abilities and strengths to their fullest. I want to be at that point when I need to dig deep and prove myself to myself, learn new things about myself and unlock something I didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t know existed. I also treat every adventure, race or challenge as a job and as a result something that has to be completed to the very best of my abilities. When I set off on an adventure, I normally have a very clear objective, get to the end as quickly and efficiently as possible. I then get myself into a daily routine and focus on refining every element of that routine to extract the very best performance.

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Jamie Ramsay

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What differenti others is not jus achieve but how negative mome positive outcom 140

Jamie Ramsay

tiates us from ust what we ow we turn our ents into mes. 141

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Jamie Ramsay

How do you keep getting out of your comfort zone? When I worked in a conventional job in the City, I believed I had limitations. These were, of course, self-imposed limits created by doing what I thought was expected of me and falling into the habit of just doing enough to keep those around me happy. When I stepped into the world of adventuring, I was suddenly in control of all the parameters of my "success" and as a result what I needed to do to get there. I could determine what success and failure was and it was by doing this that I learned to impose a new habit of continually pushing my personal barriers. I also learned that repeatedly doing what is comfortable means you put yourself in a position where you could fall into mediocrity. Fear pushes me forward. Now, nearly everything I do is about pushing a specific boundary of my comfort zone, be it working as a team, changing discipline, the environment I am in or its duration. If it scares you or make your feel inadequate then it is probably the very thing you should be focusing your resources on. What was the biggest roadblock youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve ever encountered? How did you get past it? I am the biggest ROADBLOCK. I can achieve so much more than I have already done but itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s me that slows or blocks that process. Self doubt, fear, and lack of confidence means I have not ticked all the boxes I want to do. However, I have also realised that the biggest GO I have is also me. I spend a lot of time thinking about all the things I could have done better, decisions I could have made differently and ways I could push myself further. I then take all of this and wrap it up in my next adventure. I make them part of my defined success and then restart the process. The next step for me is extracting all the value from everything I have achieved. The real value in what you achieve or create is how you utilise it in the time going forward, that is where the value creation is and that is where I need to be pushing myself.

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What is your life philosophy? My overriding life philosophy is clichĂŠ and shared by many but that's because it works: Be the best version of yourself. We all have different skills, opportunities and strengths. It is our responsibility to take those ingredients and make the best of what we have. One of the things I try very hard not to do is compare myself to other people. For every success someone else experiences they have their same level of failures. What differentiates us from others is not just what we achieve but how we turn our negative moments into positive outcomes. I am very aware I have more weaknesses than strengths but instead of that being something I should be negatively affected by, I just need to flip it on its head and realise that it also means I have more opportunities ahead. When I am on an adventure or in a competition, I just tell myself I can do better over and over again. If I stop or falter then I just repeat it again and again. In the last 3 years, I have adventured over 24,000 km across 25 different countries. During that time I have learned a lot about myself, my drivers, my weaknesses and my strengths. In all that time, the thing that continually amazes me is how the obstacles to our success are always changing and no matter how hard you push you must always be driven by curiosity to see how much further you can develop as a person. When I finished my 17,000 km run from Canada to Argentina the feeling at the finish line wasn't, "Well I am glad I have proved I can do that" it was more "Now I realise I can do that, what else can I achieve, how much further can I push myself" and "Who could I be if I keep pushing?".

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Jamie Ramsay

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Youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve said that â&#x20AC;&#x153;controlling your mind is the most essential partâ&#x20AC;? of your journeys. Can you explain? When you are in the middle of nowhere, doing something extreme, it is very easy to focus on the negatives of the situation you are in. If you let this happen then they will consume you. You have to train yourself to put the negatives to one side and not let them cloud what your initial intention was. By controlling the focus of your mind and training it to never falter then you never lose sight of what it is you set out to achieve, your intention. Everything we do should have an intention and if that intention was strong enough to convince us to start then it should be strong enough to make us continue to the very end. I have the advantage of having made a decision to change career later on my life. Now, if I start to doubt what I am doing I quite literally sit down on the side of the road, or wherever I am and remember that decision. If I give up then I am more than aware of where my life would have to return to. That simple realisation makes me get back up and push forward. Every step taken forward is additional accomplishment and therefore valuable. Everything stems from the mind and therefore mental strength is the most important thing to train. I recently completed a 400 km expedition race and my body started to falter at about 200 km but because I have a strong mind I was able to keep pushing. Training the mind is very similar to training a muscle and therefore you need to push it a little every day. If you arrive at a challenge knowing that you have overcome something smaller but similar, then you are going to be far better placed than others to overcome that hurdle.

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Jamie Ramsay

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I also learned that repeatedly doing what is comfortable means you put yourself in a position where you could fall into mediocrity. Fear pushes me forward.

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Jamie Ramsay

What motivates you? Whatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s your north star? I spent 12 years doing something that didn't inspire me. That led to me becoming a version of myself that I wasnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t proud of, I became dissatisfied and ultimately a little self-destructive. Having the strength to identify the problem, the courage to do something about it and the determination to continue to push forward is all the motivation I need to keep doing what I do. My north star is something that I am still sculpting. I am very aware that what I do will take a toll on my body as the years go by, especially as I came to this career rather late. So, my goal is to build something that will be sustainable, scalable and will ultimately encourage others to readdress their preconceived limitations. If I can help one other person achieve their dream, then I have hit success and that will give me the fuel to continue and achieve more. As a speaker, what topics do you like to talk about? What do you share with your audience? I want people to see that I am just a normal person who found the inner strength and motivation to change the direction of my career and life and as a result became a more productive human being. I am a big believer in showing my inexperience, vulnerability and failures so people can relate more to what it is I have achieved and am setting out to accomplish. I see no value is standing in front of an audience and showing them the barriers to success, my job is to illuminate the path to success. Being an adventurer, I come across so many different obstacles and the skills needed to navigate around them can be transferable to both personal and business situations. What would be your best advice for an entrepreneur? If you are not working then you are not achieving or building value. However, make sure that that work you do is productive, well thought out and going to produce efficiencies. Too many times do you see people doing work just because they feel they should be seen to be working. Make every minute count. Also to make success sustainable you need to be constantly adapting and learning new skills. At the end of each year, make an assessment of what you achieved so you can ensure that you are continuously moving forward. The common element needed in adventuring, driving a business and personal life is passion. If what you do is not fuelled by passion then it may be time to ask what am I doing this. If passion is your fuel then you will work harder, you will achieve more and you will feel more fulfilled.

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