Imagine the ability to create a cultural shift by simply allowing folks to see the possibility…

There exists a myriad of reasons why untapped potential remains untapped, but one in particular stands out for me.  It is the inability to capture the essence and verve of what you are trying to communicate in a way that connects.  In other words, it is a big design question…HOW DO YOU GET OTHERS TO SEE WHAT YOU SEE?  How can you best optimize the possibility for what you are trying to express?  My fervent belief is that a part of the answer lies in one simple principle…SEE-FEEL-CHANGE.

I commented the other day on Twitter that every brand in the sustainability movement should invest in a film and video posse to tell their story.  Why?  The premise is simple…cultures with great ideas need to bring their story to life in a way that folks can SEE their vision.  Let them FEEL the essence of your verve and watch the CHANGE that unfolds.  As John Kotter suggests in his book The Heart of Change, one of the fundamental principles for creating shifts is SEE-FEEL-CHANGE.  Folks will be more likely to shift their thinking when they can see and feel the intention.

Consider the following examples:

1.  PARTICIPANT MEDIA - The folks at Participant Media and Film get it.   Founder Jeff Skoll understands the power and role film have played in influencing legislation and highlighted An Inconvenient Truth as the best illustration of “the power of film to make a difference.”  Their next film, Food, Inc. coming out this summer looks to be another powerful movie can move a nation.  And be sure to put Jacques Perrin’s Ocean (not a Participant Media film) on your list of must see movies.  I saw a sneak peak at TED this past year and all I can say is that for many of us we will never look at ocean in the same way…breathtaking.

2.  TED - The brilliant thing called TED - founded on the notion of Ideas Worth Spreading.  How do these ideas spread? By sharing twenty minute videos of amazing thinkers, concepts and ideas. In the time it takes to drink a cup of coffee we can be transported in a way that let’s us SEE a new world of scintillating thought.

3.  TECHNOLOGY - Got a camera and a computer?  Then watch the magic happen.  Case in point - youtube sensations Free Hugs (43 million views) and Where The Hell is Matt.  Technology is your friend and there is an abundance of platforms and technologies to let folks SEE your story.

4.  THE GIRL EFFECT - Trying to systemically eliminate the lack of opportunity for young girls in impoverished countries?  Too darn daunting to even consider unless of course you watch The NIKE Foundation video called The Girl Effect and then you SEE a new world of inspiration and hope.

5.  SETH GODIN - What’s interesting is that Seth Godin generally does not use visual elements to tell his stories, but he is incredibly adept at synthesizing complex ideas into resonant and compelling thought.  He allows us to SEE the metaphysical through words.

6.  WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE - I never thought Where the Wild Things Are could be a movie.  Spike Jonze and the movie trailer let me SEE that what I thought was once impossible is indeed possible.

7.  SEVENTH GENERATION / BRAND CATALOG - When I was CMO at Seventh Generation we realized that we needed to continue to bring the brand to life by humanizing our intentions and product.  The team saw an opportunity to elevate our thinking by creating a simple catalog (the line was previously suggested on an excel spread sheet)…only it was not simply a catalog.  The team created a catalog inspired to be a coffee table book that shared the heartbeat of the brand and activity in a way many reps, accounts and others previously did not SEE.

8.  BIOMIMICRY - Have you ever been connected to biomimicry - nature as a mentor?  Read Janine Benyus’s book Biomimicry and you are attracted to the concept of nature.  Spend a day in the woods with Janine and you are not only attracted, but also engaged and captured by nature in a way that you SEE that nature is indeed our greatest mentor.

Ultimately it is about discovering the acupuncture point that best ignites the human spirit and allows us to SEE.  It can be done thru words, sound or visual design. That said there is an abundance of great ideas and great individuals striving to create positive systemic change.   The beauty is that creating a shift need not be expensive and complex.  The key is to discover the power of storytelling in a way that we can SEE the possibility…

Steve Jobs turn 54 today.  I wish like heck he could live another 54 years.  The world needs his framework for creativity, vision and breaking the rules that bind.

I often think about the common thread that joins THE REAL 100.  Zeal, vision and purpose frequently come to mind as I sit and ponder the congruencies.  But what really strikes me is the common verve or essence that they all share…they work from the heart.  They BELIEVE and LOVE so much of what they do that there is no work only adventure.  Whether it is Janine Benyus sharing her gift of nature or Sylvia Earle’s love of the ocean, working from the heart versus the head shows us how to truly unleash the potential that rests within.

It’s a surreal time out there in the marketplace.  No doubt challenging on so many levels for so many folks.  I guess that is why I find Steve Jobs such an amazing source of inspiration.  Is he perfect?  Heck no.  But he is a living testament to what can happen when we focus on inspiration versus desperation.  

So why not dive deep into your soul and discover that seed that wants to sprout?   Why not let go and retool?  What will it take for all us to live in a way that inspires us daily?

Stay hungry.  Stay foolish.

Happy birthday Steve!

DISCLOSURE - I dream for a living, so please excuse my idealism.

Watched the Super Bowl yesterday.  Good way to kill 6 hours on jetBlue flying from Boston to Long Beach.  Great game. Less than scintillating ads.  So I was thinking about what would have made it spectacular and brilliant. 

Here’s a dream…

What if the Obama administration used some of our bailout dollars to purchase the entire Super Bowl media buy?  I know, it’s pretty much blasphemy to talk about misusing bail out dollars, but after seeing how Wall Street torched us all with big bonuses in 2008, I figured what the heck.  And what if the next generation of thought leaders and brands were given 30 seconds or 1 minute to share their stories?  Stories about what could be:

• Tesla talking about how a new age of auto development is on the horizon.
• John Todd talking about healing mountains in Appalachia using natural resources.
• Ray Anderson sharing his team’s monumental transformation from one of Earth’s greatest plunderers to sustainability icon at Interface.
•  Cameron Sinclair presenting a mission to create a whole new paradigm for school structures and classrooms at Architecture for Humanity.  
• Janine Benyus and the Biomimicry Guild inspiring and awakening us to the genius that surrounds us called Nature.
• Millennials & Generation Y (affectionately referred to heretofore as Generation WE) discussing their hopes and aspirations for the emerging future. 
• Patagonia chatting about what it takes to be a bonfire brand and creating trust through transparency and traceability.
• Seventh Generation revealing the art of being a leading corporate responsible brand.
• Steve Glenn @ Livinghomes extolling the virtues of a home that creates more energy than it uses.
• Michael Pollan eloquently discussing how food is not a thing but a relationship.  Followed up by Guillermo Payet and Erin Barnett at LocalHarvest sharing the incredible undercurrent of folks gravitating towards local farms, local markets, local food and CSA.

Crazy idea I know.  But then again, the beauty is that it is all real…incredibly real.  So at a time when our culture needs inspiration, hope and optimism, I simply thought it would be cool to start sharing a beautiful mosaic of what could be.  Perhaps we should all start dreaming for a living?

 Wide right.   

Imagine if we had the same reverence for Janine Benyus, Buckminster Fuller, John Todd, Paul Hawken, Michael Pollan, Paul Rice and David Suzuki that our culture has for Tiger Woods?  What would shift in our behavior and every deliberation?

The possibilities would be endless.

My newfound obsession - discovering the trimtab that can make it a reality…