WE CREATE MORE THAN ANY OTHER GENERATION IN HUMAN HISTORY. We chat and post and video and photo and share and like and pin and comment and tweet and on and on and on. We are information machines in a world run by machines. But machines can’t imagine. And neither do we, not really, notContinue reading “Screw the Algorithm. Follow No One. And Just Imagine.”
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Our Kids Are Better Than Us – One 16-Year-Old Boy Just Proved Why
“Being gay isn’t what defines me; it’s just one of the many characteristics that makes up who I am. And if you can’t accept me for being myself, then you’re not worth my time. It’s okay not to understand something, but it’s not okay to be disrespectful.” THIS QUOTE IS NOT FROM MICHAEL SAM. It’s notContinue reading “Our Kids Are Better Than Us – One 16-Year-Old Boy Just Proved Why”
Why One School Shooting Every Week in America is No Cause for Panic
ABOUT ONCE A WEEK. That’s how often a school shooting occurs in the United States. That sounds like a lot, but really, when you think about the thousands of schools and millions of students and all the hours in a school day, it’s not much. Not bad at all. Just once a week. That’s notContinue reading “Why One School Shooting Every Week in America is No Cause for Panic”
How a “Fat Girl” Showed Us that Emotion, not Data, is What Matters in Storytelling
IF YOU HAVEN’T SEEN the “fat girl” scene from Louis C.K.’s television show, LOUIE, then stop reading this right now and go spend the next seven minutes and 27 seconds watching this clip. I’ll wait. Okay, so, what did you think? Raw and real? Uncomfortable? Sad? Inspiring? It was all of those things, or some ofContinue reading “How a “Fat Girl” Showed Us that Emotion, not Data, is What Matters in Storytelling”
Why Fire Illuminates the Best of Southern California
“Nothing breaks the spirit of a Californian like a fire. It starts quietly and then grows; moves and acts as if with conscience; taunting you with a schoolyard bully’s joy.” — Gary Goldhammer, Below the Fold, 2007 ONCE AGAIN, AS I’VE DONE so many times before, I awoke to the smell of smoke. Fire in SouthernContinue reading “Why Fire Illuminates the Best of Southern California”
A Japanese Music Lesson in Brand Storytelling, No Translation Needed
THE BEST STORIES don’t need to speak to us in order to speak to us. Language can be a barrier. We hear the words and instantly create perceptions that may or may not be intended. Words can deceive. That’s why this short film — an advertisement for a Japanese music school called Tosando — isContinue reading “A Japanese Music Lesson in Brand Storytelling, No Translation Needed”
For This Teenager, An iPad is Just a Bookend
THIS PHOTO IS REAL. This is the nightstand of a 15-year-old girl. My daughter. A lover of Tumblr, a voracious consumer of YouTube, a texting and Snapchatting and, yes, full-blooded Kindle reading teen of Generation What’s Next. Yet her iPad Mini, a silicon beacon of human advancement, has been relegated to the scrap heap ofContinue reading “For This Teenager, An iPad is Just a Bookend”
Selfies and the Mask of Social Media
THE MOST TALKED ABOUT MOMENT of the 2014 Academy Awards, other than John Travolta’s mangling of a singer’s name, was the all-star “selfie orchestrated by host Ellen DeGeneres. It was a great moment. It was fun, it was entertaining — but it wasn’t real. Spontaneous moments do happen at the Oscars, such as Jennifer Lawrence trippingContinue reading “Selfies and the Mask of Social Media”
Breaking the Story Code: Why the Brand Storytelling Hero’s Journey Matters
“The world is shaped by two things – stories told and the memories they leave behind.” – Vera Nazarian, author STORIES ARE PATTERNS. Understanding these patterns, these codes hidden in plain sight, is the key to telling stories in a world of infinite media. Stories today live across paid, earned, owned and shared channels – onceContinue reading “Breaking the Story Code: Why the Brand Storytelling Hero’s Journey Matters”
“Transformation” – Step Four of the Brand Storytelling Hero’s Journey
“The only thing that is constant is change.” – Heraclitus, Greek philosopher OUR ABILITY TO CHANGE defines us. Star Wars worked because Luke Skywalker became something greater than even he believed was possible, because Han Solo went from heartless smuggler to selfless soldier. Humphrey Bogart had to transform into a freedom fighter for Casablanca toContinue reading ““Transformation” – Step Four of the Brand Storytelling Hero’s Journey”
Gary Goldhammer -- Strategic storytelling for brands, organizations and executives 