What Now? Designing Action Into Experiences
November 27, 2018 by 3 Comments
Janet stood facing the huge, metal monster. Shaking. In sheer freight. It was just an MRI scan, but fear of the unknown overtook her. She sat shaking on the side of the machine and then lay down. A harrowing experience While she was lying there, still waiting for the procedure to begin, she noticed a […]
What’s an experience?
May 3, 2018 by 7 Comments
Drinking beer and watching ESPN. Chris Barbie and Don Kamentz found themselves sitting in a bar in Houston. Just chillin. Trying to recuperate from another 14-hour day running their start-up charter school. Wach ya’ lookin’ at On the screen in front of them, ESPN was covering National Signing Day. That’s the day high school football […]
We’re Asking The Wrong Question
January 9, 2018 by 3 Comments
Whether we like it or not, our future depends upon the questions we ask. Whether we accept it or not, the wrong question can take us in the wrong direction. Or in an old direction that wanders about and wastes our time and effort and creativity. Alice stood at the crossroads Before her floated the […]
Stories That Move The Movement
March 21, 2017 by 10 Comments
Real stories, narrative stories, are powerful. They connect people and forever change those people for the better. Great stories exist outside time. They live in people’s hearts. And they fuel their actions That’s why stories are the language of tribes. And as such, they hold the power to emotionally connect people. And to define and […]
How To Shape A Story
March 7, 2017 by 6 Comments
Every story has a shape. You can find it by plotting the emotional high points and low points that the story takes as it unfolds. Voila! When you’re done you’ll end up with the shape of that story. That’s what Kurt Vonnegut did to show that classic stories have common basic shapes. He used Cinderella […]
What’s A Story, Anyway?
February 14, 2017 by 14 Comments
Stories are powerful. They connect with something deep within us. They help us make sense of the world and our place in it. The kinds of stories that motivate tribes and ignite movements define the cause. They illuminate our ideas and actions and make them memorable. They change things When done well, they transcend mere […]
Art Changes Things
January 31, 2017 by 1 Comment
You want to change things? Make art. Art is the human ability to do something for the first time. Something that may not work. Art is the work of a human being doing something real and personal that might change things. Art is about the important stuff. Because… But this world of art is not […]
Generous Ideas Blow Up Real Good
January 10, 2017 by Leave a Comment
Ideas for good can be very powerful. They can grow and spread at a surprisingly rapid rate. But not without a purpose, a tribe, a story, and a movement. Like Blake’s big boom It was finally time for a little fun. He needed it. Running four startups was getting to him. So he decided to […]
The Pillars Of Tribe Connections
December 13, 2016 by 5 Comments
Everybody loves a good pillar. They’ve been around for ions. You’ve got your Doric pillar. And your Gothic pillar. There’s always your Ionic pillar and your Corinthian pillar. Not to mention the ever-popular Tuscan. A short history of pillars Traditionally, pillars have been used to hold up buildings. But in modern times, pillars apparently hold […]
