Punish and Reward

WHAT ARE YOU SEARCHING FOR?

2011-05-08T13:08:00.000-07:00

The popularisation of the search engine has opened up a wealth of opportunity to all. It's now relatively straight forward to find whatever you're looking for but this accessibility to all makes the the whole idea of search redundant, you no longer have to search for anything as a few choice key words into Google or a question asked to your social network will return answers in seconds, the search is over. Or is it?

As search becomes instant, the results themselves become the barrier to finding what you're looking for as all the returned information has some attachment to what you want, deciding which 'result' to pursue becomes the challenge and ploughing through all the options the task. Deciding what to pay attention to is a big question but one that can be answered using instinct. If we instinctively know what feels right then it explains our desire to pursue a particular path or search result, making the decision unique to each of us as long as we make the decision.

But what if the search engines re-presented themselves as decision engines as in the case of Bing, are you content with your decisions being made for you by some clever maths, your instinct removed from the equation and the search you're conducting resolved before it's even begun, for those with no sense of discovery perhaps there's no value in search at all!

I prefer to think of search as one of the ways we personalise our lives, if we search for nothing then we adopt our immediate surroundings and 'fit in' but searching outside our sphere of influence, relying on our instinct to guide us, creates a personalised existence that cannot be found anywhere. Synthesising the personalisation engine is a difficult nut to crack but it's one that will grow naturally if you choose to instinctively pursue it.

IT'S A WONDERFUL WORLD PT3

2011-02-20T13:12:00.000-08:00

The modern world has become so information heavy that we instinctively rely on the marketing messages companies throw at us on a daily basis to help shape and form the life that we lead. They tell us what to eat, what to wear, where to go and how to be sociable. We simply decide which vendor is talking to us in a way that feels comfortable or appropriate before indulging in their product or service.

But if we naturally personalise our life experience, meaning that the choices we make and the actions we take shapes our life by reflecting those decisions, do we end up living the life defined by those companies who shout the loudest and desiring the life projected by those aspirational campaign images that paint a picture of who we are supposed to be. What if you're looking for more than that?

Looking for more generally exposes us to many more companies, all shouting, and we find ourself living a fractured existence where our fleeting experience with one product or service is replaced with desire for the next. Our natural sense of discovery is satisfyingly numbed into submission by the advertised versions of what others think our life should be about.

So how does what you are looking for directly effect your life experience? You could start by asking yourself that big question: 'What am I searching for?' and look beyond the advertised experiences to reconnect with your natural sense of discovery, you never can tell where it will take you!

IT'S A WONDERFUL WORLD PT2

2011-02-16T15:30:00.000-08:00

With so much on offer, how do you choose? Faced with the choices you have to make on a daily basis it's inevitable that in order to live an easy life you'll get straight to the point and take the most straight forward option because if you stop and think about it, choice can be exhausting!

Vast numbers of companies are competing for your attention which naturally makes the process of choice distracting and even fuels procrastination. Take the simple sandwich, (I'm assuming you've decided to indulge in a sandwich!) If you're a regular lunchtime sandwich eater you probably have settled into a routine but take a moment to think of the opportunities that any city has to offer when it comes to sandwiches, there's an obscene amount of choice!

Practically every sandwich eating opportunity is covered from luxury sit down and enjoy in opulent club surroundings to processed limp refrigerated flat packed cardboard, all tastes and price points are covered. But the ultimate choice has to be when you choose to make your own and have total control over your sandwich creation. So if your lunchtime routine and sandwich of choice is tasting a little bland why don't you choose to try something new next time, there's so much out there to satisfy even the most discriminating of palates!

RANT #3 CONSUMERS QUEUE TO BE BRANDED.

2011-01-02T09:57:00.000-08:00

Being referred to as a consumer does not give me a good feeling inside. The mainstream news talks of consumer spending as though it's a marker of all that we're capable of and being branded a consumer only adds fuel to the branding irons already hot coals. I sometimes think we forget that one of the branding irons uses was to mark cattle but the lines outside some stores, and at the cash till, would suggest that consumers will even happily queue to be branded!

Now that the sales are in full swing it's all the encouragement we need to go out to snap up a bargain but with 70% off being the norm it does not take a maths head to work out the profits made during non-sale time, and who would pay full price when you can wait for the sale? You're only going to pay full price for something if you absolutely love it otherwise you just wait for the sale and hope, or buy something else if you miss out, replacing a love lost.

So it's the end of the season and there's stock that needs clearing, in some cases 1000's of items are passed on at marked down prices in the process of clearing, by removing any value from these goods to prepare for next seasons cycle and selling them onto the consumer who we all know loves a bargain, whatever it may be.

RANT #2 WE ARE TRAFFIC.

2010-12-05T10:10:00.000-08:00

I cannot stand sitting in traffic, car's should go places and not sit stationary for long. I understand that traffic will build up, it's inevitable! But when you need to turn across a busy street into a side road why does nobody let you cross? It's as though those in the congested lane feel that just because there's an opportunity to move a car's length forward, they should just to keep moving, rather than maintaining a gap to allow us to cut through.

I know how easy it is to become completely unreasonable when you've been crawling along but perhaps if we all took a minute to think about the world around us then life would become a little more free flowing. Personally I can't wait for the time when the car takes over;
http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2010/10/what-were-driving-at.html
And hopefully it would look & sound like this!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=muu3aIVBGIY
Problem solved!

IT'S A WONDERFUL WORLD PT1

2010-12-01T07:04:00.000-08:00

I'm amazed at what the World has to offer, as the search engines make everything discoverable there seems to be something for everyone. The times of adopted personalities are diminishing as there is now real incentive for being yourself. But with so much choice how do you choose?

The fashion industry should be all about change and offering choice but flicking through the pages of Vogue, Marie Claire, InStyle, Elle etc I was stunned by how similar each of these magazines look, the formular's evident right from the front cover through to the closing page, month after month. I understand that most of us are change adverse, but the perscribed alternative the mainstream fashion mags offer is severely numbing and when administered monthly is bordering on abuse. So how was your last fix?

USE YOUR COMMON SENSE PT1

2010-11-14T12:40:00.000-08:00

It was my parents who introduced me to common sense. From a very early age, as far back as I can remember, it was always 'use your common sense' without any real explanation of what it was! It was only recently that I thought "I still don't know what common sense is" so I've decided to find out more about this elusive 6th sense but after reading Wikipedia's account it has only fuelled the mystery.

One good example would be my RANT #1. Common sense should tell you that there's a finite number of people who can fit into any small shop and you need to let some people out before entering, but even this simple observation is overlooked by so many. So much so that the London Underground continue to 'educate' with a 'Let passengers off the train before boarding' advertising campaign!

RANT #1 NO MORE ROOM IN HERE.

2010-11-03T16:09:00.000-07:00

Well time to disclose one those annoying little events that happens on a daily basis!

When entering a small shop I make a point of always allowing the person coming out to leave before I go in, my reasons for doing this is that there's a finite amount of space in there so if everybody entering didn't allow people to leave, it would soon get a bit tight and nobody else would be able to get in. So it really *%!@'s me off when I come to leave the shop and people insist on entering without allowing me to leave, particularly if I'm holding the door and I don't even get a thank you! what am I? the doorman? Ladies are of course excused as I consider myself a gentleman. What do you think?

ATTENTION GRABBING STARS PT2

2010-10-31T14:01:00.001-07:00

The trouble with looking up at the stars tonight is how much knowledge we carry with the observation. Our shared insight into what goes on out there makes it difficult to look with fresh eyes, but try it. Imagine your next glimpse of those bright lights is your first and you know nothing of what you're seeing. Now what do you think?

ATTENTION GRABBING STARS PT1

2010-10-30T11:13:00.001-07:00

Stars, of the celestial variety rather than from the pages of Hello magazine, are just brilliant at getting noticed. The contrast offered by the night sky gives these pinpoints of lux all the attention and their shifting positions command an eternal audience. The stars performance is a long one but what is it they are trying to say?

TIME TO GET AN OPINION

2010-10-28T16:17:00.001-07:00

Well now that I've got this setup so I can publish direct from my phone there's no real excuse for not firing off regular comment. Be prepared!