Suresh Dinakaran - Suresh Dinakaran's Blog

Why Is Enough NOT Enough?

Not until something challenges you to rise up, you shall always stay down; not until you realize your enough is enough, you shall always have enough.

The scars in our culture will never let you get away from the imagined slip between the cup and the lip in this case. Present day bookkeeping(at least the one that most of us seem to practice) seems to have only debit, deficiency and gaps.

This is our modern curse: A century of conspicuous consumption has trained us to be dutiful citizens of the Republic of Not Enough, swearing allegiance to the marketable myth of scarcity, hoarding toilet paper for the apocalypse. Along the way, we have unlearned how to live wide-eyed with wonder at what Hermann Hesse called “the little joys” — those unpurchasable, unstorable emblems of aliveness that abound the moment we look up from our ledger of lack.

What are you chasing? Or what is chasing you? Counting on life or making life count?

The democracy of inadequacy is NOT of the people, by the people, for the people. We all need a different domicile.

It’s time to script your own countercultural invitation to rediscover life’s true priorities amid our confused maelstrom of materialism and compulsive productivity.

“Enough is so vast a sweetness, I suppose it never occurs, only pathetic counterfeits,” Emily Dickinson lamented in a love letter. In his splendid short poem about the secret of happiness, Kurt Vonnegut exposed the taproot of our modern suffering as the gnawing sense that what we have is not enough, that what we are is not enough.

You, you-er, you-est is the perennial journey you will embark on and the ticket for that ride will be your investment.

This civilisational trance and the unabashed quest for more needs a wake up call and the time is now. Enough said.

If a contrarian take on productivity is of interest to you, allow me to take you there https://www.sureshdinakaran.com/blog/2020/06/08/rip-productivity-productivity-is-not-working/

ENDS

The World Doesn’t Need Another Ad Agency! NO!

It’s amazing how a simple tap on the space bar can make such a difference.

” Another ” is one of those odd English words that have multiple and contradictory meanings.One definition is ‘ being one more in addition to one or more of the same kind ‘, like having another car payment or another piece of pizza( two more things none of us likely need).

But ” another ” also means distinct or different from the one first considered. That puts an entirely different spin on things, and putting a space between the letters ( ” an other ” ), underscores the point.

The world rarely needs ” another ” but it will always welcome ” an other ” -particularly in the most mature, crowded, commoditized industries, where sameness leads to staleness.

Time after time another product or service gets superseded by an other product or service, making our lives more pleasant, more efficient, more productive or better in a host of additional ways.

Seeking ” an other ” is a sound strategy to keep pace with the inexorable march of creative destruction. In the marketplace, what is, will not always be, and what is to come, has not always been. The task of strategists therefore is to be agents of creation rather than victims of destruction. Our challenge is to pursue the new and unproven while we preserve the existing and profitable.

Unless you can ensure your company, brand or service is continually and legitimately, ” an other “, it will always end up becoming just ” another “.

As I conclude, I am encouraged to direct you to this article from BrandKnew about the need for Intersectionality in the Ad Industry.

ENDS

The Temporary Nature of Permanence!

Happiness is understanding and accepting impermanence.

That said, even happiness is impermanent, like everything else. Without impermanence, there can be no life. Impermanence is one of the essential doctrines and a part of three marks of existence in Buddhism. Asserting that all conditioned existence is transient, evanescent, and inconstant, impermanence is a concept found in various aspects of Hinduism and Jainism.

Cutting edge technology becomes obsolete. Medical breakthroughs avert certain disasters. Music goes from futuristic to contemporary to nostalgia. Idols and celebrities whom we revered but never met die young.

The Time Machine is a recent phenomena(of the 1800s). A thousand years ago people had no inkling of what today would have been like, Just like, we, the present generation, will have no inkling of what it would be a few hundred years from now. Except some crystal ball gazing or educated guesses.

Impermanence is the law of the universe. Our experience and relationship with time keeps changing. The concept of time zones was a derivative of clocks. (As an aside, Sir Sanford Fleming, a Canadian engineer, was the first person to propose the use of worldwide time zones back in 1878. His idea was to divide the world into 24 time zones that were each 15 degrees of longitude apart. The reason for this is that the earth rotates 15 degrees every hour, or 360 degrees in 24 hours). And mind you we didn’t have clocks till such time we invented cities.

Our idea of history is vague(what has been told to us- the concept of some people walked the earth some aeons ago)…and probably it is the same with our future. Whether we have a role in it, and will it shape up in the manner we envisage.

If the future were to be looked upon as an ‘ impressionist painting in landscape mode ‘, a couple of things will come to fore:

– The future will never stop surprising us and any control of it is only a myth in our heads.

– That said, we can have a greater role to play in the future and endeavor to make and leave an impact. Change is a culture thing and culture( and the way we can change it and therefore our future) can be only be changed by us, we, the people.

We will never have a stop watch to switch on and switch off the future, as and when we desire to. Nor can we request the future to lie still and wait for our nudge to get moving. Future is not an obedient toddler, unfortunately.

What definitely is in our control is the work we do, the stories we tell ourselves, the connections we establish, the paths we follow, the art we ship out- all of it determines our culture. And culture will echo what’s next!

ENDS

Goodbyes are good buys!

As the saying goes(by Moira Rogers), the two hardest things to say in life are hello for the first time and goodbye for the last.

That said, saying goodbye also means looking forward to new encounters. In a few years from now, you will have new skills, a new title, a new profession or business, new customers and a different level of influence.

All of this forward ratchet requires that you celebrate less – all the things that you are not doing any longer. Things that you have left behind. Let go. Disengaged with. Walked away from. Said ‘goodbye‘ to. In a sense. Past.

To land a new job, you leave behind your old one. The adult emerges upon the child being said goodbye to.

Much as we would like to believe that growth comes with no goodbyes, but it does. It is better to reconcile to the fact that what we begin will likely come to an end. Every beginning has an ending and every ending has a new beginning. When we go into it with eyes wide open, plan for it, then we will do it better.

Even book titles go by the names like Sorrow and Bliss, by Meg Mason, which while charming and lacerating in its humor but is also studded with all these moments of small-scale tragedy that make it feel hard to breathe. The price of being awake to life is being also awake to mortality.

” Great is the art of beginning, but greater is the art of ending.” –Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

What will you leave behind? What will you embrace?

ENDS

Going b(u)y the book !

In the ever dynamic world of click and having things delivered in a jiffy, the one question that any marketer or retailer in physical locations need to ask themself is: Are We Worth A Special Trip?

Now that more and more are ordered or experienced online, the only trips we make are special trips.

If your brand or your service or your place is not worth a special visit, it is unlikely that the customer is going to come anytime soon.

Exceptional customer experiences are the only sustainable platform for competitive differentiation. In an in increasingly commoditised world, riddled by a SOS(Sea of Sameness), your best product or service is CeX(Customer Experience).

You enter a bookstore by design in a mall or as you get to your gate at an airport, what you will see are prominent displays of books which are ‘ bestsellers ‘. Books which are not booksellers(or were old bestsellers) occupy shelf space in an alphabetical order that go by the authors’ second name.

This is creating an experience for that almost extinct category of readers or buyers who come to a book shop knowing fully well the name of the author and the book|s she or he has written.

There is a scant regard for making things memorable, quirky, inspiring. Nothing that says ‘ Weekend Must Reads ‘, ‘ Fiction For The Young (that adults would enjoy) ‘, ‘ Must Read Books You Have Never Heard of Let Alone Read ‘, ‘ Page Turners From A Different Era ‘ , ‘ Great Reading for Non Readers ‘…

There is no attempt at personalising the experience. The thinking seems to be that shelf space has some shelf life and nothing more needs to be done to add life to the store experience. In such a scenario, why would you give up the convenience and frictionless experience of shopping on Amazon and haul your way to a physical bookstore? There is no special incentive.

Sticking to a mindset that helped you flourish a couple of decades ago is a sure fire way to go out of business. Re-imagining is not a choice, it is a compelling necessity.

Enough of going by the book. Time to turn the page and begin a new chapter!

ENDS

Breaking the Myth: Productivity by Undoing!

Sorry to sound contrarian here. As the defaults in our culture have made out that productivity is all about doing. And that is a big big lie! And our undoing.

The co relation here is NOT about inaction and undoing. “Sometimes sitting and doing nothing is the best thing you can do,” reminds Karen Salmansohn, best selling author of THINK HAPPY. Take some time each day to sit and just be present with yourself and your thoughts and feelings.

Slack is not taboo, it’s a good thing. Our best thoughts and ideas come from moments of slack, not from a flurry of activity and busyness. Instead of your phone, put yourself in airplane mode. Wander, drift, escape, discover, resolve..step into nothingness, the proverbial void, because that is where things that didn’t or don’t exist get created. There has to be a void so that we can create. So, don’t avoid the void.

The subconscious mind is where we store our strongest emotions. That is where life’s script gets written. As we calibrate our state of mind and body into doing nothing, we release the subconscious into the beyond where it blends the old and the new, stitches up unexplored associations and calibrates the new arithmetic to the old to discover unexpected positive outcomes.

Slowing down is a hack to go faster. Using less energy. And to go deeper. Never mind the naysayers. The rubber needing to hit the road( the default expectation) at all times, actually is a speed breaker and slows down if not stops the creation of original thought.

We are neither robots nor a manufacturing plant. Creativity isn’t produced..you run into it, you discover it. And that happens during moments of slack, not hard labour.

Lounge, stare into nothingness, interrupt set patterns. Permit your interior silence to take over contemporary chaos. Ideas don’t come with an ETA attached.

Contrary to what we have been brainwashed about, our best work will come from undoing– by slowing down, by giving ourselves space and time. Morabor(Latin for slow down). The Japanese call this intentional vacuum ‘ ma ‘.

In the perennial quest to conform and comply, and trying to beat everyone else doing the same, we happily concede defeat and give up on blazing our own trails. Running the ‘ also ran ‘ race. You might be doing okay by normal standards, but you still feel restless, bored, and limited. True success is playing by your own rules, creating work that no one can replicate. Trying to be the best will limit you to someone else’s definition of success. Don’t be the best, be the only. Only is much better than being the best. Whether you are Mark or Taylor, tailor your own mark. Make competition irrelevant.

Give into ONLYNESS. It’s next to GODLINESS!

The best way to accelerate is to take the foot off the pedal.

ENDS

GPS Signal lost?

The past has no power to stop you from being present now. Often we allow ourselves to be upset by small things we should despise and forget. Preferring to hang onto its coat tails. And happy to play victim.

Grievance as the crutch to making things better is a disaster. Because if that is the preferred status quo, exploring possibilities and therefore resolution and progress becomes a non starter.

As Booker Washington put it ” Let our opportunities overshadow our grievances “.

Holding onto a distant past to justify a present grievance is baseless. Possibility rides on the bedrock of uncertainty. Because nothing in life is ever sure.

The assertion here, however, is that there really is no creativity without uncertainty. Put another way: dubito ergo creo. This is Latin for, I doubt therefore I create.

The outside world provokes, persists and insists that we change the story we tell ourselves. Our attitude doesn’t have to be driven by the outside world, but sometimes they overlap.

Specifically, when we experience uncertainty – no matter how uncomfortable and unsettling and destabilizing it can feel – the good news is that it opens vistas of possibility for new thought and action.

Organizations are created, powered, and led by people. To lead organizations well, we train people in disciplines such as marketing, finance, and leadership. But uncertainty presents a special challenge since few of us have received training in how to deal with it. As a result, although we may call for innovation, transformation, and change, most people back down at even the hint of risk, falling into a series of behavioral traps that limit organizations’ ability to grow and adapt. The challenge is that all growth, change, and transformation inevitably come paired with uncertainty. We have to go through the uncertainty to get to the possibility.

“In detachment lies the wisdom of uncertainty…in the wisdom of uncertainty lies the freedom from our past, from the known, which is the prison of past conditioning. And in our willingness to step into the unknown, the field of all possibilities, we surrender ourselves to the creative mind that orchestrates the dance of the universe.” ~ Deepak Chopra.

As a possibilitarian ( its possible to create new vocabulary, you see!), may I direct you to this article from BrandKnew which talks about unlocking your inner futurist?

ENDS

Branding is Not Equal To Marketing!

Branding shapes. Marketing sells.

And yes, there is a gray zone. The shape is essential to the sale.

Let’s face it. Brands define who we are.

Branding

Think of branding as expressing yourself.

What do you wear to a job interview? A suit? A dress? Do you want to appear professional or casual? Sneakers? Heels ? Perfume ? Cologne? Do you shave? Put on makeup? What kind of lipstick? Red? Burgundy? Gloss?

Marketing

Think of marketing as making your case.

Why me? How do I fit into the organisation? What’s my experience? How do I make your life easier, better? How can I help you? What can I learn from you? What can you learn from me?

Without doubt it is becoming increasingly difficult to distinguish between these two disciplines.

The way to see it is that brands need marketing just like a fish needing water. Without the crutch of marketing, brands simply will not get the eyeballs it need for survival.

Yes, marketing has changed the world. Billboards alter our skylines, and commercials disrupt our entertainment experiences. But, it is not marketing that shapes humanity in such fundamental ways.

Like it or not. It is brands that do.

Branding is Expecting; Marketing is Parenting. More on this can be accessed at BrandKnew.

ENDS

How about a New School Of Taught?

The education industrial complex pays little or no heed to Howard Gardner’s Theory of Multiple Intelligence. The theory claims that human beings have different ways in which they process data, each being independent. Gardner’s theory argues that students will be better served by a broader vision of education, wherein teachers use different methodologies, exercises and activities to reach all students, not just those who excel at linguistic and logical intelligence.

Because humans excel in different areas, Gardner’s multiple intelligences’ theory can provide students with a better understanding of how they learn. When students are able to identify which type of multiple intelligence they use to learn material, they can adapt the information to their learning (Bilash, 2009).

“What makes a child gifted and talented may not always be good grades in school, but a different way of looking at the world and learning.” —Chuck Grassley.

10 is the new 20; 20 is the new 40. Age is an obsolete default.

The predominant rote method of learning | teaching is actually a signal that you could do just enough work to persuade an overwhelmed teacher that you were compliant.

The opportunity going forward remains the same: Bringing insight and guts to interesting problems.

There is a high possibility that you get ahead in life for years and years because you got dealt good cards. But, very soon you realise that in the real world, attitude and effort, taking initiative and responsibility, showing up and shipping out consistently are what lands you a senior VP role, or a Broadway part or a Nobel Prize. Because these are the people who have put in the hard yards, showed up, understood, cared, and remained open to new experiences.

We live in a culture, unfortunately, that is highly biased towards connections and charisma.

What if we wear a different hat? Start celebrating the students who work the hardest, help others the most, lead by example, explore possibilities? Sending out clear signals to those on the sidelines that if you are willing to do all of that, you will be celebrated as well. Grades, marks, shiny trophies can wait!

If education is life itself, then we be better prepared. Or, we prepare better!

As I conclude I lead you to an article from BrandKnew on This high school that is designed for the jobs of the future.

ENDS

A Selfless Act Called…Branding!

Ideally, yes! And mind you, selfless doesn’t mean private.

Lets look at the importance of selflessness..

Selflessness improves relationships, Selflessness can keep you healthy, Selflessness gives us a new perspective, Selflessness forms connection, Selflessness gives you a sense of peace, Selflessness can be a form of therapy.

Typically brands spend millions of dollars to realise some of the above, if not all.

A great brand naturally flows out of the product or service. Graciously. Optimistically. With the singular focus of making it successful.

Yes, it needs shaping. Crafting. Articulating. Calibrating. But, the underlying shape- the bones of whatever it is- are present from its inception.

And the role of the brand builders is to help it find the appropriate outfit, to coach it on how to walk and talk, mentor it and set it free into the real world. So, when it finally goes out into the world, its appearance matches its personality.

Selfless, really?

Isn’t branding all about yourself? Looking inward? A transcendently selfish act?

Well, a brand is part of the society. As it steps into the world, it has to signal very clearly what it stands for.

That said, a brand cannot live in isolation. Like the fish in water, which are dependent on the ecosystem around it, a brand on its own is pretty much a useless entity.

A mobile phone needs a cellular network, an electrical infrastructure. It needs a marketplace, it needs software, it needs applications, it needs accessories. And each one of these ecosystems breaks down into smaller and smaller subsystems. Without all this, a cell phone is a useless brick of metal, plastic and glass.

With a logo on its back.

If a brand lives by itself in the forest, will anyone know it’s a brand?

You just maybe tempted to take a look at this article from BrandKnew about Personal Values and the Need for a Purpose Led Brand Culture.

ENDS