This manifesto was created by the talented folks at TBWA\Chiat\Day to launch Apple’s “Think Different” campaign. It was the first major advertising initiative following the return of Steve Jobs to company he co-founded in 1976.
The ads made me cheer. I printed them off and pinned them to my cubical wall. I replaced the printouts with full sized posters. Fourteen years, six of the posters still hang on the studio walls at Curve Detroit.
From the time the campaign broke on billboards, posters and television, it because a rallying cry and source of inspiration for the creative class. Today, they serve as a fitting tribute to a man who changed the way we communication and the way we create.
Rest in peace, Steve Jobs. You will be missed.
Here’s to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers. The round pegs in the square holes.
The ones who see things differently. They’re not fond of rules. And they have no respect for the status quo. You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them.
About the only thing you can’t do is ignore them. Because they change things. They invent. They imagine. They heal. They explore. They create. They inspire. They push the human race forward.
How else can you stare at an empty canvas and see a work of art? Or sit in silence and hear a song that’s never been written? Or gaze at a red planet and see a laboratory on wheels?
While some see them as the crazy ones, we see genius. Because the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do.
Steve Jobs 1955-2011
There are only three responses I’ve ever heard when asking someone if they’re coming to the TEDxDetroit conference:
“Who’s Ted?”
“FedEx conference?”
“YES! I love TED and I can’t wait for TEDx!”
TED has a legion of fans around the world. TEDtalk videos are some of the most watched videos on the web. TED even gets some screen time in the new Apple iPad ad. But still there are people who haven’t heard of TED or it’s independently produced cousin, TEDx.
You can get the full lowdown on TED and watch thousands of interesting “ideas worth spreading at http://TED.com. But I’d like to answer another common question: “What is TEDxDetroit?”
The short answer is “TEDxDetroit is an event to celebrate ideas, innovations and inspiration in Detroit and Michigan.” Which usually leads to a lot of other questions.
“Is it a business conference?” No, but we highlight many cool business leaders.
“Is it a social media conference?” No, but you’ll find twitter, youtube and flickr ablaze with content during TEDxDetroit.
“Is it a tech conference or an art show?” No, but you’ll find many of the top innovators and artists showing off their latest creations.
Hell, we’re not even sure it is a conference.
It’s most definitely a chance to bring together the thinkers and doers together and share ideas worth spreading. We have four goals with TEDxDetroit:
Bring the “charged particles” together to encourage collaboration, optimism and a sense of what’s possible.
Shine a light on the cool people, places, entrepreneurs, innovations and artists creating in Detroit and Michigan.
Act as a big positive PR event highlighting to the world what IS working in Detroit.
Raise money for charities opening children’s minds with art and technology.
You’re sure to find area’s top creators, catalysts, entrepreneurs, artists, technologists, designers, scientists, and students at TEDxDetroit on Wednesday, September 28th. I sure hope you’ll be one of them.
Photos from our talented Photo Team at TEDxDetroit 2010 including Erin Slayter, Becky Johns, Benjamin Slayter, Mira Uncut and more. See their work at http://www.flickr.com/search/?q=tedxdetroit
Quit banging your head against the wall/desk/door/facepalm.
Improve your inputs if you want to improve your output.
Listen to fresh voices. Explore new ideas. Read alternative sources. Challenge conventional thinking. Seek inspiring wisdom.
We’re creatures of habit. We read the same blogs, talk to the same folks, crank the same old widgets, eat at the same restaurants, drive the same way home and produce the same results. Today, look for ways to mix it up. Fill your senses with fresh stimulation. Look at your work with the wide-eyed wonderment of a child.
Awaken to the world of possibility around you and you just might awaken a new opportunity within.
The shuttle is always going to be a reflection of what this nation can do when it dares to be bold and commits to follow through. We’re not ending the journey today, we’re completing a chapter of a journey that will never end.
“
—
Space Shuttle Atlantis Commander Chris Ferguson, as STS-135, the final flight of the US Space Shuttle program, was preparing for liftoff.
Commander Ferguson concluded his pre-launch comments with “Let’s light this shuttle one more time and witness this nation at its best. The crew of Atlantis is ready to launch.”
The space program has always been a point of inspiration for me personally. I’m sad to see the program mothballed early due to budget cuts. Atlantis flew only 33 missions and it was designed to fly 100. I wish space lobbyists were as effective as defense lobbyists.
Guns can make you reach for the sky but only rockets can take you there.
As Shuttle Endeavour Commander Mark Kelly eloquently said on the launchpad of STS-134 “It is in the DNA of our great country to reach for the stars and explore. We must not stop.”
One: Opportunities are fleeting. Like the shifting sands of a dune, opportunities are always moving. If you don’t take action on your ideas, their ideal moment will be swept away.
Two: Never confuse busy with productive. Work will expand to fill the time you give it. Schedule your vacation and actually take it. Being away from your computer screen and your office will fill your head with new ideas - just don’t forget to carry a notepad to capture all of your new brilliance.
Three: Drink deeply from the cup of life. Fill your senses with fresh inputs, new people, new places and challenging ideas. Then pour your whole self into every thing you choose to do. Breathe life and passion into your projects. Life’s too short to waste your talent on the unremarkable. Make it happen.
Look, I don’t want to wax philosophic, but I will say that if you’re alive you’ve got to flap your arms and legs, you’ve got to jump around a lot, for life is the very opposite of death, and therefore you must at very least think noisy and colorfully, or you’re not alive.
“
—
Photo and quote from the always cool Andrew Weaver (channeling Mel Brooks)
Hello, Hello. My name is Charlie. I'm a purveyor of attention.
I hang my hat at a marketing strategy, creative design and social technology firm called Curve Detroit. I'm the curator of TEDxDetroit and help run a social network in Detroit called Motor City Connect.
I love big ideas and big mountains and big sandwiches. I hate poorly designed billboards, speed limits and people who flick cigarette butts out the window. I know a thing or two about advertising, marketing and social media.
I'm on a mission to rekindle the fire in your belly.#makeithappen
Tweet