borngroovy

Making something from nothing. A blog about art, design, food, and life.

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Todd Oldham

Even though the Altitude Summit was last month, I am still sorting through my notes and my thoughts. Instead of one brain dump, I am slowly marinating my experiences and sharing those that float to the top. 

Hearing Todd Oldham speak about his work and life was one such experience. He is definitely someone I have been aware of, but I did not think that I would be truly blown away by his down-to-earth personality and his ability to spin wisdom. 

I was touched by his sincere love and respect for the work of Charley Harper and his genuine concern for the care of Harper’s home and collection. This sentiment truly comes through in his video interview of Harper in his studio.

And again, Oldham carries the love through the book Charley Harper: An Illustrated Life that Oldham edited in 2007.  I had to buy the mini version ( I am on an artist’s budget) when I returned to New York. I already owned Beguiled by the Wild, and Oldham’s book is a great companion. Oldham rediscovered Charley Harper’s work after finding a stack of Ford Times Magazines in a thrift store with Harper’s work on the cover. When Oldham was reflecting on how much he loved the artwork on the covers he had a feeling of deja vu. Oldham had owned and loved the Golden Book of Biology as a child, with cover art, again, by Harper. 

In dialogue with Jodi Levine of Super Make It, Oldham challenged us to live an “art first life” and to “make our analog experiences as rich and as intoxicating” as new media experiences--a poignant comment at a blogger conference. To Oldham’s mind, social tools are really just like a “fancy pencil”. To counter smartphone addiction and the erosion of hands-on creative experiences, he suggested buying lots and lots of art materials and tools. Walking the talk, Oldham makes a fun line of art and craft products called Kid Made Modern with a series of books and videos to accompany the kits. Todd Oldham is as much a designer as he is an artist. From runway fashion to projects in furniture and design; mass produced clothing for Old Navy and projects with Barney’s, Nordstrom, and Uniqlo, author, and film-maker, Oldham does not suffer creative block. “ I get stuck in life. I never get stuck in creativity.” Oldham’s greatest risk is that he is so creatively curious that he is misunderstood. To this, he replied, "Even the things that went really shitty, I'm glad I did them. If you want to do lots of stuff, then do lots of stuff. If you keep baffling people, they get used to being baffled."  Word Todd Oldham. Word.

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Sidebar

While marveling at data and analytics, I have been delving into the dark underbelly of marketing, through Manoush Zomorodi’s NPR podcast Notes to Self: The Privacy Paradox series. Sign up and stream here.

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ALT2017: Chapter 2: Analytics are Useful

Photo by Justin Hackworth Photography via Friday We’re in Love 

Woah. There is so much I don’t know about the internet. 

After attending the Early Bird session at Alt with Camille Whiting of Friday We’re in Love,  I learned that analytics are useful.

Camille spoke enthusiastically about story-based analytics and how to use Google Analytics to define the unique demographics of your audience so that you have the tools to create fuller content. In addition to the treasure trove of Google Analytics, Camille suggested searching for insights on www.statsocial.com, app.buzzsumo.com, www.talu.io,  and segmentationsolutions.neilsens.com.

Definitely a ‘lightbulb’ moment for me. Frame your posts on trends or use trends to inspire posts. Or, at least consider trends in creating a post that embraces your interests/personal brand and your audience’s.

I really liked that Camille left us with questions to ask ourselves to reflect and hone our purpose:

How am I using each social platform?

What am I trying to achieve on my site/social media?

What am I selling? 

Who I am I trying to sell it to?

And don’t worry about the fast sell. Aim for quality over quantity. Consider the story that your unique analytics tell about your audience or, the audience that you would like to have.

I am still marinating Altitude Summit...but I am not worried...The slow burn is my specialty. 

Did you attend Camille’s talk? What was your takeaway? 

Check out Camille’s takeaways from her own blog post here.

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Post_#Altsummit

Thoughts: First #altsummit. Amazing. As many first time attendees, I was a bit stressed out about attending. I didn’t know what to expect. Despite that being my peptalk for others–make fear your reason to do something–I don’t always take my own suggestions to heart. This time I decided to take a risk. 

Thanks to my supportive family, I left for a week to learn about creative businesses, social media, and creating fairy dust. #AltSummit did not disappoint. From the weather in Palm Springs–sunny and warm–to the speakers–inspiring and so smart–to the attendees themselves–mostly women, friendly, talented, open-minded, clever dressers–-the experience was really one I can wholeheartedly recommend to someone starting or running a creative business.

Since I geeked out taking notes, and could use a review myself, my next few posts will be about what I learned during the summit. 

What’s your take? Did you attend Alt this year? Years past? Attended something similar? 

Let’s talk. I would love to hear what you think and start a conversation.

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Palm Springs #borngroovy

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Day 2

Final countdown to the ALT Summit in Palm Springs. Saguaro Hotel. I am nervous, excited, panicked and thrilled.  2 1/2 days to pack my bags, make take aways, line up a babysitter, mentally prepare for an event that is way outside of my comfort zone. Really excited to hear all of the speakers in the line up, make new friends, hand out cards and collect more, do yoga, and soak it all up!

I have been preparing by reading “It’s OK to be a Beginner: Lessons Learned at Alt Summit” “ Why I attend Conferences” “How to Prepare for a Conference”, “ My First Time at Altitude Summit”, “Three Ways to Prepare for Alt Summit Winter 2016″ “What I Learned at Altitude Summit: 73 Things”, “Alt Summit: Things I am not Worried About”, “21 Tips for Alt Summit”, “Alt Summit Prep for your Blog”, “How I Prepared for my First Blog Conference”, “Bloggers Unite: Five Tips for Alt Summit”. The articles have some great tips and recommended reading for anyone going to Alt or thinking about it. 

My favorite thing so far about Alt is the spirit of openness that the conference fosters. People are encouraged to reach out to one another before hand and the conference is open to anyone who buys a ticket. We need more of this spirit in the world now.

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Day 1

It started as a bit of a joke; a casual conversation with my brother-in-law while we were preparing veggie side dishes for the Thanksgiving dinner. “Josh, I was born groovy…”That should be the title of your memoir: Born Groovy. 

When I told my husband the story, he said that I should start a lifestyle business with that name. 20 minutes later and $18 dollars poorer, I had claimed borngroovy.com and @borngroovy on Twitter, borngroovy on Facebook and Instagram. 

So here it is…a bit crazy, ever-changing, casual branding…Born Groovy. making something out of nothing.