This morning I had the pleasure of giving a pretty open talk titled “10 Things Craig Jamieson” at Creative Mornings in Cape Town on the topic of Transparency. Thank you to everyone who woke up early and was present, you were a great crowd, I truly hope you enjoyed it. Please find my deck below.
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This morning I had the pleasure of giving a talk to the world class second semester students of Friends of Design. I gave a brutally honest 50+ point presentation on things I have experienced and thought they ought to know.
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say “I don’t know”
ask for more clarity
stay at home when you feel ill
say your don’t understand
ask what acronyms stand for
forget things
introduce yourself
depend on the team
ask for help
not know everything
have quiet days
have loud days, to talk, joke and laugh
put your headphones on
say “No” when you’re too busy
make mistakes
sing
sigh
not check your email out of hours
not check your email constantly during hours
just Slack it
walk over and ask someone face-to-face
go somewhere else to concentrate
offer feedback on other peoples work
challenge things you are not comfortable with
say yes when anyone does a coffee run
prefer tea
snack
have a messy desk
have a tidy desk
work how you like to work
ask the management to fix it
have off-days
have days off
I love this it’s ok to … list, something I not only need to share in a future workplace, but a list I need to follow myself.
Most of my life I have been told that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Up until recently it was my least favourite meal, in fact I used to feel sick if I ate in the morning, something I wish i new the reason for, but on a typical day, I would not eat until about mid day. Over the past 6+ months I have gone through rapid self development and a big part has to do with my current location. Cape Town is a pretty convenient place to live, it’s smaller than other cities I have lived in, yet it has an abundance of really great places to grab a really good breakfast.
I no longer subscribe to the gym rat mentality of eating 5 – 7 meals a day, I now eat when I want to. I also adda good amount of nutrition to my body which was seriously lacking. I usually start my day with a good amount of kefir (Try Thank Goodness food & beverages if you want to find where to get this incredible probiotic in Cape Town) in my stomach. But I feel the need to eat earlier, and the great thing about this, is I tend to get going earlier. Despite winter making it too cozy in bed to want to get up, its always exciting to eat at my of my favourite places to eat breakfast. I conveniently use their wifi too and I have now found it’s increased my productivity a lot.
I get a bunch of emails out the way, usually before most people are even at the office. I close my mail program once I have eaten and tend to start focussing on other tasks and I’m just smashing through my workload. I feel strong and smarter, unlike before where I was like the walking dead most mornings, other than my inappropriate sense of humour, which is always on top form. So other than the great nutritional benefits of eating first thing in the morning, it’s increased productivity which is an added bonus. I honestly don’t really think too much about the other meals of the day, I literally eat when I’m hungry, but breakfast has become the most important meal of the day, the meal I most look forward to and by far my favourite.
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It’s Valentine’s Day, the date on the calendar that we celebrate our love, usually for someone in a romantic way, be it old love, potential love, puppy love, groovy love or crazy love. I believe every day we should love, but today we celebrate it. So let me remind you that love is abundant, you don’t need to reserve it for a select few, and not only for others, but for ourselves too.
Fall in love with yourself, give your love to the world and attract more love into your life.
Happy Valentines Day my loves, all of you!
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2015 has to have been one of the most challenging years of my life and I honestly felt at times I just wasn’t going to make it. But I hung in there and it turned out to be a pretty epic year as I rediscovered a whole other side of life. So in no particular order, here are 15 epic moments I experienced this past year.
Hong Kong
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In 2014 I departed on a contract as a Creative Director at JWT Hong Kong. I got to work on several regional projects for Nikon Asia and a few other local and international brands. It was a tough experience living there, fresh food was scarce, serviced apartments were small, gyms were expensive and I worked all the time, but I found my groove and welcomed in 2015 in a new apartment that felt like a home. While my adventure was quite suddenly cut short and I returned home in March, experiencing living in Asia was an eye opener and something wonderful I’ll never forget.
Surfing
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My most recent accomplishment, it took 40 years before I finally got on a surfboard and I loved every moment of it. I have wanted to do this for the longest time, but thankfully on my last trip to Cape Town, there was some good weather and I finally went to Muizenberg, hired my gear and after a quick tutorial, I was paddling away trying to catch my first waves.
Walking, Hiking & Forest Bathing
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I love walking, it’s something I enjoyed doing in Hong Kong all the time. There is a freedom to being abl to walk outside and explore the city we live in. While it’s hard to do in Joburg, other than walking in malls, I have spent a fair amount of time in Cape Town where I walk along the beaches, the city streets and of course the promenade.
I have also started doing trails/hikes with my friends along Table Mountain. I have so much to explore and even some of the trails I have done a few times, offer the same magical experience. At sunrise or sunset, these walks bring me closer to nature, give me the freedom to walk and offer up some incredible views.
A good friend has introduced me to walking in the many forests in Cape Town, which he calls forest bathing, soaking in the miracle of natures tall trees and feeding our souls with its beauty. It’s a fantastic way to escape the city vibe and reconnect with the land and breathe in some fresh air.
Secret Sunrise
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I discovered that I really enjoy waking up early and starting the day with a good old dance, with like-minded people. With our wireless headphones we collectively wakeup to celebrate the sunrise with a stretch, a hug, smiles, high fives, get really goofy and expressively dance. I have learnt that the more I let go, the more fun I’ll have.
Skating
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I was never a great skater, but I have always enjoyed skating. After years of collecting boards, which I use to hang on my office wall, I decided it was time to kit one of them out and start skating again as I have noticed the trend pick up while at the coast. I don’t expect that I will do any crazy tricks or frequent a skate park, but I do enjoy riding a board again and sharing the experience with friends.
Cape Town
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My job allows me to travel to Cape Town just about every week, so I have rediscovered my love for the mother city and everything it offers. I have always regretted moving back to Joburg, so I really do try to take advantage of my opportunity and make the most of time at the coast. It’s absolutely magical there, surrounded by the ocean, beaches and the magical mountain. I will make this place my home again as it offers me the type of lifestyle I want.
Product Design
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Not satisfied anymore working in the Advertising industry, I decided to take the leap into product design and joined Standard Banks mobile team. I cannot be so bold as to say I will never work in Advertising again, but being on the client side and working with a team who strives to build something useful, people actually want to use, is a refreshing change in my career.
This is 40
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I turned 40 and I remember being young and laughing when people commented that life begins at 40, but if the past 4 months are a sign of things to come, it truly does. Yes I lack the youth I once had, but I feel younger than ever inside, I feel great and I am excited for what the next half of my life will bring.
CrossFit
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For years I have played down CrossFit and despite hearing how incredible this training was, I believed CrossFit to be more of a cult based on what I had seen and heard. But as they say, don’t knock it until you try it. So a good friend convinced me to go and I absolutely loved it and feel it has contributed a lot to some much-needed weight loss and being generally fitter.
Diet
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One of the things I struggled with while in Hong Kong was food and I really changed a lot of eating habits, which have made me realise just how much we over eat in SA and waste. I shop small now, I am not a foodie, so eat out of necessity and through the help of some friends have started ridding my body of excessive sugar intake, reduced the amount of meat I consume and have basically become fruitarian. While I don’t want to define myself by what I eat, I am eating cleaner and healthier than ever and I believe this will greatly contribute to me looking and feeling better, inside and out.
Teaching
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I had the great privilege of being able to share some of my knowledge as I began teaching again thanks to Dave Duarte and the team at Treeshake. I designed a course which is now taught by the team, but enjoyed teaching it too.
Roadtrip
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In an effort to try to move to the city where my heart is, I took a road trip on my own to Cape Town and stopped off both there and back to see family and friends. Travelling alone gives you plenty of time to reflect, observe without distraction and to be with one’s self. While I did not secure the opportunities I was hoping for, driving through this beautiful country was a welcomed experience.
Awareness
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I for the first time in a really long time, am very much aware of the changes going on within myself. Every day I see the differences the new experiences and habits I break and make are evolving me into being the best version of myself.
Friendships
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I have reconnected with more friends from the past than any other time in my life. For the longest time I felt myself distancing from wonderful people, but in 2015 that all changed as I reconnected with so many people who have gone through similar journeys as mine and who have come to the same realisations. I am truly grateful for every reconnection I have made and look forward to the wonderful experiences we will have together. I am also really fortunate to have made some new friendships due to the willingness to experience new things and hope they will be long and full of laughs.
Life
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I will probably shock a few people, but I have not been loving life, I would say I had almost given up on finding any new joy, but these past few months, as I clawed my way out of some tough situations, I have a new lease on life and couldn’t be more excited to enjoy each and every moment, experience new things and open my mind, body and soul to the miracle of this wonderful world we live in. I have an ever growing list of things I want to experience, so follow my feeds if you want to keep up. I am aware, I am alive and I am excited about the possibilities.
Bring on 2016!
Every day, do something selfless for someone else that takes under five minutes. The essence of this thing you do should be that it makes a big difference to the person receiving the gift. Usually these favors take the form of an introduction, reference, feedback, or broadcast on social media.
But yeah, do something that’s not for yourself, every single day. Expect nothing in return. Over time, these random acts of kindness will really add up.
I took the above quote from an article published in time magazine on how to be productive, successful and smart. Despite being taken advantage of people from time-to-time, I believe in being kind and generous in the ways I can. While I cannot give into everything people want, I like to help where I can. I have been in tight situations, I have had low points and wish someone just said it is ok to ask for help; even if it’s just retweeting something, listening or making an introduction. So if I can help you in some small way, please feel free to reach out, I will do my very best, and honestly I expect nothing back.
Back in 2002 I first met Ryan Carson at a Macromedia Flash event in London, (although he probably won’t remember that) but somehow through the industry and social networks we have crossed paths. I think at the time he was involved in the BD4D (by designers 4 designers) projects, but he has since gone on to do amazing things, most importantly Treehouse, my go-to resource for online learning. He has always come across as a genuinely nice guy, and would treat his staff fairly. So it’s no surprise to me that he subscribes to the 32-hour workweek. Inspiring stuff.
Theres no rule – you have to work 40 hours, you have to work more to be successful.
If you’re like me, you reach for your phone without even thinking about it far too often, mindlessly switching between apps, distracted by the latest photo, video or micro writing. I can’t remember whose article I was reading, but some guy mentioned that one of the best things he ever did was take his wife’s advice to remove his Facebook app from his phone. I didn’t reach for my phone straight away, but it didn’t take me long before I found myself mindlessly scrolling through my Facebook feed, so I decided to take it off.
Facebook isn’t an app I save many stories, thats something I do on Medium and Twitter a lot. But I tend to just end up with a bunch of articles I bookmark or favourite and never really get round to reading. With Facebook off my phone, I still got hugely distracted by these other apps, and while I thought it was harmless, I realised I was holding up people wanting to use gym equipment I was on, while I was fiddling with my phone between sets. So I made a conscious decision to remove Medium. But I was not ready to say cheers to Twitter, it’s my realtime news, how could I possibly remove that?
A couple of irate tweets later, I realised that I have another bad habit, besides favouriting tweets I want to read later and never do, I tend to tweet on the fly and post stuff with little or no thought. Thats risky stuff, so I decided to take Twitter off my phone.
Instinctively I still reach for my phone, but with Instagram being the only social network I still have on the device, I tend to spend less time looking down and it has not only allowed me to be less distracted, but it is saving my battery life. I will confess that I spend most of my day in front of at least one screen or another, and I certainly still visit these sites (I am experimenting with not using Facebook at all, however thats a future post) and I still use apps like Instagram, but still this is a small victory, I really do reach for my phone a lot less.