Strands of Genius: Do Your Words Reveal You Place Yourself Above Others, Re-Thinking Workplace Design Post-Covid..., Getting Past The Generative Hype To The Practical Application of AI
Guest curated by Maury Giles, Chief Growth Officer
Each year we aim to highlight 50 creative thinkers that have inspired us by giving them the opportunity to guest curate this newsletter, Strands of Genius. This edition is guest curated by Maury Giles, Chief Growth Officer.
:: A BIT MORE ABOUT GUEST CURATOR, MAURY GILES::
LOCATION: Herriman, UT
Purpose. Passion. Pursuit.
Reality. Realignment. Resilience.
Hope. Happiness. Heart.
Language has to be the most fundamental of human innovations. Stories are powerful. But even words... words are art in action. I think they are something like "dream fuel".
We each use our unique filter to project meaning across the sets of words I started with above. Is it a private recognition of life experienced? Could it be a formula for a successful career? What about a strategic roadmap you'd give to a purpose-based brand?
I would love to sit and hear what imagery those words triggered for each of you reading right now. Just listen to you; and ride the wave of discovery that comes when you truly "see" someone. Experience that kid-like excitement of learning a new thing. Or, even better, find a hidden door to meaning you'd walked by a thousand times before but never took notice of.
That stuff only happens when we really show up. Putting on the VR headset of another person's life filter is not an accident. It's a choice.
Unfortunately, we miss out on a lot of this rush pursuing the "me" in life. Thankfully, we've chosen a career that places humans directly underneath our laboratory microscope. It's what we do. But, even the one trained in the art of planning will miss that higher plane until this becomes who he/she is, not just what he/she does.
I love humans. I love life. I love that intersecting journey.
For me, those words, my words, tell the truth of my life. They also chart the course on which I want to run, sometimes walk, or sometimes crawl. And, reading them left to right OR top to bottom, they remind me of who I want to become.
They're also not bad advice for any client challenge I've every tried to tackle. That's convenient!
So, what next?
See humanity. Become your better angel. And walk through those doors of discovery.
I'd love to join you on that journey.
Maury
Editor’s Note (Genius Steals): We have known, worked with and become so fond of Maury over the years and we are so happy that he is here with us today! We’re also sending a huge congratulations on your 50th session of your Heart+Mind Connections roundtable series!! What an accomplishment!
:: THE LINKS ::
DO YOUR WORDS REVEAL YOU PLACE YOURSELF ABOVE OTHERS?
A few years ago I got involved with Braver Angels to help facilitate Red/Blue workshops helping people find common ground. The sessions are so fun to see the light bulbs go off when people realize how much they share in beliefs with others. In the course of that work I recently stumbled across Tami Pyfer and the Dignity Index project. They’re onto something powerful, a way to codify language to help drive self-awareness. Now… which politicians will get on board? Beyond that use case, though, Tami’s group is finding leaders at companies and organizations see real value training their staff. It’s a powerful tool. (The Dignity Index)
RE-THINKING WORKPLACE DESIGN POST-COVID... BUT, REALLY RETHINKING IT.
Thoughtful and breakthrough concepts on building, societal, and experiential design. You'll never get bored reading through the work at architecture and design firm Hassell. Last year I was looking for someone with real experience on designing the physical spaces needed to match our evolving workplace reality. I’ve worked remotely for nearly 20 years, but office space has a meaningful role to play in collaboration. I found a wonderful human, Daniel Davis, who was part of the original WeWork team but left that chaos to further this thinking with Hassell. He joined one of our Connections Roundtable sessions to talk about these concepts, and I was hooked on always checking back to see their latest thinking. (Hassell Studio)
GETTING PAST THE GENERATIVE HYPE TO THE PRACTICAL APPLICATION OF AI.
Paul Roetzer's work with the Marketing AI Institute is the most comprehensive, up-to-date, practical, and informative resource I've found on what's real, important, and promising. Admit it. There is a “there” there with generative AI. But the noise is insane. Imagine the relief and, frankly, gratitude when I found these guys. I consider it one of the best clearinghouses of practical AI application, ideas, and direction. (Marketing AI Institute)
Looking for more from Maury Giles? Those enrolled in The School of Stolen Genius will receive a deep dive from him in their inbox shortly! You can access all our expert interviews for SOSG here.
:: AND NOW… SOME FAST FAVORITES ::
:: Game :: Happy Salmon or Hanabi
:: City :: Istanbul, Turkey
:: Book :: Team of Rivals by Doris Kearns Goodwin
:: Podcast :: Practicing Human - Cory Muscarahanges so accessible.
:: Album :: Newton Faulkner - Write It On Your Skin (Deluxe Addition Bonus Tracks)
::KINDERGARTEN GRANDPA DAY::
A true moment of purpose, reality, hope.
I launched the Heart+Mind Connections roundtable series in March 2020. This month we host our 50th session! Check out the past seasons here.
Stay you - be real,
Maury Giles
heartandmind.us | Gmail |LinkedIn
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It's called Genius Steals because we believe ideas are new combinations and that nothing can come from nothing. But copying is lazy. We believe the best way to innovate is to look at the best of that which came before and combine those elements into new solutions.
Co-Founders Faris & Rosie are award-winning strategists and creative directors, writers, consultants and public speakers who have been living on the road/runway since March 2013, working with companies all over the world. Our Director of Operations is nomadic like us, our accounting team is based out of Washington, our company is registered in Tennessee, and our collaborators are all over the world. Being nomadic allows us to go wherever clients need us to be, and to be inspired by the world in between.
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