Strands of Genius: Fringe Thinking, Say Yes to Your Choices and Never Stop Dancing, The Imposter Cycle

Guest curated by Caitlin Higgins

Apr 15, 2021

:: A BIT MORE ABOUT GUEST CURATOR, CAITLIN HIGGINS ::

LOCATION: Atlanta, GA
PLACE OF EMPLOYMENT: Dragon Army

Hello Genius Steals Community! People call me Caitlin. I’m currently working as a Business Analyst at Dragon Army, a purpose-driven digital agency out of Atlanta, GA, helping our clients articulate what they are after, why they should be after it, and putting a plan to outline how they exactly accomplish those goals. My path to now has led me down a lot of well-lit and dark winding paths, from playing music in a traveling punk band, to being the de facto project manager for creative tech projects at the Coca-Cola in house agency, and now diving head-first into the strategy realm. I love to help solve the tough problems, often with technology (and games!), in order to make an impactful difference in the world around me. From the environment, to equity, to supporting local journalism I try to bring passion and empathy to whatever is making me tick that day.

I was made aware of the incredible work that Rosie and Faris tackle by the President of our company (thanks Jenn!), as a source for constant inspiration. I’ve been hooked on their thinking ever since.

I’m always looking for interesting patterns in the universe that point to clues to where we’re going. These kernels are often at the intersection of innovation and culture and aren’t focused in one specific strategic practice area. Hope you enjoy!

Editor’s Note (Genius Steals Team): Please give a warm welcome to Caitlin Higgins, our new Community Strategist in Residence! We’re delighted that senior leaders in agencies are directing their talent towards us for inspiration. We were very inspired talking to Caitlin and are already impressed seeing how she operates. We adore intersectional thinking and thinkers and are very excited to work with her and learn from her over the next few months.

:: THE LINKS ::

THIS IS A SIMULATION. WARNING: FRINGE THINKING AHEAD.

The recent boom in NFTs sent me spiraling down a rabbit hole to better understand what they are, the value behind the new format, and what this suggests about our future. Turns out, the scientific community (and Elon Musk) are making arguments that we in fact could be living in the Matrix. Philosophical questions aside, what does this mean for the simulations we build in our current reality? Investment groups are already selling off space in the metaverse and people are spending more and more time in virtual reality. The propensity for individuals to seek other worlds, virtual or otherwise, leads me to believe this is just the beginning. (Scientific American)

SAY YES TO YOUR CHOICES AND NEVER STOP DANCING

Over the past year nothing has been able to turn a frown upside down more than Dance Church. I've always been a fan of movement, usually in the form of yoga, but starting at the beginning of the pandemic I could not stop from uncontrollably dancing throughout my space. The lovely people behind Dance Church encourage movement that feels good to you, saying yes to your choices, saying yes to their choices and to never stop moving. I take this philosophy with me wherever I go and apply it to everything I come in contact with. They recently launched a beta version of their streaming service, which has been a delight to participate in (having participated in product launches), and allows people from all over the world to access their joy. (Dance Church)

THE IMPOSTER CYCLE 1&2

Impostor syndrome has recently come up several times in conversations, whether it was a colleague, friend, or myself acknowledging my own struggles. This is something that I know many struggle with, creating fear and doubt in our abilities and questioning our expertise. I love how this team of Lisa and Richard Orbe-Austin talk about their own experiences and the cycles that exists for individuals in the grips of impostor syndrome. Specifically thinking about how procrastination is used in this cycle --- when we're given a high-stakes project and we worry about the potential for negative feedback, we struggle to get started. Being able to articulate this feeling has helped me put a face with the name and better recognize when I start to enter the procrastination cycle. From there, I can do a bit of course correction while at the same time acknowledging that I'm in good company. (YouTube)

Looking for more from Caitlin Higgins? Those enrolled in The School of Stolen Genius will receive a deep dive from her in their inbox shortly! You can access all our expert interviews for SOSG here.

:: AND NOW… SOME FAST FAVORITES ::

:: Game :: Scrabble

:: City :: San Fran weather with Portland vibes

:: Book :: Another Country, James Baldwin

:: Album :: Court and Spark/Hejira - Joni Mitchell, Eternity - Alice Coltrane, Blonde - Frank Ocean

:: A CARTOON BY MICHAEL MASLIN ::

If you want access to more of my social musings, chat about fringy science topics, or share strategy secrets hit me up on LinkedIn. I also collaborate with a friend on a slick Spotify playlist that we update seasonally, if you're interested in some good tunes.

Caitlin Higgins

chiggins@dragonarmy.com

linkedin | spotify

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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.

Hit reply and let’s talk about how we might be able to work together :)

Strands of Genius