Strands of Genius: Most Execs Admit Greenwashing, Clear Focus, Cognitive Overload
plus: homemade Netflix
WRITING FROM | Beersheba Springs, TN
WORKING ON | Prep for an Insights workshop this week, writing articles, making moves.
LOOKING AHEAD
April 1-29 | Beersheba Springs, TN
April 29-May 3 | Nashville, TN
May 3-28 | London, UK
May 28-June 6 | TBD: Portugal or France
June 6-24 | London, UK
June 24-27 | New York, NY
June 27-July 12 | Wingdale, NY
:: WHAT’S NEW & WEEKLY GRATITUDE ::
We don’t get to see the seasons change very much because we tend to move faster than they do.
This month we got to spend a few weeks in Cumberland Mountains and saw the transition from winter trees to a fulsome, verdant landscape. It has been gorgeous and strange - we had snow and 80F days - but ultimately heart opening, to see spring actually happen. To see things that seem dead or dormant spring back into life. To hear the birds return and start their chorus. We’ve had a few visitors here and there but also got a lot of time to ourselves. We started to get back in the habit of cooking, exercising and even indulged in a little spring cleaning. We got a lot of work done and felt like we had time to rest and recuperate. It’s been a good balance, for the most part. And now we begin the process of moving again, first heading to a memorial service and then to London.
It felt good to stay still, in a way that it didn’t during the lockdowns, and at the same time, it feels good to get moving again. Ready to rock, ready to roll.
This week, we’re especially thankful for:
Our neighbor Steve and the homemade sausage, JAndies, John Allison, SteveB&Maru, sunshine, walks, meeting random people in the sun on the walks, NOT the local dogs which seem to be vicious and frisky, the Seek app for identifying plants and animals on walks in the sun, chili, the book 1491 about pre Columbus history of the Americas, Minx on HBO (Rosie’s note: LOVED IT, Y’ALL!!) , about 1/2 of The Batman movie, and YOU, dear subscriber, for you welcome us into your inbox every week, and we are truly grateful.
:: THE LINKS ::
68% OF U.S. EXECS ADMIT THIER COMPANIES ARE GUILTY OF GREENWASHING
The majority of corporate execs believe their companies are greenwashing and consumers have begun to notice. This is a complex topic with a spectrum of behaviors from outright lying and the classic “skepticism” playbook to simply making most of your ads about green initiatives when the majority of your business doesn’t reflect that. (Fast Company) Also, plastic recycling is basically a scam, foisting responsibility on to consumer choices is misdirection, and corporations are transnational actors in a way that counties cannot be - all of which and more Faris discussed with Twitter, the sustainability editor at Adweek, and a science communicator last week - you can listen to a recording here.
THE HISTORY OF COGNITIVE OVERLOAD
This is an excellent article summarizing a section on cognitive overload from The Organized Mind. It examines the features and function of our attentional system, it’s attraction to patterns and changes, why it has to work so much harder nowadays, and how our brains have evolved to protect us by hiding ‘irrelevant’ inputs, and why it overweights personal stories over aggregate data. Lots of excellent quotes and concepts here. (Farnham Street) (Thanks Gwenyth!)
IN CLEAR FOCUS
The In Clear Focus podcast featured the new edition of Paid Attention as book of the month and interviewed Faris about it. They cover a lot of ground, foundational and new, and the podcast has lots of excellent episodes worth checking out. (BigEye/Podcasts/Transcript)
Strands of Genius is currently read by 13,000 subscribers. Support us by sponsoring an issue, becoming a member of The School of Stolen Genius, or encouraging friends or colleagues to subscribe.
:: WHAT WE’RE THINKING ABOUT :: CHANGING SEASONS ::
Because we’re moving with such frequency, we rarely get to see nature go through such a big transition. But having been here for a month, we’ve gotten daily updates from pachamama and damn if she didn’t impress. Thanks to John & Alex & Collin for your guest appearances in our Cumberland Mountain panorama series <3
:: AND NOW - HOMEMADE NETFLIX :::: AND NOW - HOMEMADE NETFLIX ::
Join a community of people looking to work smarter, not harder.
Enroll today >
If we can ever be of help to you, even outside of a formal engagement, please don’t hesitate to let us know.
rockON,
faris & rosie & ashley | your friends over at geniussteals.co
@faris is always tweeting
@rosieyakob hangs out on instagram
@ashley also writes for deaf, tattooed & employed
Know someone who could use some inspiration in their inbox? Forward this email to them! We appreciate you spreading the word.
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 :)