Strands of Genius: Recommerce, Human Ecology, The In-Between
Plus: European Discounts, Salt Flats, Forced Perspective
Strands of Genius is a newsletter from the co-founders of Genius Steals, Faris & Rosie Yakob. They are award-winning strategists, facilitators, creative directors, writers and public speakers who get excited about working with smart people on interesting challenges. You should probably go ahead and hit reply so we can collaborate on something together :)
:: THE UPDATE ::
It’s no secret that the USA is a total shit show right now. We’ve got a car salesman as our President, and he seems intent on doing his damndest to decimate the economy while also embarrassing all of the US citizens in the progress. (It’s so cringe. We just can’t even…)
We’ve got plans to meet up with friends and family in the UK and France in May, and we’d love to have an excuse to extend our travels and delay our return to America as long as possible. Four years probably isn’t reasonable, but a few months certainly would be…
So here’s our proposal: Help us help you. We want to stay in the UK/Europe longer. We’re going to offer our trainings at 30-50% off for the UK, Ireland and Europe, during May & June & July. (50% off for teams of 15 or fewer, 30% off for teams of 16 or more.)
» Maybe you want to help your teams level up their creativity or their strategic thinking. We’ve got trainings ranging from two hours to two days, that can be customized for your team, on topics like:
Beyond Boring Briefs / Powerful Propositions / Inspiring Insights / Creative Effectiveness / Crafting Compelling Workshops
» Maybe you want to work smarter not harder. We’ve worked with teams on:
Internal processes and flow to reduce the churn / Collaboration across departments, whether they are remote or in-person (or both!) / What ideas are and how to have better ones / Consumer journeys
» Maybe you’ve got a tough problem to crack and need a couple extra brains thinking about it for you. We’re especially passionate about:
Developing propositions, positioning, models and thought leadership that communicate clear value / Innovating campaign ideas and activations, focusing not just on outputs but business outcomes / Brief Boosts - 90 minute strategy sessions designed to take your briefs from average to awesome
And if you know someone who could benefit from our help, we’re always generous when it comes to thank you gifts :)
:: GENIUS STEALS + SPRINGBOARDS.AI WEBINAR ::
If you were paying attention to last week’s edition, you’ll recognize Springboards.ai as the product of Pip & Amy, a husband and wife strategist duo. They’re awesome. And they’ve built something to help us with inspiration (not answers! humans required!) when it comes to the work we strategists do.
For those of you curious about what Springboards is about, join us on April 1st (and no, this is not an April Fools prank!) at 4:30p ET. We’re going to talk to Pip about how AI can be a tool for inspiration, and share a little more about the platform itself.
In an era of sameness, AI isn't the enemy, boring outputs are so we need to figure out how to put the limits of exploration. This will be an insightful conversation about how we can all work to keep creative humans in the equation in the age of AI.
Please note, you will need to register in advance for this webinar! And yes, you’re welcome to invite friends!
:: THE LINKS ::
RECOMMERCE ATACAMA: FREE FASHION DROP
The Atacama desert is amazing. It is the driest place on earth, home to the incredible salt flats of Uyumi, lots of minerals and the oldest mummies in the world (the aridity preserves them). Sadly it is also used as a garbage dump for fashion. This project lets you buy some of it.
“The Atacama Desert is drowning in discarded fashion—nearly 40,000 tons of clothing dumped every year. Many pieces? Perfectly wearable.
EVOLVING HUMAN ECOLOGY
We are spending more time at home and alone. Whilst we have always spent most of our time inside - “Americans spend more time inside buildings than some whale species spend underwater” - we are now increasingly choosing to be alone at home. “According to Derek Thompson “self-imposed solitude might just be the most important social fact of the 21st century in America.” How will this shift in human ecology change consumption? Faris explores in his new column. (Warc)
EVERYTHING IS IN-BETWEEN
In a world of relentless change, we often feel like we're caught in an endless loop of headlines, each event overwriting the last before we can even process. But what if instead of fixating on the noise, we pay attention to the spaces in between? Douglas Rushkoff’s latest piece explores how focusing on those unspoken connections — the overlooked ground beneath the chaos — can help us find clarity and purpose. Drawing from psychology, anthropology, and even his daughter's medical journey, Rushkoff reveals that true understanding lies in what’s often ignored: the connective tissue of human experience. If you’re feeling overwhelmed by the constant churn of events, this is a powerful reminder to turn your focus toward what’s real, immediate, and within reach. I particularly love the idea of being an agent of care, rather than an agent of change. I’m going to keep cultivating this idea throughout the next four years (and beyond!) (Substack)
Speaking of the In-Between, here’s one. I just heard about this conversational AI on the PeopleVsAlgorithms podcast (good podcast about media business and that) - you just talk to it but uh it sounds like talking to a nice person. A lot tho. Have a go. It’s weird. The URL is Crossing the Uncanny Valley of Voice…>
:: SALT FLATS FUN ::
Since we featured Atacama, we couldn’t resist sharing some fun forced perspective photos we took when we visited…gosh a decade or so ago. Damn, time flies when you’re having fun…………
:: STEAL THIS REPORT ::
While other platforms and researchers prioritize only their own data, H/L takes a more holistic view—analyzing dozens of reports, their own client and consumer research, and conversations with other marketers.
They do this to move beyond the surface-level predictions and better understand what’s really driving the shifts in consumer behavior—while still being broadly valuable to marketers of any category.
Vibecession, barbell economy, longevity & more.
This week, we’re writing to you from Chattanooga, TN. We’re especially thankful for:
Being passed over by the tornado, new family members, sunny afternoons, working out, health club, starting things, finishing things, planning trips, hugging friends, comic books, Bran Buds, egg noodles, clear skiez, full hearts.
If we can ever be of help to you, even outside of a formal engagement, please don’t hesitate to let us know. You can hit reply to this email if you’ve got anything to say, and we’ll endeavor to get back to you promptly!
rockON,
faris & rosie | your friends over at geniussteals.co
(still want more? @faris is on LinkdedIn while @rosieyakob prefers instagram stories)
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. We have a distributed team ourselves, an accounting team is based in Tennessee where our company is registered, our admin extraordinaire is based in Playa del Carmen, 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 :)