Strands of Genius: Richard Afun + Consumer Trends 2023
featuring: an interview with our guest editor and a research report
Welcome to the Bonus edition of Strands of Genius! On Fridays, we’ll be publishing interviews from our guest editors, and sharing a research report. Thanks for being along for the ride. Oh and by the way, you look great today :)
:: STEAL THIS THINKING | RESEARCH REPORT ::
Even though the ‘COVID Economy’ mostly ended in 2022 there is still a high level of uncertainty in 2023. Did you know that Americans say inflation is the biggest problem right now and that COVID fell to 7th? What do you think?
:: DIVE IN | THE INTERVIEW ::
RICHARD AFUN, NEW BUSINESS AND MARKETING ASSISTANT AT IRIS
>> Richard Afun guest curated Strands on September 28th, 2023. Read it here.
Tell us a little bit about yourself and what keeps you busy. How did you end up doing what you’re doing today?
I come from a background in media production, having worked for a production company as an assistant director and editor. I have had the privilege of working on projects for brands such as Vogue and Tony's Chocolonely. What keeps me busy is my thirst for knowledge. I am fascinated by complex systems, and I am always learning to gain an understanding of them.
Advertising has always been a dream of mine; even before I got into production, moving from freelance to a production company, I always knew I'd end up here because it was the best place to nurture my skills and talents. When the time was right, I left my home country, Ghana, for the UK to pursue a master's in advertising from the London College of Communication. This was where my fascination grew through the roof, and I engaged in anything and everything to build up my understanding. From running for Student Governor, which was unsuccessful, to going for industry talks to understand more how it operates to Brixton Finishing School and doing The Trade Desk courses, I just wanted to gain understanding, and through that eagerness and persistence, I got into the industry, and I am now working with Iris as a New Business and Marketing Assistant.
What excites you most about what you do?
What excites me most about what I do is that every day is a learning opportunity, and I also get to interact with different people.
What beliefs define your approach to work? How would you define your leadership style?
My approach to work is to always be a student. Even if I know a lot about a particular topic, I always approach interactions as a student because it gives me the chance to listen more and learn from other people. Everyone has varying ways they approach work and the world, and it's always interesting to listen and pay attention because nuggets are always shared, and that helps in teaching me ways to work smarter or have a more rounded understanding.
My style of leadership is servant leadership. This type of leadership encourages me to be a servant first, and what time means to me is that I get to listen more, be a student, and talk or respond only when necessary based on a given situation. It also makes people around me feel genuinely heard and understood.
What has been the most rewarding project you’ve worked on and why?
The most rewarding project I have worked on was that for Tony's Chocolonely which was a documentary titled Golden Seeds. This documentary was very rewarding because it took me out of my comfort zone, literally and figuratively. The team and I had to go into some of the rural areas in Ghana to pay a visit to the cocoa farmers, and one beautiful thing about the brief from Tony's was that they wanted to actually hear the real stories from the cocoa farmers they worked with. Their hopes, their dreams, their fears, the challenges, and the opportunities.
We spent a couple of days with them in the rural areas, breathing the same air that they breathe and observing and interacting with them, and those moments were beautiful. They were not as endowed as some people are in urban cities, but one thing was for sure: they were happy, and those moments of laughter and joy were priceless as we captured their stories in the most authentic way for the world. The documentary was screened at the New York African Film Festival and won us an IX Harambee international award under the category of Conveying Africa.
We are big believers in diversity -- Not only because we believe in equality, but because we also think it’s better for business. How do you frame these kinds of conversations, both internally and with clients? Is there an emphasis on action, or are the conversations really more about communication?
Diversity is a very interesting and necessary conversation that is always important to have. At Iris, we make a conscious effort to be truly diverse, and there are several ways and partnerships that we are a part of that help us and hold us accountable when it comes to diversity. There is definitely more room for improvement in the industry generally, and I believe that we just need to constantly have the conversation and find genuine ways to push its importance forward. Diversity is magic—diversity of thought, people, and perspectives makes us better people, better businesses, and a better world.
Switching gears a bit, how do you find time to balance personal interests with your career? Do you believe work/life balance is possible? Anything you’ve implemented that you recommend that others try?
This question of balance is always interesting to me, and it's an ongoing conversation I have with myself. I believe it's possible, and some ways I try to live a more balanced life are to always show up at work, give off my best day to day, and when I set out of the office environment, I stay clear of anything work-related, from emails, etc., till I get back in the next day.
The dynamic gets a bit tricky when I work from home. This is where discipline is even more important. I wake up nice and early to workout to start my day, finish work, and finish the day with another workout. These workouts act as transitional points for me to get my mind into and out of work depending on the times I do them, and they help me strive for balance.
What’s your media diet? Where do you find inspiration?
YouTube is where I mostly get information or entertainment. I love the fact that I could almost curate my timeline based on what I watch and that I don't need to leave the platform because everything from knowledge gathering to entertainment and discovery sits there. Other places would be the Apple Podcast. It gets me through my commutes and almost acts like YouTube but without visuals. I get my inspiration from everywhere and anything. I find inspiration from watching videos about banking and finance, watching interviews with entrepreneurs, reading news, listening to music, studying architecture, and just about anything that has some level of complexity to it.
What’s the best piece of advice/knowledge you’ve stolen, and who/where’d you steal it from?
The best piece of knowledge I've stolen was from Patrick Awuah, who is the president and founder of Ashesi University in Ghana. It is a quote he got from Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. This quote was a foundational piece to him creating Ashesi University, and since I heard it, I have held it close to my chest. It goes like this: Whatever you can do or dream you can, begin it; Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it.
What is genius?
I think genius is curiosity backed by intentionality.
You can keep in touch with Richard on Instagram.
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