Strands of Genius: The Bin, Not Another Dissertation, Cindy Gallop on Why There is No Such Thing as Imposter Syndrome
Guest curated by Sandra Södergren
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 Sandra Södergren, Junior Creative @ M&C Saatchi London.
:: A BIT MORE ABOUT GUEST CURATOR, SANDRA SODERGREN ::
LOCATION: London, United Kingdom
PLACE OF EMPLOYMENT: M&C Saatchi London
Hi, I'm Sandra. A junior creative currently working at M&C Saatchi London. I had the pleasure of meeting Rosie and Faris during my MA degree in Advertising, and somehow they made the rash decision of adding me to their newsletter.
Editor’s Note (Team Genius Steals): Over the years, we've worked with Paul Caplan who is a Course Leader MA Advertising at London College of Communication. This year we're so excited to be introducing you to some of the students who've recently participated in his program. Their dissertations were thought provoking and have us excited about the future minds of our industry. Thanks for curating some great links, Sandra!
:: THE LINKS ::
THE BIN
Starting out as a junior in advertising can be quite daunting, especially when you seem to be surrounded by people who only ever produce brilliant work. But everyone started out somewhere, which is why I believe "The Bin", a collection of old, shitty ads sent in by senior creatives and CD's, is a must see. Created by Lücy Aa & Jordan Waters. (The Bin)
NOT ANOTHER DISSERTATION…
But a compelling industry report on how we can use advertising to defuse polarization.
Polarization is no longer limited to the dread of inviting your racist uncle to the family dinner, but is now starting to affect society by diminishing democratic institutions. It’s an era of tribalism, fake news, culture wars and post-truth, and it is becoming increasingly hard for brands and advertising agencies to navigate the minefield of cancel culture and brand purpose. But are we really that polarized? If we are, is there really anything to be done - through advertising? Research thankfully shows that there is. (And if you don't have the time to read the whole thing, you can always just flip through the pages of illustrations). (Sandra Södergren)
CINDY GALLOP ON WHY THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS IMPOSTER SYNDROME
The power woman that is Cindy Gallop was recently interviewed by the Imposterous, and expressed a wish for brands and organisations to stop talking about ‘empower’ and ‘celebrate’ in relation to International Women’s day this year, and start doing a lot more of the ‘Hiring’, ‘promoting’, ‘investing’ and ‘leading’. In short, stop talking and start doing, like actually doing, all the time and not just when there is a convenient day to talk about it. (The Imposterous)
Looking for more from Sandra Södergren? 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 ::
:: City :: London, always
:: Book :: The Psychopath Test: A Journey Through the Madness Industry - By Jon Ronson
:: Podcast :: Everything crime related!
:: Album :: Is this thing cursed? by Alkaline Trio
:: STAYING CREATIVE AND GENERATING IDEAS ::
Recently snapped a photo of my COO Ben Golik and his creative partner Tom Kennedy which was used in an article on staying creative and generating ideas (and some myth-breaking with that).
Thanks!
Sandra Södergren
sandra.sodergren@mcsaatchi.com or sodergrensandra@gmail.com
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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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