Audience

Paper Bags and Hair Dryers

If you take a paper bag and aim a hair dryer towards its open end, the bag’s kinetic energy is released and assumes flight. A bag is an excellent option if we need to hold some produce, and a hair dryer is perfect if we need to dry our hair after a shower. When we pair them together, we get a dramatic result, which may or may not reveal the most productive use of both instruments.

When odd pairings work, they are sensational but can also fail us. Iterating in the design studio is an excellent option if we are willing to go on the adventure and open to uncertain outcomes. If we need a sure thing, we might hedge towards the predictable.

Booking two artists/authors/scientists/athletes to interview each other might be an insightful option. However, they might speak an insider language that is hard for the audience to access. A good interviewer can ask questions that help decode the artist’s superpower without abandoning the audience.

A hair dryer chasing a paper bag around a stage might be the pinnacle of performance art. But we must accurately represent the performance so our audience can live on the edge.

Daily vs Random

Posting a daily blog is a ritual, but the content is not always of the highest quality. Some days, a personal photo drives the content; other days, the content is the foundational element. The frequency of posting is less certain if I only post when the ideas achieve a higher threshold. I toggle between two approaches, balancing the work that matters with what is observable now.

For some readers of the blog, the reliability of new content is important. Another segment desires ideas and resources that impact their specific work. Some visitors only find the blog through a keyword search. Occasionally, I generate traffic when I present at a conference and put materials on the resource page, allowing attendees to return to the most helpful documents. The metrics of engagement for the blog are inconsistent and rarely correlate to the post of the day. When I look at the totality of impact over the past ten years, there are larger numbers that feel rewarding. When I review the statistics on a slow day, it can feel lonely. But I continue to post because it provides me a bridge to reach out and hopefully set others up for success.