The Ohsome Inc Blog

Sitting around with my sister-in-law yesterday, she mentioned that we had an a**-load of holiday decorations.  She then corrected herself saying it was more like a s**t-load.  Which begs the question, is an a**-load more or less than a s**t-load? For your exercise today, you are to create a measurement system for anything that might need measuring.  You better get started, you have an a**-load of work to do.

Words are a lost art form.  With television, the easy use of youtube and phones that capture and play video at a moment’s notice, we’re a society that reliant on visuals.  Well, it’s time to get back to basics.  Using only words, describe how to tie a shoelace.

As creative professionals, we often have to state our case for why we feel things should be done a certain way. “Blue is traditionally a corporate color so that’s why we used it in your logo” “Web users aren’t used to looking for the navigation underneath the content so we recommend putting it above” etc. In this exercise you’ll be using your reasoning and debate skills to argue for or against one of life’s biggest questions: Should the toilet seat be left up or down? Come up with five points to back your position.

Today’s exercise is aimed at getting you to think differently about your work environment.  We spend so much time at our desks and in our office that we often forget to really pay attention to anything in it.  Grab your digital camera or camera phone and take 3 photos of faces in inanimate objects around your work space.

We got nearly 2 feet of snow over the past 48 hrs and were consequently stuck indoors.  And then the power went out.  Without internet access or television to do the thinking for us, we began to use our imagination.  Before long, we were building a fort with couch cushions and blankets and sledding with our eight year old neighbors.  Your exercise today is to act like an 8 year old for one hour.  Use your imagination to reinvent the world around you.  Build a fort, rescue a princess, play dress up, but whatever you do don’t act like a responsible adult.

Our lives are ruled by rules.  “Walk” “Don’t Walk” “No Shirt, No Shoes, No Service” “Dogs must be on a Leash” “No Alcoholic Beverages in Public Park” etc.  The interesting thing about rules is that the majority of them are created by someone else.  For the most part, we’re following someone else’s rules.  Pick one rule and change it.  What did you change it to? What could be the intended consequences of changing that rule? Why that rule as opposed to another?

This exercise is courtesy North Stafford High’s Advanced Sports & Entertainment Marketing class taught by Mr. Forder.  Your babysitting your sister’s 6-month old baby, who has a unique situation.  He has tourettes.  The day was going well until you took him to your favorite restaurant to grab a bit for lunch and he began cursing out the  brand new waitress who is now reduced to a puddle of tears.  People are staring.  How do you calm down the waitress enough so she’ll bring you the check so you can getting your unfortuanately offensive nephew home to stick a bottle in that foul mouth?

Today I’m speaking to Junior and Senior marketing students at a local High School.  I’m a little nervous – something about the smell of a adolescence gives me hives.  Going with that, let your mind wander back to your own high school days and list all the different smells your would have encountered in one day.

Share your smelly list with us and we’ll share it with everyone.  Email info(at)ohsomeinc(dot)com.