BY ARVIND AGRAWAL
Founder and CEO, AICL Communications
Inspiration is like an aphrodisiac. It can get you all excited and ready for the game, but ultimately, it is you who has to perform. For me, running a creative outfit was never about the skills. Simply because I had none. NONE.
I was a Chartered Accountant, trying to do the cool ‘follow-your-heart’ gig, when a voice in my head kept asking ‘dhandha kaise chalega?’ Yes, there are the how-to-be this and that books. Yes, there are the expert lectures whose fee can adversely skew your P&L. And then there are other people. People who are the masters. People who are okay to meet you and have a chat. People who say things that you don’t think about much when they say it, but they keep playing back in your head as life lessons.
None of what they say is unique. Yet, it is that much more redible because they speak from the experience of having ‘been-there-done-that’. That’s what makes the inspiration they provide an aphrodisiac. I’ve found my learning enhanced and enriched through meetings – chance or otherwise – with people whose thinking has helped ‘lift’ my spirit over the years. Happily sharing a few here.
Wally Olins: Acerbic wit. Uncomfortable candour. A six-foot frame. Whether it was a devout audience or a prospective client, he said it like it was. One wondered if it was right, even though he was the world’s branding big daddy. When I finally asked him this, he said, “If you are really, really good at what you do, no one will ever call you arrogant.” The next day, he threatened to walk out of a pitch meeting I had facilitated, when the owner of a multi-billion dollar jewellery firm showed up late.
Michael Johnson: You know Michael is special the moment you exchange business cards. What announces itself as ‘A Johnson Banks Business Card’ is a neatly folded long piece of paper containing a portable portfolio of his best work. Michael is simple. His ideas are simple. And the two make his work unique and timeless. A frame for an art fund. A house shape for an organization called Shelter. A font shaped like a roller-coaster for an amusement park. All executed brilliantly. Get the idea?
Tirso Frances: Tirso is one of the two cofounders of Dietwee - literally ‘we-too’ in Dutch. After nearly missing my train from Amsterdam, and walking a few miles, I finally made it to the gates of his quaint studio in Eutrecht, Netherlands to seek inspiration. He literally showed me his thought process (a learning in itself), and as we were saying goodbyes, told me: “Be careful what you wish for, because it often comes true. And be very careful of what you choose to do, because you end up doing more of it!”
Michael Wolff: Michael Wolff is one of his kind. Grandfatherly in approach, and a pioneer in many aspects. His advice – focus on positioning. It makes all the difference. We interchanged two words in our standard pitch, and it changed the way clients looked at us.
Irma Boom: The best book designer in the world, as she is known, Irma is passionate about the old-fashioned way of doing things. Eventually, all creativity is craft, and whether it’s a personal project or a multi-million dollar assignment, you’ve got to put craft into it.
Neville Brody: At a recent conference, I asked him how things were, and he replied that they are alright, but a tad tough. “But you are Neville Brody,” I said. He shot back, “Yeah, but I still got to eat!” Look these people up. Reach out to them. Or make your own list of people who have told you a wise thing or two, and keep reminding yourself of those lessons.
Feedback: arvind.agrawal@aicl.in
