Blog
Bohemian Bodyworks
10/05/2011 | 11:29 pm
Who doesn’t love to sink their face into a padded circle and have all of the stress gently pushed and pulled from your body as you free-fall into a half-sleep, half-euphoric dream?
Bohemian Bodyworks is a local massage & henna business that you’d thank yourself for connecting with. This is the visual language we created for Valerie, the owner, and her therapists.
Amy took some incredible shots of the space itself, as shown here.
Is Now the Time to Take Risk?
05/19/2011 | 11:09 pm
“You can’t have success unless you’re prepared to have failure. As soon as you say, ‘failure is not an option’ you’ve just said, ‘innovation is not an option.’” — Seth Godin
Study today’s successful companies (and not just the household names) and you’ll find that all of them take risks to maintain market positioning and expand market exposure. In fact, those that don’t quickly adapt to the ever-changing competitive industry environment actually take the bigger risk of standing still, or even worse, falling behind.
One of the things we’ve observed recently is that smart companies are spending less time trying to convince people and more time looking for new ways to connect with people—and not just clients and prospects. They are conveying the value of their brands with consistent visual language that resonates emotionally. Social media is thriving, and businesses that have opted to educate themselves and leverage technology in the social space are building approachability advantages. More importantly, they are building an army of brand advocates who will amplify their message. In the end, that translates into dollars.
The fact is, you have a story to tell, and nobody else is qualified to tell it like you can. When it comes to your brand and your marketing, you might be better served investing energy and risking dollars into telling your story than waiting for something magical to happen. Your story is all you’ve got. And if you don’t invest in it yourself, you’re really telling the world that your company isn’t worth investing in at all. Discerning clients will understand the difference and act accordingly.
-Marc Neidlinger
Illustration by Jay Cech exclusively for Mind Lightning.
Life Begins at the Intersection
03/16/2011 | 5:07 pm
Friends,
It’s interesting to think that the road ahead might not be where our headlights are beaming at the moment. Many of us can already feel our course changing; our turn signal is blinking. Others are stalled.
Will we rank among the skeptics, paralyzed by fear and unable to move until every indication is safe? Perhaps we accept our predestined misery in quiet resentment with our heads down, unable to look strangers in the eye? Are we merely punching the time-clock, enduring the familiar, redundant routine with no end in sight? Or will we dig deeper, find courage, embrace risk, and ignite each other with the flames of relentless creativity and passion?
At the end, we all hope to have traveled a road that is memorable and compelling. Regardless of where previous streets and highways have led you, your route could take a wild turn at any moment. Do you stay the course and expect something different? Or take a hard turn and hit the gas? Your next destination may not even be on your map. How frighteningly magnificent.
What would it be like to look back on a deeply fulfilling, rich life expedition teeming with people and flavor and experience and discovery? And joy? What would it look like to have your working hours included in the above?
There are those of us who will wonder what it would have been like, and there are those of us who will remember what is was like. And it won’t ever be based on what we intended to do down the road. Or someday. Or 2 years from now. Or even tomorrow. It will be based on what we decide at the intersection today.
-marc
(photo by Amy Pearson Photography | ©2011 | All rights reserved)
Soles (By Seth Godin)
01/10/2011 | 3:58 pm
This was forwarded to me by my friend and photographic cohort Amy Pearson. It’s brilliant. You can find the actual post here.
All you’ve got, all your brand has got, all any of us have are the memories and expectations and changes we’ve left with others.
It’s so easy to get hung up on the itinerary, the features and the specs, but that’s not real, it’s actually pretty fuzzy stuff. The concrete impact of our lives and our work is the mark you make on other people. It might be a product you make or the way you look someone in the eye. It might be a powerful experience you have on a trip with your dad, or the way you keep a promise.
The experiences you create are the moments that define you. We’ll miss you when you’re gone, because we will always remember the mark you made on us.
There’s a sign on most squash courts encouraging players to wear only sneakers with non-marking soles. I’m not sure there’s such a thing. If you’re going to do anything worthy, you’re going to leave a mark.
HandStand for iPad Vid
12/15/2010 | 4:15 pm
Check out the new video for the product we branded, HandStand for iPad! We did not produce this video…it’s a Large Films production, but I expect Mind Lightning will be working more with Large Films in the future after this…
Green Gables West by Tamarack
12/10/2010 | 7:39 pm
An incredible new living community in Ridgefield, Washington is evolving. Unlike any other area, Green Gables West (on the site of the 2010 Clark County Parade of Homes I might add) is a stunning neighborhood of build-to-taste homes, with more homes emerging every month. Here’s the story we’re telling, along with some design composites. The final direction is the top.
So Long to the Subdivision.
Welcome Back to the Neighborhood of Yesteryear.Just look at the word: subdivision.
Sub is all about being below — and Green Gables West is all about going beyond, even what you’ve hoped for. And division is all about separation — whereas our concept is already bringing together the things that matter: people, personality, and pride of place.
Welcome to the build-to-suit neighborhood of yesteryear—Green Gables West — one that is both connected and private; not just an area on a map, but a mosaic of homes where a diverse group of people become more than the sum of their hearts, creating the very fabric of their landscape. A community in which there are no clones, where your home is not only designed, but imprinted to mirror your heart, soul and lifestyle.
In fact, the award-winning builder of Green Gables West, Tamarack, has earned their reputation on going that second extra mile and doing the right thing, even when no one is looking. It’s like commissioning a piece of fine art. They are artisans in love with their craft.
In fact, the homes that are crafted here are all NAHB Green certified to bring you the airtight construction, energy savings and comfort you (and our planet) deserve—which says something about value for something rarely found in homes at twice this price.
Here, you’ll feel worlds apart, nestled in this enchanting Ridgefield hideaway, all the while knowing you’re just minutes from anywhere else you might need to be…not that you’d ever want to leave.
If this is starting to sound a little more like what you’re thinking, come out and see the real thing. The advantages of a home built to your own taste without the burden or expense of a custom home make this a treasure worth discovering. Because when you know exactly what you want your home to be, how you want it to feel and how you want it to live — you’ll live here.
The One-and-Only Green Gables West.
If you were home, you’d live here by now.*******