It’s all about the context

I love Social. I love Tech. I love Psychology. I love Philosophy. I love Games. I love Web. I love PCs. I love Mobiles. I love Books. I love Movies. I love Comics. I love traveling. I love Dogs. I love Lifehacks. I love Lost. I love 24. I love Californication. I love B. Stinson. I love…

I love Curiosity. I love being Lost.
Lost in so many things, trying to see the context is the only option. Everything else is one sided. One minded. Too easy. Waste of time.

Nevertheless I want to focus on three areas that I find the most intriguing today: Transmedia (the “story”), New Economy (the “good money”), Lifehacking (the “happiness”).

If you like what you see, we should be friends: post@rolandsigmond.com

Full disclosure and legal terms: Currently I am working as a creative at the ad agency “Jung von Matt/Neckar” in Stuttgart/Germany. The opinions I express in this blog are solely mine and are in no way related to the agency.

Transmedia

Here’s the shortest version of my take on Transmedia and why it is inevitable:

1. Convergence is everywhere:

Just open your eyes: Computer firms build telephones (Apple), Blogs host TV-shows (Engadget), Car makers shoot films (BMW). Talent is everywhere, and everyone can buy them. Nothing is restricted to its former areas (Film, TV, Advertising, Arts, etc.) anymore. Watch out for the first blockbuster movie from Louis Vuitton.

2. Look at the digital natives. And way beyond.

They expect your content there where they are. They don’t adapt to your content. They can choose between billions of resources: why should they choose yours? These people will grow up and create things like they want them to be. They see the context like no generation before because they grew up with the apparatus to see it:
The internet.

3. Transmedia is ugly but inevitable.
It is probably the ugliest word ever. But its spirit is what counts.
After perfecting every discipline we have (Arts, Movies, TV, Advertising, etc.) there is a future. A natural progress that just comes with everything in life. The next inevitable step is to connect all the disciplines.

Life hacking

For me “life hacking” is not only about productivity, but I see it as the discipline of seeing the essence of complex circumstances in our lives, and develop shortcuts.

In order to see the shortcuts, you have to be clear where you want to go. What is the most important thing in your life you cannot live without? Creativity, your car, your family, money, your collection of porcelain “LOL-Cats”? It is completely irrelevant what it is: just find your goddamn goal!

And then hack the sh** out of your life to achieve that goal in the fastest way. Look for advice, look for people who already hack. And ALWAYS remember:

Everything is possible. Just do it.

My starting point into life hacking was the “4 Hour Workweek” by Tim Ferriss. You’ll get a very good feeling about life hacking by reading the book.

New economy

We all need money to survive. But we don’t need to be arrogant, greedy and distructive to earn money.

The old

Today’s economy is the result of people who grew up in times of abundance. Plenty of oil, money, natural resources, everything was just there, you just had to take it and make as much profit from it as you could. Exploit your employees, exploit nature, make money.

The new

Tomorrows economy will be run by people, who grew up in times when scarcity is all over the place. No money, no natural resources, no safety from terrorism. Insecurity. Additionally they are connected 24/7 by the Internet which gives them access to knowledge, friends, information, news, pictures and videos, yes even porn. To EVERYTHING. And exactly this makes them wise. They’ll know that treating employees fair is a benefit to the company. Listening to customers may be scary but is the key. Being brave as a business doesn’t make them a victim, it opens new opportunities.

And they will shape the REAL new economy,
that will earn more money than the old ever could.