99% of advertising is just plain bad. But man, when they get it right, THEY GET IT RIGHT. Kudos to Wieden+Kennedy Tokyo for making me smile and think better of Nike than I already do (which is tough—their design culture is incredible, and the advertising choices are typically top notch).

op•ti•mism
1. a disposition or tendency to look on the more favorable side of events or conditions and to expect the most favorable outcome.
2. the belief that good ultimately predominates over evil in the world.
3. the belief that goodness pervades reality.
4. the doctrine that the existing world is the best of all possible worlds.

pes•si•mism
1. the tendency to see, anticipate, or emphasize only bad or undesirable outcomes, results, conditions, problems, etc.
2. the doctrine that the existing world is the worst of all possible worlds, or that all things naturally tend to evil.
3. the belief that the evil and pain in the world are not compensated for by goodness and happiness.

After some research and good old fashioned introspection, I’ve determined I’m both. Firmly. And neither. At least not wholly.

As with most things, there is a great tension at play that shapes my work and interaction with people. These are the environments where I spend most of my time, and as such they’re the proving ground for which side of world view I’m operating from. It’s a tricky line to walk—much of optimism in the above definitions seems overly naive and downright delusional to me, but I also don’t want to be known as the guy who only sees and comments on the worst the world has to offer. I’m looking for some middle ground here.

I think that balance as a general principle is a waste of time. To balance you have to be completely aware of the two extremes, the ‘weight’ of each, and of the absolute center on any issue. I find continuously that I am just not that smart.
—Ben Pasley

Trying to find balance between optimism and pessimism is a seemingly attainable goal (given that we have two rigidly defined extremes), but it still feels like a waste of mental energy, energy that could be better spent on greater things. In the moment, I want to be more concerned with what I need to perceive about a situation in order to accomplish a task or finish a project. If that requires adopting a stance that others might label pessimistic, I need to be OK with that, even if that perception isn’t in keeping with what I see my world view as.

I’m guessing this will all be more difficult that I imagine.

If you have a job where someone tells you what to do next, you’ve just given up the chance to create value.
—Seth Godin

I’m loving all the art direction on the Salt Films website. Unlike a lot of all-Flash sites, this one seems less about the medium and more about the stellar content and interaction. So fun.

I never saw a wild thing
sorry for itself.
A small bird will drop frozen dead from a bough
without ever having felt sorry for itself.
—D.H. Lawrence

Inspiration is for amateurs. The rest of us just show up and get the work done. If you wait around for the clouds to part and a bolt of lighting to strike you in the brain, you’re not going to make an awful lot of work.
—Chuck Close

Well established hierarchies are not easily uprooted;
Closely held beliefs are not easily released;
So ritual enthralls generation after generation.
—Tao Te Ching, Chapter 38

If it’s pessimistic to read that quote and agree 100%, then i’m a card-carrying pessimist.

More on this topic later.

Last week I spent a few hours moving our three-bay “compost corral” from one corner of the yard to another. After relocating the structure, I had to move the ~40 wheelbarrow loads of actual compost. I could have shoveled away at it, and while a shovel is a perfectly good tool, it wasn’t the right tool for this job. Have you ever used a pitchfork? Amazing—capable of lifting and pitching much more semi-loose material that you expect. The pitchfork cut my work by more than half, and saved my back in the process.

You shouldn’t make a habit of blaming your tools for your lack. But you use the right tools for the job. “Work smarter, not harder,” I can hear my father saying.

So don’t use a shovel when you actually need a pitchfork. Don’t schedule a meeting when you actually need a quick phone call or email. Don’t make an iPhone app when you actually need a better website for mobile users. Don’t do the same repetitive tasks day in day out when you actually need to automate or streamline your process.

If presented with options, use the tool that does the job the best.

I’ve always held to the belief that the practice of creating compelling graphic design occurs not by employing the principals of a democracy, but rather, that of a monarchy.
—David Merfield

It’s the easiest thing in the world to heckle from the stands. To quarterback from the La-Z-Boy. To second guess after the moment of decision has passed. To take your minimum of knowledge and yell at the top of your proverbial lungs how everyone is doing it wrong.

We see this play out online in increasingly verbally violent manner—people spending inordinate amounts of time finding anything or anyone they disagree with and picking fights (in 140 characters or less no less). They mount mini-campaigns. They scream. They spit. They gnash. And all in the name of some sense of rightness or perceived wrongness of the other. They’re stuck in the stands, hurtling towards mediocrity, convinced of their superior thinking.

But what I never see people doing is putting legs to their complaint. You say you care so much about [insert organization or movement or system or belief here]? You see so much wrong with it? Then why aren’t you involved? Why aren’t you in the middle of the damn thing? If you won’t set-up shop at the scrimmage line and fight to change something alongside other people from the inside out, you’re all talk. You’ve got no teeth. And you’re ridiculously easy to ignore because you just don’t know anything and you aren’t doing anything.

It’s much more difficult to stick around and work together, especially (perhaps most importantly) with people you don’t always agree with. Because all the bluster and bitching and words in the world don’t hold any weight if you won’t act on them. When you claim to have beliefs, virtues, and standards that you refuse to act on you’re in the stands, wailing at the wind, feigning care and loving the sound of your own voice. You’re a hypocrite. You’re what you hate. You become what you be-tweet.

You say you care about something? If it’s important, put down some roots. Dig in and help change it. Or please just shut up.

A note from The Management: You’ll have to forgive the sports analogy. It’s out of character, but it fits. I figure I’m entitled to at least one a year since my name is in the URL and all.