I have two kids, both of whom have been in childcare since they were about 11 months. Every day that I drop them off I’m happy that they will find stimulation in and care from great teachers and some really cool kids.
But, when the gate closes behind me, my heart sinks just a little bit as well. Every day.
At the same time, I understand that – in the society and ways I’ve bought into – this is the way for the time being, that with two employed parents we are very fortunate… and, for the most part, our kids seem to be really thriving with the stimulation. The fact that my oldest sometimes asks to go to childcare at 8am on a Saturday kind of gave it away.
Tonight, I had my 4th parent-teacher night ever… for my 20-month old. Typically, the teacher shares photos and stories about your child then asks a few questions like: “What should we focus on with your child? What goals do you have for your child?”
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I tinker with a lot of stuff – not as much as I probably should – but I do have a tendency to wait until something seems like it’s getting a bit of traction before giving it due time. (Just so you know, Second Life didn’t pass the test – don’t hate me).
But, to be honest, I’ve definitely been a mobile skeptic until the past year or two. In 1999, when I was at K*Grind (Sydney dot-com phenom backed by Macquarie Bank), I remember hearing prophesies of stuff like Foursquare. In fact, I still remember the exact example someone smarter than me stated: “Imagine being on Pitt St in front of McDonald’s and you get a message saying your friend is inside and McDonald’s then sends you a special offer to take up in-store.”
Every year since then, I’ve been waiting for my mobile McDonald’s offer… and a friend to share it with.
Possibly, Foursquare – and there are several other tools like this out there – is the platform off which this stuff will become mainstream reality. If not, whatever happens next will be. That’s why I’ve decided that it’s worth my time to play with it. As social networks go mobile along with years of our personal data, the real-world possibilities are very exciting.
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McCann Erickson has been in Australia for 50 years. There’s a supplement in Adnews this week if you’d like to read about the agency’s history. It covers famous campaigns such as ‘It’s Time’ for Labor, Louie the Fly, Coca Cola’s Sky Surfers and hints at the direction we are taking. Pick up a copy for a read.
However, what I’m most excited about is a bit of fun we’re going to have online this week. We’re calling it an Internet Party – and you’re all invited.
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I must get asked about recruiters at least once a week. Who’s good to deal with and why? So I thought I’d put the question to the internet… and the humans who frequent it, and hopefully create a useful list for everyone along the way.
Add your thoughts using this structure (no need to copy and paste it):
Name, Company, Twitter
Website
What sort of roles and industries they’re great at
Why they’re great
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Find undiscovered human patterns and reveal them in compelling ways
The rest is noise and job titles.
What do you think?
Yes, there will be run-of-the-mill, tactical, basic sorts of communication but the punchy stuff… the stuff you wrestle with in your sleep – is it about achieving the above?
SEO, information architecture, user experience, your approach to writing creative briefs, PR, media planning, experiential…
Photo courtesy Dave Gorman.
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