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UofK Morning session

Mon, 05 Dec 2011 15:44:52 +0100

Event at the University of Kentucky

Mon, 05 Dec 2011 15:43:33 +0100

Last week I spent the day with the University of Kentucky in Lexington with the state extension program's all-school conference. The topic was "Struggles in the Commonwealth: A Family Systems Approach." The first half of the day included an overview of Kentucky families right now - from demographics to food habits. The second half of the day offered breakout sessions on nine topics. I'll post a shot of the visualization.

An interesting thing happened at this conference. At the end of the day, the president of the school gave a lovely wrap-up on the work we'd all done. The question she put forth was if we don't do the work of the extension program, then who will? If not us, then who? As folks were filing out, I turned to see a participant grab a marker and scribble on my visualization. Before I could get to her, she was gone. She had written, under the question "If not us, then who?" - "NOT ME." I alerted the organizers of the program and we tried to find this obviously disgruntled employee but to no avail.

My take away from that experience was complicated. The presentation had struck a chord with this woman, so hard that she took the time to put a bit of graffiti on the graphic recording then scuttle out without explaining her actions. I wonder what she might have done had there been no way for her to express her frustrations? Now the organizers know there is someone who isn't jiving with the school's mission and is clearly unhappy about it. I wonder if she'll come forward and begin a conversation about her feelings or will she simply let it fester, affecting her job?

Doodlers unite!

Fri, 23 Sep 2011 17:01:09 +0100

Thank you Sunni Brown! This is awesome!

http://www.ted.com/talks/sunni_brown.html

This Week!

Mon, 23 May 2011 14:45:51 +0100

This week I don't have much in the way of working IN my business, just working ON my business. Updating the website, for sure, and I'm having a logo designed so look for that soon! Still trying to generate good leads for both copywriting and graphic recording work. I've meet some interesting people with whom I believe great partnerships could occur. Fingers crossed!

Article: How to set your copywriting fees

Tue, 17 May 2011 12:59:16 +0100

I just found this blog and I love the straightforward tone. Check it out.

Words and Pictures

Wed, 13 Apr 2011 13:51:39 +0100

A friend sent me this video and I think it's brilliant. It captures the way words and visuals work together and I just love it.

Seedlings 2020

Mon, 04 Apr 2011 19:08:21 +0100

Last week I participated in a local networking event with the Seed 2020. I presented my graphic recording business and copywriting services to a group of 20 or so small business people. There were a few questions asked and I thought I would share the answers here:

Question: You talk about "experience teams." What does that mean?
Answer: At a former job with a Fortune 500 company, my group's work was to visually represent experiences with the company in the form of a map. So we would say, "Hi, Customer. What's it like to be a customer of ours?" I took their responses and made it a visual map. This is an example of an experience map, thought not the ones I worked on which are proprietary and I can't share them. My job was to represent the experience in words and pictures.

Question: So you get paid to doodle?
Answer: Um...no. I get paid to take your huge conversations and ideas and bake them together in an easily-understood cookie. It might look like a doodle but it's so much more useful than that.

Question: Do you just listen at the meetings or do you facilitate as well?
Answer: I do both. Whatever the client needs, I can do.

My faves: Painters Tape

Sun, 30 Jan 2011 20:46:25 +0100

I know there are fancy adhesives out there but I really rely on that plain old 3M blue painter's tape. For about $5 a roll, you can't beat the price and you can have fat or skinny tape. Last week, I tried using some high-falutin' yellow "artist's tape" which had me running from one end of the paper to the other as it let go of the wall. Granted, it was a cold window, not a wall, but my blue painter's tape saved the day. I've used more expensive white artist's tape, too, but the blue really is great for me. Do you have a favorite tape? I'd love to hear about it. sarathompsonwrites AT gmail DOT com

Video Killed the Radio Star

Tue, 25 Jan 2011 14:28:38 +0100

So I'm probably safe. Yesterday I joined Stephanie Ringer and Eric Brown for their internet radio program on BlogTalk. Check it out here.

My faves: Mr. Sketch

Mon, 17 Jan 2011 15:08:10 +0100

Every artist has a weapon of choice when it comes to her toolbox. I have always been picky about my pens, and that's another blog post, but for graphic recording, I love my Mr. Sketch markers. Here's why:

1. CHEAP cheap cheap. Some day I will upgrade to the fancy refillable markers, but until then, my friend Mr. Sketch is coming with me to all my gigs. Also, any office supply store sells them for less than $10 a pack. If you lose some or have to replace them, it isn't a big deal.
2. Great inking The ink flows consistently and can keep up with even a fast-and-furious ideation session.
3.They're scented! Each marker has a different scent. It makes me feel sort of like a kid again.
4. Great color choice Some markers just have too many choices. I like Mr. Sketch's colors very much.
5. Easy to write with In any given session, I have to write for a long time and I have to use varied lines. Mr. Sketch markers are comfortable to hold and offer several types of line, based on how you hold the marker.