JamesB reckons I’ve been a bit quiet lately. It’s partly do with final pitch on Wednesday, but mostly to do with organising the stag do in Dusselforf I’ve just returned from. I do not feel too clever.
More on that later. By the way, it seems that good cars go to heaven..
I heard a debate on Radio 4 this morning about altruism V selfishness. The question they wanted to answer was; if you acccept Darwinism as the survival of the fittest (I like Tennyson’s description of nature as, "Red in tooth and claw") that should also mean that only the selfish survive. So how can you account for the natural levels of sympathy/empathy we all have within ourselves? In other words, humans are too nice for Darwinism.
One train of thought suggests that we only got kind once we didn’t have to worry about surviving – you only care about other people once you stop having to worry about yourself. I think there is some merit in that, a kind of ‘Lord of the Flies’ in reverse. The weakness of this for me is that emotions are inate in all of us, we all have the capacity for empathy, so biologically where did it come from? Enter Richard Dawkins.
He suggests that altruism is just a more (you guessed it) evoloved form of selfishness -survival of the fittest groups. By helping each other, you make sure that your tribe, your group, your culture survives over another. If you consider emotions as a genetic mutation that just happened at some point in our evolution, groups that could work together others that were at war from within – too emotionally stunted to be able to work together. And so it goes, altruism has lasted as a biological part of us because it helps us survive.
The need to belong is as much a part of us as the ability to walk upright……. doesn’t this explain a lot about our need for social badges that make us feel part of something?
While were on the subject, they now think that human genes are more diverse than we thought – more than other species. Maybe the reason we have evolved so quickly is our diversity. Interesting in the context of organisations that insist on conformity.
It explains a lot about our need to belong, and the role for brands as a badge for a tribe.
..hope he’s not trying to tell me something.
As part of my pledges on Let’s See What Happens, organised by the irrepressible Mr Paul Colman, I’m in training to swim 100 meters in 1 minute, something I haven’t done since I was fourteen. Not easy as this picture after training shows….
To make it less ego driven and self serving, I’ve decided to try and raise some sponsorship money for ChildLine.
Martin and Simon at work have been kind enough to do this poster for me to put around companies we know:
I’m also writing this blog about how it’s going. I won’t lie, fitting in the training, work and general life is very tiring. Since it’s making me more absent minded than usual, I thought I’d blog about that. There’s only one post so far, but that’s going to change as of tomorrow. Since I’m struggling to fit in everything, another blog seems like a lapse of judgment but there you go…
If anyone fancies sponsoring me, you can pledge in the comments on the blog. If you’d rather just laugh at me, that’s fine too.
I’m supposed to be curbing putting things off, yet I found myself in Durham sorting an emergency passport. With four hours to kill while they processed it I wandered around the shops.
I stopped in M&S to try on some Autograph for Men clothes. The ads say Bryan Ferry wears them (he doesn’t, his clothes are handmade by supermodels wearing Agent Provocateur),so maybe some of his cool would rub off on me? No way, like all M&S clothes, they made me look like my Dad. The womens’s stuff looked better (I didn’t try them on incidentally), but the store still has that sterile feel I remember from childhood, with bored men waiting for women to try on clothes they’ll take back anyway.
Next up was Woolworths, were I found this crime against my childhood. Some things should be left as they are, Star Wars is one of them.
Then it was Waitrose (bear mind they haven’t many stores up North and I haven’t been in one for years)…Wow! Imagine a grubby little Northern urchin, chimney soot on his cheeks, let loose in a sweet shop and that will give you a good idea of my visit. The packaging! The layout! The presentation!
Retail will be about experience more and more in future. Waitrsose shows how far packaging and presentation can go to create this. Imagine being so confident in your food that the packging gets out of it’s way. Imagine making the palatte flip flop with the way you write the name. Thank God they’re not in Leeds, I’d be bankrupt within a month.
Northern Planning summit last night at Runaway Girl in Sheffield. Gemma noticed that the staff were incredibly nice to us. Either they’re that way all the time, which is a nice thought, or they knew we were coming. Let’s face it, if Famous Rob thinks you’re okay you’ve got it made, no wonder they tried so hard.
Rob mentioned that he can continue to teach me about music, now that his wi-fi’s sorted out. He played some stuff on his Ipod that sounded pretty good, the acceptable face of thrash metal to these old grumpy ears.
Rob’s got a fuller description on his blog. For my part, I’m glad we agreed that Second Life is rubbish, that JamesB needs to re-think his arty flat caps and I really like the idea of creches for men in shops – just give me looped Sopranos episodes and you can try on as many pairs of skinny jeans as you can.
As the relentless march of web commerce quickens pace, sticking to what you know is not an option for retailers. They ‘ll have to to find new ways to create experiences as opposed to just selling stuff. Nothing new in this line of thinking of course, but I’ve been having a look at ‘Instore Magazine’ to see what plots they’re hatching to meet the challenge. Are the Amazons of this world worried? Let’s see.
First up, Tesco are introducing an interactive touchscreens to help customers compare products on more than price.
Mintel says ethical shopping isn’t a fad. 3/4 of UK shoppers feel it’s their duty to recycle, while more than a third buy fairtrade when available. No wonder Tesco is also focusing on it’s ‘locally sourced’ produce credentials too. Or is is trying to kill off the independents?
Woolworths and Curry’s are focusing on same day pickup, to entice customers who have ordered online to come into the store.
Bodylite displays has launched a flat pack mannequin. People can come up with their own designs.
…….and that’s about it. Most of the stuff is about design, little seems to be about experience. If you listen carefully you can hear Amazon chuckling all the way to the bank.
I know we’re supposed to be grumpy at Christmas starting as early as November, but I was in Leeds this week and just loved seeing the lights.
A bus drove through this one but I kind of like what it’s produced.
Mum and Dad live in Cornwall, so we usually spend Christmas with my in-laws who don’t, but this year we’re going south. Highlights will be getting wrapped up and walking on the beach, the traditional Hovells Christmas Eve Fondue, Mum’s cooking, not to mention seeing Mum and Dad at Christmas for the first time in three years. I miss them.
As opposed to the "Real Thing (r)".
For Stan Lee😉
