creativity is unlimited

theres a sign outside of korea's pohang steel plant that reads 'resources are limited. creativity is unlimited.' i cant think of a better explanation of how a nation the size of washington state emerged from the devastation of civil war to become the worlds 13th largest economy.

baby jesus placed korea in between two ambitious neighbors. and despite millenia of conquest from both china and japan, koreans retain a vibrant, distinct culture. since koreans can claim 3000 yrs of history, the conspicuous absense of traditional buildings is but a painful reminder of the peninsulas repeated devastation.

for me, this tragic and heroic history is best expressed by two words. han ( 한 ) escapes adequate translation but is said to define koreanness. ive heard it defined as 'unrelenting sorrow' or 'crying when you cant cry anymore.' theres another word, toogoboja, which loosely translates into a cynical 'we'll see how things turn out.'

these words capture koreanness for me and i feel connected to them. im wary and skeptical by nature, and ive seen how this is misinterpreted as pessimism. yet i think my actions suggest that i am convinced that shitty events shouldnt stop us from pursuing the future's potential. my connection with these two words confirms my koreanness for me when my mixed heritage and cultural detachment has made me question it.

i enjoy being here, despite the lack of bygone architecture, the disgusting air, the homophobia and the sub-5 ft halmuhnees (grandmothers) pushing you out of their way. being here makes me want to live in asia. it could be shanghai, bangkok or singapore, but it should be seoul. despite the inevitable disappointments of korea and koreans, ive already waited too long to immerse myself in all things korean.

its true.

besides, theres no better time for me to do it than now. im retired, ready to sell my diggs and i need to find my next creative inspiration. and since theres nothing like discomfort to bring out creativity, moving my ass to asia is probably the best way for me to emerge from the post-mavin creative burn out. lets see if i chicken out.
more 2006 korea photos here.
more 2005 korea photos here.

nyc: weirder than me

for those of us who, like maself, think of ourselves as a little koko-krazzy, its good to reminded that we aint all that. an impromptu trip to nyc showed me how much more absurd my life could be if i had the locale and desire. im not sure if thats a good or bad thing, but food for thought.

wknd indulgence itinerary #1:

16:00 while frantically shopping for sumthin to overnight in time for sissys bday, i ran into a big ole immigration reform rally near city hall. i like seeing almost equally prominent asian and latino contingents, as well as the whiteys wearing shirts that say 'legalize the irish.org'

19:00 ive been granted amateur photographer status by my girl k-y for her org's photo opening at the union square starbucks. the photos are taken by kids from seatown, nyc and rio de janeiro. he's famous! cute, eh?

22:30 at the behest of a former partner org, me and chuckles attend a saturn car co party at the hard rock cafe in times square. an mtv news lady tells me lindsay lohan rumors. the red carpet is embarassing. inside, 50-sumthin frumpy fat old white guys with matching wives mix wit scores of glamorous nyc 20-sumthins. clearly the former are saturn folks, and the latter are paid to do this.

23:30 we escape weirdland and head downtown to wholesale bizarno... an auction/party dedicated to selling a doll replica of the 'number 1 transsexual in the world', amanda lepore. there are too many people in line to pee. i go outside. unfortunately, i do so in front of cops. thanks to baby jesus, no ticket.

03:00 after two more rounds of club hoppin, champion and me are too scared to go to an nyc bathhouse, so we shut eye.

whats comfy even when its not

i made the embarrassing realization yesterday that, despite my largely unscheduled retired life these days, i get stressed out if my daily to-do list goes beyond 2-hr naps, all things considered and a few hours of sim city.

it turns out that 8 yrs of mavin made stress a familiar and addictive companion. sure, stress aint so fun, but it became a staple of my life, and in that sense, a sense of comfort and stability. so, even tho ive done a good job not to replace my former working hours with too much other shiz, my reactions remain the same. im sure itll take but a few more months to kick the habit. in the meantime im a loser.

perception making reality

today i had the fun opportunity to speak to a small group of uw students in a class called 'innovative leadership.' i cant help but see how young college students are these days. its not that i feel especially old… they just seem particularly young. maybe im just reminded of my own youthful arrogance and how the cycle continues.

i was invited to speak about my philosophy of leadership with a specific focus on how some young leaders are deterred from taking action because they feel/are told that they are too young/inexperienced to lead.

i feel silly in these setups since i have no leadership philosophy or cleanly articulated life plan. ive got the impression that people assume that leaders operate from a tight script or strategic plan. far from planned, my 'leadership style' has been the path of least resistance: my instinctual response to scenarios as the arise, succeed or fail.

leadership is a difficult thing to define. it cant be defined in terms of 'goodness,' given the efficacy of genocidal leaders. the only definition i can work with is that a leader enrolls followers to her/his vision.

when i think about the kinds of leaders i respect most, theyre typically those who have fought on behalf of the marginalized. what unites them is that they are charged with convincing a constituency that a grievance exists and that liberty/justice can be achieved.

although my years at mavin filled both criteria, a vital yet underappreciated reason why we were successful was that we effectively managed perception with an almost obsessive attention to our image.

for example, here i was, a 19-yr old college freshman in the middle of an identity crisis, in his boxers in his dorm and trying to negotiate a magazine advertising deal with a multi-billion dollar pharmaceutical company. this, with no real-world magazine, advertising or business experience. 'reality' would have lost us that deal.

sure, we were young, ambitious and addressing a relevant issue. nope, we didnt lie. just like any effective leader, we encouraged our constituency- be they advertisers, the media, our members- whomever- to focus on the story that most inspired them by making us relevant to their experiences and interests. this meant image, branding, wording, nuance, inflection.

there's too much room to interpret words, numbers and accomplishments. i think its typically the ability to hype that distinguishes a success from a failure. in this case, 'reality' rarely has to be reality. theres a difference between cultivating perception to create reality, and lying. enron is an example of the latter. if the distance between the two is too great, reality inevitably topples perception.

the most important thing i could tell the students was to not be baffled or intimidated by the false constraints of 'reality.' they should instead imagine the prospect of unrestricted creativity. overall, i wanted to help empower them to shape their reality, but not get overwhelmed by the enormity of that opportunity. its a heady prospect that requires a sense of responsibility to the truth, but an appreciation for creative nuance.