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One of the main things I want the audience to recognize is the different approach companies take in cultures. I think that is fascinating at the differences, and I hope they will do. This will help them be more aware of the world around them. Just talking about companies everyone has heard of and buys things from makes my presentation relatable to the audience. I want them to feel like they have learned something new and entertaining.

In addition, I would like to get the audience involved and actually show them how companies differ either in real life, with pictures, or videos. I liked the taste test I did last year, but would I need to do something different?

I think I would like to present in either the VPAC or library. I feel like presenting in the VPAC is more formal, but I am also nervous about presenting in front of that many people. I feel like the Student Center and Black Box or too much of a relaxed setting for my presentation.

I could use lighten up the tone of my presentation by just being myself and not completely serious. I want to act like I’m a real person and not a robot so I could laugh when appropriate. I do not really know what I would make a joke about yet though.

One idea is that I could show different commercials of McDonald’s around the world so people could see the differences. I could do these for a variety of companies. I would also like to bring food so people would be able to taste and see the differences.

I want to teach my audience how companies differ or are the same in different cultures while also teaching them why companies take their approach. I need to show and tell them why some companies fail and others don’t. I feel like most people do not know that Starbucks is different in other places so I feel like that might captivate their attention. Like the Starbucks in Italy that recently opened. Also, like I did for my poster presentation, I could have a test taste with different kinds of Coca-Cola, but I would like to think of something that I haven’t done.

Storytelling helps people become connected to your message. It makes your message more relatable to whoever is listening. I know that when I hear stories from people everything comes together. The point they are trying to make automatically makes more sense. I remember last year at Launch, Graham gave a presentation about the stock market. Of course, I do not know much about stocks, but the stories he told made it more relatable to me. I can’t really think of many stories I could tell, but maybe about when I went to Europe and the differences I saw. I am not the kind of person who likes to speak in huge crowds, but I might also. I do not really know my authentic presenting style.

I love learning about how other countries are different than others. I like to learn what is out there in the world that I do not already know. While I do like learning about marketing, I am more passionate learning about others places. Part of this is my love for travel. I like to experience new things in new places. Although I cannot go to the places I have research, I want to help other people know what else is out there is the world that they do not already know. Experiencing and trying new things is what I am truly passionate about and I do that my learning about the different marketing strategies in countries. I find comparing other places and things to what I know at home so interesting.

Throughout Creativity Inc., a major theme of the book had been the culture Pixar had created. I can only imagine how hard it would have been for Pixar to sustain their culture when Pixar and Disney merged.

Part of Pixar’s unique culture was the creativity within their culture. Catmull writes “creativity is more like a marathon than a sprint” (Catmull 222). I can relate to this quote on two levels. First of all, I am a distance runner, not a sprinter. Many times, I think about how fast I could be done if all I had to do was run a 100. However, on a more academic level, I know when I am trying to come up with ideas, the first one that pops into my head is usually not the best. Well thought out ideas take time to form. Like I have learned with running and school, there is no need to rush (sprint) through a workout or an assignment.

Another part of Pixar is “a culture of candor and freedom and the kind of constructive self-criticism that allowed our people, and the movies they made, to evolve into their best selves” (Catmull 247). To help create this culture, no one at Pixar was under a contract which made Disney a little uncertain when they merged.

Another thing Pixar had to change when they merged with Disney was the design of their building. To Catmull, the building is “a lousy work environment” that would essentially not foster creativity (Catmull 252). They remodeled the building so less individual work would occur and more group work.

Their unique culture helps “our people respond to crisis” by discussing “our problem and of what we can do to solve it” (Catmull 278).  I find this an important tip to remember. Many times people just complain about a problem, but complaining will do nothing. It is important to take action and have discussions when people want to solve a problem.

An interesting point Creativity Inc. made was when it discussed Research Trips. By research trips, Ed Catmull meant immersing yourself in the field of the movie. For instance, the crew of Finding Nemo visited the San Francisco sewage treatment, and some of the crew even become scuba-certified. Catmull describes these excursions as “fueling the film’s development” (Catmull 197).

Also, it helps fuel inspiration and creativity. The workers get to learn about a different side of their film that they would not have before, and according to Catmull, the workers that go “always come back changed” (Catmull 198).  

This section of the book reminded me a lot of my Thesis. It is important for businesses to learn about the culture they are in. They cannot just keep everything the same since every culture is unique. Visiting different places and helps businesses fully grasp another culture which is important to their success.

For instance, when Todd Graves expanded Raising Canes to the Middle East, he visited prior to his expansion to understand what their norms were there. If he had not had visited, he might not have known the negative stigma Muslim cultures have towards dogs. Little things like this are what sets a company up for success.

“You’ll never stumble upon the unexpected if you stick only to the familiar” (Catmull 198).

Both change and failure can be intimidating, but they are two things which make humans “humans.” Both of these things are inevitable and are not also negative as people usually assume.

They both help foster creativity and teach lessons. As Ed Catmull says, “the unpredictable is the ground on which creativity occurs” (Catmull 148). If we always knew what was going to happen in the future, would the point of humans and life change? Life is full of unexpectancies, and that is what helps people grow as a person. For example, if someone knew they were going to get fired, why would not they just quit to save the embarrassment. Yes, life is much more than change and failure, but without them, human’s life would probably be totally different.

Just like change, failure is inevitable too. However, a plan to adapt to the failure can be helpful. Catmull writes, “we were going to screw up, it was inevitable. And we didn’t know when or how. We had to prepare, then, for an unknown problem -a hidden problem (Catmull 169). Just being aware can help failure not be as horrifying. Failure creates a balance between what we know and don’t know. “On one side is everything we know- the world as we understand it. On the other side is everything we cannot see ad don’t know -unsolved problems, unexpressed emotions, unrealized possibilities so innumerable that imagining them is inconceivable” (Catmull 183).  Besides failure, the two-sided door fosters creativity.

My ideas for buddy reveal are…

• Throughout the week, we would drop clues to our buddy (kind of like Secret Santa) and then at the end of the week we would say who are are and get like matching t-shirts or something.
• This idea is not very original, but we could also all line up and make signs for our buddies.
• We could also say that we are doing “initiation” into the thesis community, but really we would to the buddy reveal. (I don’t know what we would say initiation is.)
• Madeline came up with this idea, but we could have them do a scavenger hunt off campus.
  • I don’t know if this is allowed, but it might be cool to take it off campus somehow.