Iain Tait: “Trust and relationships feel more important than ever”

Iain Tait, co-founder of FOOD, and previously of POKE, Google and Wieden+ Kennedy, shares his thoughts (in his own unique way).

Starting a career right now must be daunting. Starting a career IS daunting. The very idea of a CAREER is daunting. Esp in a world that is very dauntful.

Things we used to know for certain don't seem true any more. institutions failed us. nothing can't be trusted. Everything's for sale. nothing is real. Technology+culture moved faster than government+policy. our psychologies are warped by invisible simulated marketing bubbles - not very much seems to, work. Apart from the spectacular, grotesque, or overtly provocative.

Wow! bleak.

also sounds like a lot of **** needs fixing (opportunities!!!!!!!)

want some really GOOD NEWS?!?

want some really GOOD NEWS?!?

two things we have to help:

Technology and People.

This crazy new technology has the power to make all of us creative far beyond what we can currently even imagine. The things we’ve seen so far are crude, unimaginative replicas of things that have come before. ( this always happens e.g. radio plays on tv) - wild stuff is coming - it’s up to us to shape what this technology becomes 🙂

BUT BUT BUT

double down on people. People and community. technology is great - BUT we will slowly wake up to the fact that it's STILL people that are most important.

and when they're in short supply elsewhere trust and relationships feel more important than ever

Find people who are doing the things you want to do. Go where they are. Find community, show up, be useful, be kind. Turn up in real life, if possible. warm-bodied experiences. n if you're shy as f**k it doesn't matter. the right place won't care. turn up and listen. you're not in a rush. This is where you want to be? Right? Have a nice time! It will come.

Go to things - but don't spread yourself thin. Focus. (But don't be a stalker).

Opportunities don't live on job boards, they live in heads. Get to vacancies before they've been written. Be the reason a role appears. I've seen it happen more times than you think. Don't treat all jobs and companies as interchangeable - they're not. And more importantly what's right for 300 people on Glassdoor is not right for you.

Don't try and be everything to everyone.

You'll end up as human slop.

You're at your most creatively awesome when you're doing the thing that only you can do. You maybe don't know what that is yet. But you probably have a better idea than you think.

[ADVICE#] learn the fucking tools - smash through your busywork and go make something that you really love - then go and show it to some people in real life… even if it doesn’t get you a job, you’ll have made something you really like :-)