I’m five :)

The Human Half turned five years old this week. Unfortunately for you that means this is one of those ‘here are some things I’ve learned’ posts. Ready?...

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Lots of people say “brand strategy” when they really mean “some things we’ve agreed are true of our brand”

Some of the best writers I’ve met in recent years are founders - there’s a link between clarity of thought and ability to write

Every business has its own culture and nomenclature - a brand framework should be tailored to fit with these?

People ask me if I like working alone, but my clients are my collaborators - however, I do have the odd lonely moment anyway?

Some think product people and engineers are anti-brand - the truth is that they just want to understand its value in practical terms

It’s tempting to think that, as an expert, my job is to provide all the answers - but the best work has other people’s fingerprints on it too

Personal recommendations almost always lead to the best client relationships - random, cold emails rarely do

The harder you work setting up a project in the right way, the more smoothly things go - I remind myself of this whenever it’s painful

Working for myself makes me happy because I can add a lot of value in a short time - I can also play tennis and have dinner with my kids

Oversized steering groups are the biggest cause of time- and cost-creep - it’s useful to discuss the trade-off up front

Clients are understandably nervous about getting deliverables that are too conceptual - they want messages, assets and tools to use right away

A benefit of clarifying your brand identity is to align people internally - lots of commentators overlook this but it’s a priority for founders

Brand positioning is a game of broad (not fine) brushstrokes - the diminishing returns of exhaustive, drawn-out research come quickly

Always mute the video call when your child bursts in and you’re presenting to 300 people

When you capture the spirit of a brand well, it will seem simple and obvious - if it doesn’t feel that way you’re not there yet

Some scoff at the idea of ‘purposeful’ brands - but a strong, clear purpose is a huge motivator for many startup employees?

Brand positioning spans from the big organising idea to the elevator pitch - the former is more exciting but the latter works harder, sooner

Employees are not anti-consultant, they just care about their company and don’t want their input and experience undervalued

The value of a brand strategy is directly proportionate to the degree its championed across the business

Not getting involved in implementation is like creating a menu but not cooking the meal - It’s more satisfying to help bring it all to life

Your ego wants you to hand over all the finished answers - but few things should be set in stone, most should be iterated

Uncomfortable feedback always makes the work better - genuinely thanking people for tough feedback instantly evaporates any negative feeling

Big reveals are like surprise parties - they might be fun but they’re incredibly awkward if it’s not what they wanted

Don’t use a cookie cutter process unless you’re making cookies

It’s always better when there’s no gap between the decision maker and the doers - delayed signals are weaker and noisier

It doesn’t matter if you think your brand framework is brilliant if the people that need to use it don’t like, want or understand it

The best time to change your visual brand is never - the second best time is as soon as possible

A leader’s job is to know their business, my job is to understand brand - by the end of the project we should both understand both?

Founder interviews are a privilege for the interviewer, gold dust for the process and therapy for the founder

Working in clients’ offices makes a huge difference - it means I’m a part of things, not apart from things

Finding the perfect words to describe a business is like solving a five-piece jigsaw puzzle from millions of possible pieces

People that feel misaligned with one other usually aren’t - it’s likely they’re in broad agreement but explain things in different ways

Naming a brand is never completely objective no matter how much you tell yourself it should be

If decision-making feels too rushed then it probably is - pausing to reflect and regroup is never ever the wrong call

The best thing about my job is learning about new sectors - the second best thing is having a tiny influence on them

Five years goes fast when you’re enjoying yourself :)

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Thanks to everyone that chose to hire me along the way!