By Tomo Taka

All the things that I’ve become 

It’s hard to notice change on a day-to-day basis. Things tend to evolve and transform at a snail’s pace. The difference between one day and the next is rarely major.

But those little changes add up over weeks and months. When you compare things over a longer span of time, differences become stark.

Six weeks down at SCA and as we prepare for the second half of term one, now feels like a good time to reflect on some of the things I’ve become (or at least tried to become…)

A jester:

Because jesters juggle and Maverick Mark Palmer said we’d never make it as creatives if we couldn’t juggle by the end of the year. His thinking was you have to constantly chuck out ideas without worrying about them falling through. It sounded like a metaphor but Mark insisted it wasn’t… So I learned to juggle. Here’s proof.

An early bird:

For years I’ve lived as a night owl. When my mother moaned about me staying up and waking up late, I’d adamantly defend myself by pointing out the nighttime was my time. I thought I was a tormented spirit who lived for the moonlit sky. But now I see the perks of waking up early. You get to eat that frog. And avoid crowds on the Victoria line.

A child:

I’ve always loved tapping into my inner child. Now I have a legitimate excuse thanks to a cleverclogs called Eric Berne, who said creativity happens when we adopt the mindset of a playful kid.

A monk:

We need to give the front part of our brains – the bit that does all the work – a rest sometimes. One of the simplest ways to do so is by meditating. And the Headspace app on my phone is finally getting some action after months of being ignored.

A non-smoker:

We’ll see how long that lasts.

A studio designer:

This past week was spent getting the studio primed and ready before the real work begins in the coming months. We had a few rough plans and ideas but seeing them through was a whole different challenge.

A dot-to-dot enthusiast:

‘Dots’ is perhaps the worst SCA-ism going. Marc uses it to talk about going to see culture and experiencing the world. The idea is an exhibition you’ve seen might trigger something in your own creative work. Collecting dots – aka going out and doing stuff – is fun.

A fat penguin:

Because that’s our agency and I’m one in a family of 38.