“No creative person I know has ever asked for a brainstorming session” - Brian Collins | D&AD Talks

Brian Collins says the opposite of courage isn’t cowardice, it’s conformity. Here, the co-founder of COLLINS shows us how having too much structure can kill the magic, through anecdotes from his working life.
This talk took place as part of D&AD’s Still Learning Live event, which took place in London in September 2022.
#dandadtalks #COLLINS
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[@TheCof6656]

I was looking for creative brainstorming techniques and instead found a TED talk that made me feel bad about not being a "creative person".

[@Vo2396]

Snap!😅

[@gaurangjoshi15]

i brainstorm while sleeping

[@ageshero]

Exactly.. me to 😢

[@TheCDanger]

lol. So many people drew bankrupt takeaways from this. Creativity, contrary to the self-aggrandizement of commercial creatives, can be taught and honed. No, not everyone is equally capable of it, but anyone can improve theirs with practice. For the same reasons that some people are better at accounting than art direction, some people must settle for making ads while others make art and innovate. As a gold lion recipient, I can tell you that the inability to see the deep creative power of everyday, ordinary people is a mental weakness that won’t just smother their greatness, but also your own.

[@grantavakjan9488]

ok, and? reminds me all the buffoon designers full of ego talking about creativity and how great they are, but what can I actually get from this video? Captivating presentation but zero informational value

[@christopherchapman62]

Some gems in here and I respect Collins work however there’s a big outdated attitude here. Shaming design thinking and iteration? Those are well proven approach to design where spontaneous creativity thrives. IDEO has been using design thinking and iteration along with Walt Disney Imagineering, Pixar, Apple and to name a few. Doesn’t make his approach wrong or theirs right but the lack of curiosity about design thinking / iteration is a sign of a fixed mindset not a growth mindset. Feels more like EGO than courageous curiosity.

[@briancollins9916]

I so wish you had seen the rest of the presentation, Christopher. I address your points, exactly. Probably inadequately, but they formed the center of the rest of the talk. This was only the opening.

[@georgetirlea1771]

@@briancollins9916 is there a way we can see the hole keynote?

[@pepino3full]

I understand and respect design thinking, I also think it's REALLY BORING. And as designers seeking beautifully crafted things, sometimes a strategy so meticulously executed (sometimes it's needed, sometimes it's not) makes the process tedious.

[@marcseefelder2806]

He actually got it wrong with the brands... RIMOWA is German, and Furstenberg is American. :)

[@briancollins9916]

Exactly right. I had been up for 48 hours when I gave this talk. My apologies. Will not make that mistake again.

[@ThePeej]

The point hits just as hard and true with the labelling slip-up!

[@mnmmartijn]

von furstenberg is belgian

[@MichaelWandelmaier]

Why would you cut-off the video mid-presentation?

[@MarcStress]

Because: you won't believe No. 7

[@zaferabdulrahman6988]

Is there a full video of this?

[@10e999]

+1

[@Photalitube]

Good question

[@DandAD-awards]

This was a ticketed event so we do not have footage of the full day, but we do have highlights from each talk which you can watch here: www.dandad.org/en/d-ad-creative-inspiration-still-learning-live/

[@brandoperu]

@@DandAD-awards So you turned off the cameras after 7 minutes? That's highly unlikely. You definitely have the full recording but for some reason that's beyond me you just won't release it to the public (maybe to sell more tickets next year?)

[@alexaaanderdo]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/aGKTaXSwh81ln9k here is pretty much the same

[@TheMasterLogoist]

Couldn't have said it better myself. Been creating logos exclusively since 1995, and I always let "it" happen. This "it" cannot be taught, processed or charted. Creating something---anything---may arise from needing it, but that certainly doesn't mean you have to conform. Great presentation.

[@Tofubouftou]

I'm not sur I understood the video very well; I am a graphic design student and I always used different techniques including brainstorming to discover interesting ideas. I might just not be creative, but I don't understand how am I suppose to find these ideas without these techniques? How do you do it?

[@deesee6009]

The picture he shows is not "the National Library in Dublin", it is in fact the Trinity College Library. Irish Americans aren't good with the factual details of their supposed beloved isle.

[@ageshero]

I feel attacked, I love brainstorming sessions lol

[@wisepurnima]

This concept sounds repackaging of Creative Confidence, of course with a mocking as a main dish.

[@TheCDanger]

lol. So many people drew bankrupt takeaways from this. Creativity, contrary to the self-aggrandizement of commercial creatives, can be taught and honed. No, not everyone is equally capable of it, but anyone can improve theirs with practice. For the same reasons that some people are better at accounting than art direction, some people must settle for making ads while others make art and innovate. As a gold lion recipient, I can tell you that the inability to see the deep creative power of everyday, ordinary people is a mental weakness that won’t just smother their greatness, but also your own.

[@TheLegoMotionStudio]

wow! this just made me feel like I am not crazy!

[@PaulSyng]

Mistakes make it human!

[@markdaniel8524]

"The opposite of courage isn't cowardice, it's conformity." But I would argue that it's cowardice that pushes us to conform.

[@jonathanstevenson6753]

7 minutes I'll never get back... I'd add to "the opposite of courage is conformity" - "its greatest nemesis is the critic". this is bad, this is bad, this is bad, how great was Steve Jobs, the end.

[@ThirdEyeBlindApologist]

I love his energy. May we all present about the things we love with such passion - that's who I'd want making my logo for me!

[@chrismitchelldesign]

It's a refreshing perspective but the power of working collaboratively at the beginning of projects shouldn't be discredited. There are lots of valuable insights to be discovered by listening. That doesn't mean that creativity and ideas don't live somewhere different...it just means there's room for both.

[@briancollins9916]

Agree x 1000%

[@valiullah]

I don't think Collins was discounting the idea of collaboration. His argument was against the "Post-It" culture of design thinking. Where the whole process is to dish out ideas (preferably very short) in huge numbers, and then come to an average of all the ideas that everyone agrees upon. It's a technique that works brilliantly with today's corporate culture of risk avoidance. But one doesn't imagine new forms out of this way. Most of the great inventions didn't result as generalising on posit-its. But were the result of going deep into a subject and wandering off into unexplored territories with no end goal in sight. Spontanaeity, Intentionality, and making mistakes. This is done individually but ideas can be exchanged as a group.

[@waxmaster-c]

Drop the full video

[@mrwangkai]

While the premise is compelling and seems to make sense, the decisions are not made at the individual level. The macro tech culture does not alway allow for the time and space to create “insanely great” product. Steve Jobs is inspirational, but not a sustainable culture. All that’s to say, it’s a valid point, but only in vacuum.

[@bms4654]

Sounds like a guy who says "back in my day" when he is in a meeting with people half his age and talks about how he is going to retire and never does...

[@briancollins9916]

Exactly.

[@twanwiertzproducties]

Surprised 'Execution' is not in the list of words that show the militarisation of our language. Great snippet of this talk, whatsoever. Brian is an inspiration.

[@nadeemahmed3248]

As long as we stick with font designs beautiful presentations, i agree with him.

[@jokosi]

this is incredibly bitter and lame.

[@coldpat]

Rimowa - an American brand???🤔

[@kurtberengeiger]

Nein, ist es nicht

[@briancollins9916]

Stupid. And my sincere apologies . I had been up for almost 48 hours when I gave this talk. I flew into Heathrow two hours before I got on stage. It is obviously German. I am obviously dumb.

„Richard Morszeck Warenzeichen“ it is. Couldn‘t sound more German. ;) Amazing speech, though. Thank you.

[@MarkusNonn]

Rimowa is a German brand...

[@hamansutra]

👏🏼

[@kurtberengeiger]

Best video title ever. The rest was pretty good too.

[@j.cmarie271]

Great video ❤

[@Bielocke]

This was a very insightful video.

[@lacrahuntington]

Love this 🎉

[@brokejaw]

This dude is high on something