Jared Ficklin and 10X Spec Work

Interesting speak easy by FITC (http://fitc.ca/) last night at One Method (http://onemethod.com) with Jared Ficklin (http://jaredficklin.com) of Argo Design (http://www.argodesign.com). Whole bunch of topics covered but the one interesting takeaway that I got was on a regular basis, sounds like once a quarter, they get together and brainstorm about the 10x idea, any idea as long as it is big, a stretch, but not so far out there it can't be imagined in terms of how it will work. The idea has to use technology that we have and that could solve the problem. Machine that teleports your dog to the vet is probably not on their list.

They then prototype the idea and turn it into an a concept, maybe an animation of a concept, an article, something that can be published, a Ted Talk, you name it, and it gets put out there as a thought piece that sparks ideas, conversations, controvery, etc. They don't actually make whatever it is, they just throw it out as an idea. 

Yes, they loose billable time while working on the idea but what they get in return is brain exercise, exercise in thinking right outside of the box. And, they get recognized and promoted as those who think differently so more people know about them, but probably more importantly, it encourages those who want 10x work done to come to them, which just greases the machine even more.

Brilliant