Issue 20: A bulletin for big ideas and better business.

Dive in

Looking for a creative boost?

Our editorial team are happy to oblige. We hit the accelerator in LeMans, ask what Elon plans to do with all that money, and learn why tech is better when it’s for everyone. Plus: our weekly illustration examines the mental expansion associated with pumping iron. But first: Sir John explains why you’ll never run out of ideas.

OPINION/ CREATIVITY 

Keep thinking: you can always have another idea

💬 Sir John Hegarty

Working in an ad agency, there’s one question that you hear more than any other: “So, what’s the idea?” When I was a young art director, my greatest phobia was having nothing to say when this inquiry was aimed in my direction. More than that, I was needled by the prospect that one day I would run out of ideas totally. The mental reservoir would become barren – and my career would enter a similar state.

Thankfully, that never happened. But for years the thought bothered me – until I had a damascene moment while playing tennis. I was fortunate enough to have a former professional as a coach, Mr. F.H.D. Wilde. He was a superb doubles player in his day (and accomplished enough to have his illustration put on John Player’s cigarettes cards). Under his tutelage, my game was improving – except for the backhand. During a drill focusing on that shot I suddenly executed it perfectly.

The only thing that makes thoughts dry up is a lack of practice

“Mr. Hegarty, that’s really very good,” said Mr. Wilde. “We will now move on to the overhead smash.”

“But Mr. Wilde, that’s the only backhand I’ve ever hit.” I reasoned, “Shouldn’t we try to practice a few more?”

“Mr. Hegarty. If you can hit one, you can hit a thousand and one. Now… the overhead smash, if you please.”

At that moment, I realised that ideas were rather like tennis shots. If you can do one, you can do an infinite number. The only thing that makes thoughts dry up is a lack of practice – or stepping off the court for too long.

THE AGENDA

Pencil it in: Hot tips for the week ahead.

1.
Engines will reverberate in north-western France this week as the 24 Hours of Le Mans revs up. Commonly known as the Grand Prix of Endurance and Efficiency, making it to the finish will likely demand some ingenuity too.
12th – 16th June  

2.
The American Black Film Festival rolls into Miami. Now in its 28th year, the event is about empowering Black artists and showing work by and about people of African descent.
12th – 16th June

3.
UEFA guidelines restrict “mechanical sound-emitting devices” from football fixtures. This definition doesn’t extent to bagpipes – Munich Football Arena will have rousing soundtrack as Germany take on the Scots.
14th June

4.
The winner of the annual Women’s Prize for Fiction will be announced at the Royal Festival Hall, at the Southbank Centre in London.
13th June

5.
Is the UK capital Europe’s brightest and best tech hub? Organisers of London Technology Week are keen to prove so. Entrepreneurs, investors and thought leaders will assemble in Olympia this week.
10th – 14th June

Elongating negotiations
Contributor: GK Images / Alamy Stock Photo

AUSTIN / LEADERSHIP

Intake charges

Should Elon Musk be handed a $56 billion payday? The Tesla founder thinks he deserves one, at least. This week the electric car company will host its annual meeting, and shareholders are divided on whether or not the enigmatic leader should be granted the colossal package promised to him under a deal made six years ago. But its delivery was thrown into doubt when a judge in Delaware ruled it out back in January. Those in favour of the Musk pay-out reason that such a figure is necessary to retain the entrepreneur’s attention (as he splits time between multiple interests). Businesses are composed of people, and retaining the right creative minds at the pinnacle of the company is vital. However, a useful question at this juncture might be: should a founder require a bonus larger than the GDP of Latvia to stay motivated?

CREATIVE HACK

Contributor: Clo’e Floirat

Lifting weights

Feeling the pump does more than strengthen your muscles. This form of exertion is also thought to increase your creative capacity. Why resist it?

Raspberry Pi 5 wearing the Raspberry Pi AI Kit
Source: Raspberry Pi

LONDON / TECH

Blowing one

The Raspberry Pi Foundation has stood quietly in opposition to big tech since it was formed in 2009. While most devices are designed to be untampered with and discarded when damaged, the UK foundation’s single board computers are meant to be hacked and programmed. The overriding mission is to teach children software skills. It has proved popular – the organisation has sold over 60m devices. And this week, it is expected to float on the London Stock Exchange. While the business is currently valued at £540m, the IPO is reported to be oversubscribed. That means that this figure is likely to increase. Brands like Apple and Samsung claim to be conduits of human creativity, but manufacture products that aren’t meant to be understood by customers. The Raspberry Pi represents a more democratic vision for how tech might impact our lives.

Stamp of approval
Contributor: Insidefoto di andrea staccioli / Alamy Stock Photo

ITALY / POLITICS

Sticking it to the left 

The European Elections delivered a sudden (and unsettling) political lurch to the right over the weekend, resulting in a snap election in France. In Italy, a furore has erupted after Giorgia Meloni’s newly emboldened right wing government issued a postal stamp bearing a picture of Italo Foschi, a prominent supporter of the country’s fascist dictator Benito Mussolini. This isn’t the only stamp to cause a stir. To commemorate the death of the maligned media tycoon and former prime minister Silvio Berlusconi, one bearing his likeness will launch tomorrow. In an age of digital communications, the smallest canvas can still spark debate – or dismay.

Language alone protects us from the scariness of things with no names. Language alone is meditation.

/Toni Morrison