“I faced people from all walks of business who fully disregarded design (though they were completely influenced by it). I also met fine artists who drowned in their own work and the dense creative universe in their minds.Then I met designers. And instantly fell in love. Let me tell you why.Designers are familiar with critiques. They not only tolerate them but actively look out for them. They honestly believe in iterations and learn to edit down their work. They embrace simplicity and create beauty based on requirements other than their own. Design education teaches you to run away from assumptions and to have the stomach to scrap your work often.I’m bringing this up because it’s time to bridge the gap between design and business.”

“It’s been you all along, and it’ll be you all the way. Learn to play up your strengths, embrace your flaws, and pursue your passions. Be gentle when your mind, body, or soul are tired. Value your time and surround yourself with those who do too. Above all, give your dreams the same respect you grant to others’. This is the starting point of all great brand builders: self-empathy.”

“A brand is the unique story that consumers recall when they think of you. This story associates your product with their personal stories, a particular personality, what you promise to solve, and your position relative to your competitors. Your brand is represented by your visual symbols and feeds from multiple conversations where you must participate strategically.”

“If building a disruptive, dynamic brand is not in your plans, neither is profit.”

“Positioning is finding the right parking space inside the consumer’s mind and going for it before someone else takes it.”

“People relate to people, and if your brand feels like people, they’ll relate to you, too.”

“Make sure you test your brand story’s recipe with whomever you’re cooking it for.”

“What is the “Once upon a time” of your brand story? Ask yourself this: “How does what I’m building help consumers close the gap between who they are today and who they want to be tomorrow?”

“Your brand story’s “happily ever after” involves open wallets.”

“Brand and product don’t compete. Brand is product, and everything else conforming to the unique story that consumers create when they think of you.”

“Lean brands are the result of continually testing assumptions.”