David James posted a thought-provoking blog entry on the Peace Through Commerce event last Saturday in Austin, Texas that inspired me to formulate my own list of questions for personal reflection. Many of my own questions arise when I start to wonder why a government program or restriction created to help people actually turns out to hurt them. So here is a thought scenario followed by a few questions.

Thought Scenario #1: The Unintended Consequences of Good Intentions
All actions have consequences, and the consequences of actions is what we have to deal with and negotiate in everyday life. Sometimes, even actions undertaken with the best intentions- like outlawing child labor- have terrible consequences that end up hurting more than they help. For example, some scholars suggest that in Thailand and India, child labor laws have led to an increase in the number of children being "born into brothels". Both alternatives are horrifying. Good intentions do not determine policy outcomes. Assuming this, think about the following questions and try to identify the "winners", the "losers", the "good intentions", and the actual consequences of the policy in question.

• Agricultural subsidies to corn (and ethanol) farmers in America
• US Dept. of Homeland Security contracts with airline companies
• Environmental regulations requiring use of expensive new cleaners in workplace
  
• Occupational safety regulations in the workplace

The first in this series of interviews and conversations with visionary entrepreneurs is one of our very own zaadzters. Thomas R. Clifford, also known as Director Tom, describes himself as a "Corporate Documentary Filmmaker" who is "moving people with moving visions". He is a man who has chased his artistic and professional vision straight to the birth of Spiral Story, his co-creation with  Jatin DeSai. How did Director Tom get from being an insurance company employee to managing his own artistic enterprise?

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Alina: How did you come up with your business idea– or how did you discover this niche in the market?

Director Tom: In 1984, I landed in the Television Studio at The Travelers Insurance in Hartford, Connecticut.  At that time, the studio was under the Corporate Communications Department.  It was a remarkable time for three main reasons: budgets were not an issue, I had three incredible mentors and we had upper management supporting our style of remarkable filmmaking and storytelling.  All three elements combined to ignite some of the most interesting video stories for an organization.  We literally pioneered employee communications! 

Over time, I noticed that my customers actually created my niche. After 10 years as Senior Producer & Director at The Travelers, my style of filmmaking and storytelling was unique…so I capitalized on my strengths and let word-of-mouth marketing do the rest.

Alina: It takes a wise man to see the market, Tom. Speaking of capitalizing, how might young filmmakers and entrepreneurs learn from your experience behind the lens? What is the recipe for a great film?

Director Tom: Here are the main ingredients when I am cooking up a film:

Story is King- Understand the story and emotional connections that drive the story.  
Outcome is Queen- Why is someone making a film?  What do you want your audience to do?  To think?  To feel? 
Authentic voices- I use very little narration and allow the people in the documentary to shine brightly with their ideas and emotions. 
Tripods are taboo!- Hand-held cinematography creates an engaging and “in-the-moment” feel.
Compelling graphics- Eye-catching motion graphics capture the branding elements of an organization, as well as punctuating ideas.
Comfort Zone- Producing films is one of the most powerful things one can create.  Its impact is far-reaching.  People need to feel comfortable in front of the camera to enable their ideas effectively. 
Awe & Mystery- I have an insatiable appetite to understand the world around me…that helps me to discover what is possible in front of the camera, as well as behind the camera.

Alina: Thanks for sharing your recipe, Tom. I'll be honest- your title as "Corporate Documentary Filmmaker" still intrigues me. I guess this is because I don't associate business management with artistic enterprises like film. Running into the limitations of my own imagination on this one, I'd like to know what challenges or limitations you've confronted as an entrepreneur in this niche? What are the two greatest challenges so far?

Director Tom: Two things.

1. Getting businesses to recognize the power of their own story.  We swim in stories all day long, but sometimes getting organizations to capitalize on their authentic brand with film stories is challenging.

2. Great films require great talent.  I see poorly made films from organizations that do not inspire action or engage the audience...in fact, it’s hurting their brand.  Hire talented people to do the best job possible.

Alina: On the brighter side, can you share any really cool success stories- moments when vision, strategy, art, and enterprise combined seamlessly to form the best possible product or outcome?

Director Tom: Yes!  I am producing and directing two national films for the public education system throughout the country.  The films target high school teens to help change their attitude towards people with a medical condition.

After filming for two days with one of the “heroes” of the film, I discovered a week later that this person felt that appearing in the film was the most positive and life-turning experience so far in their life.  Wow!

Alina: Wow, indeed! So in the process of creating your product (i.e. a film), you actually something very positive in addition to this product- namely, a positive social outcome. A life-chaging experience for an individual. Let's chase this line of thought a bit. Have you created any communities of meaning during your tenure as a film entrepreneur?

Director Tom: I co-created Spiral Story with the CEO of DeSai Learning, Jatin DeSai.  DeSai Learning specializes in “creating living organizations.”

Spiral Story is an integrated marketing, communications and storytelling service for individuals and organizations seeking to enhance learning and achieving personal bests. We decided to create a new language to create a new culture of learning.  Spiral Story features “Spiral Zoomers” or leading-edge thinkers who challenge our current systems of thought…they inspire us to open our eyes and see the world from a different perspective.

Spiral Story is the continuation of my desire to integrate spirituality and business for organizations.   I am always seeking effective ways to communicate and inspire people to action.  Employees everywhere are overloaded with data so it’s time to bring storytelling and film stories to organizations!

Alina: This interview is making me smile from ear-to-ear. It's wonderful to hear how you combine work, play, art, spirituality, vision, and love, rather than shuttling between the compartmentalized sections of your life. On a less exciting note, any advice on good softwate? What software helps you most?

Director Tom: Authenticity!

Honestly…all things Apple.  I have production teams responsible for the shows; AVID, Final Cut Pro and After Effects are the tools we use.

Alina: Good to know. What is your greatest personal accomplishment?

Director Tom: “The Men Who Brought the Dawn” is the story about the two atomic missions to Japan.  It is a one-hour, world-wide documentary I co-produced and features the surviving airmen who flew those missions. A shorter version of the film featuring the segment on the Enola Gay flight is now part of the permanent collection in The Smithsonian Institution.

Alina: That's incredible! And I love the raw, historical, human nature of the topic. Any personal mantras, mottos, or inspirations that inspire you or keep you going?

Director Tom: Deepak Chopra has deeply influenced me over the past 10 years.  I love this quote from Deepak…I try to be mindful of its meaning every day:

“You and I are essentially infinite choice-makers. In every moment of our existence, we are in that field of all possibilities where we have access to an infinity of choices.”

Alina: What would you tell a young entrepreneur who is having a hard time finding an outlet for his vision? Can you provide a list?

Director Tom: Brand yourself!  Ask yourself:  “How am I differentiating myself from the hundreds of others who do the same thing I do?”  There are several great books on personal branding.  The one I enjoyed the most and recommend is “Pop: Stand Out in Any Crowd” by Sam Horn.

Sit silently.  Find the time to sit quietly to “create your day.”  Ask the tough questions very few seem to ask:  Why am I here?  What do I want?  Who am I serving?  You will get the answers you are seeking by asking.

Alina: Thank you so much for your time, creativity, generosity, and inspiration, Tom! If you've enjoyed this interview, here are a few more butterflies to chase, follow, or ponderize:

• Tom's blog
• Tom's blog at zaadz.com, where you can learn more about Jihari windows and other cool stuff.
• Tom's bookmarks, fascinating links and stories.
• Check out a few Stories In Motion.
  
• Learn more about Tom's business, Spiral Story, and its philosophy.
  
• Daniel Pink's Zoomer at Spiral Story.
• Join the Spiral Community at Spiral Story.
  

"A World of Good: Business, Business Schools, and Peace" is a report of the AACSB International Peace Through Commerce Task Force which delves into the role of businessmen and business schools in facilitating and creating the conditions for peace. A fascinating look at how business schools are engaging the increased drive for social entrepreneurship.

It's always exciting to read a story about how technology is shaping the lives of people around the world, from farmers in Alabama to fishermen in Pallipuram, India. Kevin Sullivan's story for The Washington Post reveals what I learned when visiting peasant villages in Romania-- the cell phone is "the poor man's phone". Why does this matter? Well, I'll let one of the fishermen explain:

Michael Strong began his discussion of peace through commerce with a phrase that stuck in my head- "entrepreneurs of happiness and well-being". While Michael was referring specifically to his experience as a charter school entrepreneur, he also encouraged all of us to consider our world-changing dreams in this context.

On that note, I thought it might be fun to explore a few more "entrepreneurs of happiness and well-being" that aim to improve how we feel about ourselves and the world. Let's call them optimism entrepreneurs for now.

Learning to Love You More (LTLYM) is a web site and a series of non-web presentations comprised of work made by the general public in response to assignments given by artists Miranda July and Harrell Fletcher. Patricipants accept an assignment, complete it by following the directions, send in ther required report (photo, text, video, etc.) and see their work posted online. LTLYM also awards grants to top submissions.

Like a recipe, meditation practice, or familiar song, the prescriptive nature of these assignments is intended to guide people towards their own experience. As an educational model which encourages people to draw on their own lives and intuitions as data, there is an enormous potential to broaden our horizons above and beyond our usual perspectives. How many ways we can learn from others! George provides his vision of the ideal government, while  Jeff Tuyay shares his picture of the sun (pictured above). In scrolling over all these different interpretations of the same "assignment" (i.e. "take a picture of the sun", for example), I am reminded of how much beauty and freedom there is to be gained from opening my mind, my eyes, and my life to the vision of others.

For more inspirations to do good and aim for happiness, don't miss the Five Minute Action Network or The Good News Network, where you can always find something positive to balance the over-reporting of negative news in our mainstream media.

Thanks to Darlene Charneco for info about LYLYM and Geraldine Weis-Corbley for appreciating Frank Zappa and creating the Good News Network.

At last weekend's Peace Through Commerce engagement experience, Mark Frazier and Soleman Idd of OpenWorld.com inspired me with wonderful stories about how globalization and entrepreneurship can make the world a better place. If you are feeling a little skeptical or pessimistic about the power of trade and commerce to assist the poor and oppressed, it might help to see a few stories. Thanks to Mark Frazier for sharing them.

For information on the Awakening Dormant Assets Toolkit, and how to provide further support, contact Openworld at 202.257.2574 or markf@openworld.com.

One of the greatest "counter-culture" movements to transform the face of the this century is D.I.Y. culture, which stands for Do-It-Yourself. D.I.Y. ethos underlies everything from self-publishing to home improvement. The thinking goes something like this:

Rather than rely on someone else to create what you want, why don't you create it yourself? Rather than expect the bureaucrats in Congress to fix things, why don't you get together a team and try to fix them yourself, since you probably have a better idea of what can be done? Rather than wait for a publisher to appreciate your awesome gardening book, why not publish it yourself? After all, your interests are often not the same.

The politician wants to get re-elected; you want to make the world a better place. The publisher wants to publish a book that will bring back big money; you want to share your gardening knowledge with a few people and make enough money to keep writing. The movie studio wants a blockbuster; you want to make touching, indelible movies based on your values. The public school superintendent wants to please the board; you want your child to gain a life-long love of learning and to fire his intellectual curiosity. And guess what? You can.

Back to D.I.Y. for a minute. Interestingly enough, D.I.Y. was first mainstreamed as a philosophy of action by the early anarchist punk groups, many of whom were involved in the Vietnam war protests and felt strongly about working with recording companies or corporations who did not reflect their values.

A little history from the folks at AllExperts wiki:

Many anarcho-punk bands, especially at the local level of unsigned groups, have taken on what is known as a "DIY" ethic: that is, Doing It Yourself; indeed, a popular Anarcho-punk slogan reads "DIY not EMI", a reference to a conscious rejection of the major record company of that name. Many anarcho-punk bands were showcased on the Bullshit Detector series of LPs released by Crass Records and Resistance Productions Records between 1980 and 1994. There is an argument that despite promoting an anti-capitalistCassette Culture scene. In this way an attempt was made to bypass the traditional recording and distribution routes, with material often being made available in exchange for "a blank tape plus self-addressed envelope". The anarcho-punk movement also had its own network of fanzines (sometimes called punk-zines) which disseminated news, ideas and artwork from the scene. Again, these were usually very much 'DIY' affairs, tending to be produced in runs of hundreds (at most) rather than thousands (although there were exceptions, such as ideology, these were commodities sold in the market place and thus were inherently contradictory. It is however difficult to see how such groups could otherwise make their music and ideas available, although some anarcho-punk performers were also a part of the Toxic Graffiti), printed on photocopiers or duplicator machines, and distributed by hand at punk gigs.

The punk groups were reacting to the extreme concentration of the recording industry--  before the 1990's, it was extremely difficult for non-mainstream musicians to produce, distribute, or sell an album. With the creative use of the internet and social networks adopted by the indie music movement in the early 1990's, D.I.Y. culture became a matter of course for music artists.

Producing an indie album is now cheaper and faster than getting a music contract from a major record company. Artists also have more freedom to experiment, collaborate, and push the creative envelope. Tons of really cool individuals and teams continue to create this musically-rich and exciting market landscape, including musical artists, bloggers, writers, web designers, corporations, and creative entrepreneurs, to name a few. On that note, a few of the stories that brighten my DIY days:

• Unsigned Music Magazine allows artists to celebrate their independent status while tapping into a network that helps connect them to indie musicians and mentors, the best way to an album.
• DIY Search Engine allows the indie-oriented to search DIY cultures for anything from clothing to cars.
  
• DIY Audio, billed as "projects for the fanatics by the fanatics".
  
• MySpace.com, which gives even the worst local bands a fan base. And MySpace has done wonders for distribution networks and publicity in the music industry.
• Pitchfork Media started as Ryan Scheiber's garage enterprise after high school graduation. It now stands as a sign-post on the indie music scene. Read the wiki version of this story-- it's amazing.

   
I could keep going, but I'm running out of time and I need to get back to making my wedding invitations. My man and I are doing it ourselves from twine and paper bags and stamps and metal rings. Because we can.