I started life as a designer, then the internet happened and I fell in love with technology. Now I’m a creative director/strategy guy working with brands and startups.
I love the idea of bio-leadership. The idea of running businesses alongside and within nature (as opposed to outside or in parallel to it)
I don’t live in a city. I used to live in London for 25 years but moved to a tiny village in the Somerset countryside 2 years ago. Home for me is rolling fields, nature, peace, quiet, dog-walks and the village pub. Breakfast is usually eggs.
I can take you to a great place to swim in the river, or even better, paddleboard to a secret pub.
The key moments or breakthroughs that have defined my life journey so far is being able to bridge the gap between brands and technology, this has been a recurring theme for me. As well as my family. They have inspired me to make, create, provide, survive, thrive.
When I think about my visions for the future… Writing this during the Coronavirus lockdown means my dreams for the future are very simple. A “new normal”, where work is more remote, more creative, more sensitive to the planet.
Any entrepreneur experiences failures, it’s part of the journey. It’s not always instantly clear how a failure or hardship inspires or leads to some positive outcome somewhere, somehow – but it always does. In terms of dealing with challenging situations, I have developed a very high pain threshold, a resilience, a belief that the good will out, eventually.
I work from home, surrounded by nature, with the occasional trip to a city (usually London, sometimes further.) My motivation comes from a love of design and creativity and a desire to contribute to culture and change somehow. Challenges to overcome include: our many distractions, a lack of focus and the paradox of choice. What keeps me going? Coffee, music, optimism!
When it comes to climate change we all obviously care deeply. But as an individual it’s challenging to know how to act and where to put our creative energy. I believe creativity and design are the answers. Human ingenuity got us into this mess – and human ingenuity will get us out of it too. So my ask to the Sense Network would be: we all need to ensure we’re part of the solution (with our work, our behaviour) otherwise we’re part of the problem.
If you want to meet people like Tom, participate in paid brand projects & contribute to creative activities you can join The Sense Network.