Noted. Volume 46

When Brands Derail

When brands go off course, it's usually not because of one circumstance that can be pinpointed. Instead, it's a slippery slope of seemingly minor decisions and inconsequential actions. A cranky reply here, an apathetic "good enough" there -- all of these add up over time.

The math associated is where it turns unfair, because instead of adding up one by one, it functions like compound interest. Out of nowhere a major, brand-threatening problem appears, but in reality it was there all along, growing exponentially larger under an unfocused eye.

The converse is true as well: seemingly minor decisions and inconsequential actions -- done well, done right -- multiply quickly. The math here is the same, but this time it's what your competition calls your "lucky break."

Splendid Sundays Volume 134

A handful of splendid finds from around the worldwide web:

*How did poetry become an essential part of American wedding ceremonies? [Poetry Foundation]

*UNICEF asks people to stop 'liking' things on Facebook and to send money as a show of real support. [Humanosphere]

*Can Instagram finally make a profit with its new tag-and-search feature? [The Atlantic]

*Beka Rendell and Laura Novak have teamed up to create Photopop Creative.

Form + Function:
*The Department of Homeland Security now requires employers to use the new I-9 form.
*My employee told me they're transgender . . . now what?

Recent wedding job postings:
Invitation Artist at Momental Designs (Wyoming, PA)
Assistant Wedding Planner for a show on a major cable network (Television Opportunity)
Advertising Account Executive at Oh-Brides (Atlanta, GA)
Intern at Tim Duncan Events (Atlanta, GA)
List an opening for a wedding-related job or internship

Noted. Volume 45

Relax, It's Just Another Generation

By now you've probably seen this week's cover of Time Magazine focused on the millennial generation, with a less than flattering name for them:

Hating on the generation coming of age is nothing new. Here's Time magazine's cover from July 1990 describing Gen X as having "trouble making decisions ... They have few heroes, no anthems, no style to call their own. They crave entertainment, but their attention span is as short as one zap of a TV dial. They hate yuppies, hippies and druggies. They postpone marriage because they dread divorce." Hmmm. Does that last sentence sound familiar?

Time's take on Boomers in a June 1968 issue isn't any less negative, with a cover story pronouncing them, "troubled and troublesome ... with a sober, even tragic view of life."

Moral of the story: every generation gets a bad rap from the ones preceding it. All of them turn out okay.