cheries in the bowl

sialkot wisdom

2006-08-13T10:28:00.000-07:00

all factories in sialkot are strictly anti-child labour.
there are no children, no tiny hands-
every gate has a huge sign clearly stating-
no child labour

pick the right cherry!

2006-07-19T03:03:00.000-07:00

Very happening days. We get in to work. Touch base. And get cracking. Some days we have no idea where the time went. The hours fly by and we don’t even think to stop to eat.
Its heady, this feeling of being so engrossed in what you are doing.
Different clients have different work styles.
The one constant in all our present clients is that they are people we not only really get a kick out of working with… but they are people we really respect.
How cool is that!?
To get to deal with people you genuinely like! So no cringing before any meetings; no putting phone on silent in case that particular nutcase will call again to confirm something that has been finalized 6 times already (you know who you are=D); no going home all crabby and snapping at anyone who dares to cross your path within the first 15 minutes of your arrival.
Everyone deserves to have a job that they love.
You should be able to wake in the morning and be happy, excited, curious about all that might come your way for most of your waking hours.
If that’s not the case, its time to examine choices.

the future looks good!

2006-07-18T02:14:00.000-07:00

I’m on a high!
In the past month, we have acquired two new clients and said no to two others =D
You just know if its going to work….and when its not.
So why waste time, effort, expertise, passion, and lots of valuable waking hours on a partner who doesn’t appreciate it?
This applies to all relationships … personal AND professional.
As we have learnt the hard way :)

bruised cherries

2006-06-05T02:01:00.000-07:00

so here's what we are up to- finding a new bowl to move into.
and here's what we have been going through-

we contacted some property dealers. Fizz christened them Noproblemmadam and Verygoodmadam. It was how they spoke, rubbing their hands and smiling-

we want a first-or second floor place- but independent.
Noproblemmadam

No landlord trouble- Separate entrance.
Verygoodmadam

Must have a terrace or at least a balcony.
Noproblemmadam

Ideally with some trees around the house.
Verygoodmadam

In the fist few days they showed us some two dozen houses-and not one came close to pulling us in. They began to seem increasingly like freelance tricksters winging their way as estate agents. we would end up at houses comprehensively locked, and they would fall to quarelling with each other in snappy punjabi.

I told you to speak to him and organize the key
if i did everything what would you do? be the tour guid of the taj mahal?

Then they would both turn to Fizz and rub their hands and smile...
Noproblemmadam, we will show you much better house.

The next one would be a servant's quarter; the next a huge flat four times our budget, and the next would have neither a terrace nor a balcony; and the next would have a shrieking harridan for a landlady. Each time they would round on each other in high-pitched punjabi.

We would wait till they argued-when they were done they would again turn to Fizz, beaming, rubbing their hands.
Noproblemmadam. Verygoodmadam. We will show you much better place.
excerpt from the alchemy of desire

replace the house with an office- and the 2 punjabis with memons/sindhis/pathan, the terrace with 2 bathrooms, and its our story-

conversations of the retarded kind-

2006-06-01T01:57:00.000-07:00

client- hii- you guys did a logo for us, a year ago, and we need the files on a cd-

me- we sent them across on a cd 3 months ago-

client- yes well i have just joined, and there is no record of a cd from you-

me- well we sent one last year and we sent one this year

client- actually the thing is we decided we didnt like the font used in the logo, so we thought we would change it to century gothic-

me- really now?

client- yes i am looking at the logo now, and this is not very corporate looking- was this ever approved?

me- uhhh yesss, your board reviewed it and approved it and got cards printed

client- i dont think so, but anyway lets forget that, you need to change the font for us

me- i dont need to do anything, there is a thought process behind the logo and a font is used for a reason.

client- well we are your client and you have to listen to your client's requirements

me- your requirements were a logo and we understood that

client- well we paid you for it and you have to change the font-

me- yes you paid us for it, and we delivered what you paid for- if you need more work done, pls send us a request, we will send across an estimate for what it will cost you

client- can we make this conversation a little more cordial you are not being very understanding-

me- like i said, if you agree to the costs, we will be happy to do this for you

client- forget it (slams phone)

to any prospective clients listening- esp ones who like to threaten, hiding behind their MDs, CEOs, CEs etc- we are CEOs in our own company, we may not be men, we may not be balding, we may not have 3 yes men attached to us, but we are still owners/CEOs of our company and that means we dont get scared by your MDs, or CEOs or you- Talk to us as equals or not at all. Accept that we know what we are saying or dont work with us-

and seriously- "MD sahab needs to see you urgently, NOW, pls come over now" doesnt really scare us or send us scuttling like rabits-

you might need to change your tactics

love you

2006-02-14T00:09:00.000-08:00

it all started a month ago when costa asked us to design a few posters for the month of love- with my sketchiness at its peak, i drew & illustrated to my heart's content. With no corporate client to the non-seriousness of the artwork, it was pure pleasure all the way- this is one of them- enjoy!

happy valentine's day mon cheries

2006-02-11T22:00:00.000-08:00

radical careering

2006-02-10T09:29:00.000-08:00

training

nakho!

2006-02-03T02:17:00.000-08:00

So frustrating to realize your own limitations in terms of control-when someone keeps pointing out great design work, indirectly asking why cant we do something like this-and when you want to scream so loudly that you scare yourself, because of course you know you can do something like this-but you want to lash out against the injustice of having to prove yourself or convince a client that honest to god, cross my heart hope to die you need simplicity in your design, you don’t need a gola ganda of colours running riot on the page, you can seriously do without bevel emboss and my personal detestable best- a gradient. When they don’t have faith, when they don’t have any belief system regarding design, when they are not even in the business to maintain the sanctity of design, then why why why WHY do they pretend? Why cant they understand their own sense of mediocrity and realize that though they can appreciate great design if some established company has done it, they CANNOT visualize something similar for themselves, because they are scared, balls-less yes-mans without even a remote sense of aesthetic value-and they never will have it? Why cant they then let us tell them what the right design for them is? Why must they interfere in every step and then at the end pick up their wimpy finger and point it at someone else’s design asking why cant we be like that? I ‘ll tell you why- because you don’t deserve to be like them-you are not the right breed-you don’t have the brains, you don’t possess will power to fight for a design, you don’t know what the hell its all about, and you absolutely wouldn’t know brilliance if it hit you in the face-so why don’t you go to the people who will nurture your indecision, will indulge your vision for your design (that’s a laugh) and who will give you exactly what you need-12 colours, flashers, gradients, type with shadow, watermark of the logo, comic sans, an image of a constipated woman with a smile-or all of the above.

anxiety

2006-02-02T07:20:00.000-08:00

you think that if YOU leave nothing will go on properly, no work will be accomplished, and everything will fall to pieces- you convince yourself you absolutely cant leave the work, so much to be done, no one else to handle it-fool yourself into giving yourself so much importance that its almost like you are the centre of the universe-

and then you go away-everything is standing, still-clients are interacting with your chosen executives-hard to believe as it may be, invoices are being made, cheques are being followed up on, work is progressing, slowly & steadily-and you suddenly feel like you had a baby and it got taken away-you have separation anxiety but with timid steps you learn to explore this new idea, feel the freedom, and you allow the thought to take root-you can let go.

splashing about

2005-12-28T01:48:00.000-08:00

Ever since The Cherry Bowl came into existence its been pretty much smooth sailing with regards to our moving forward.
Small hitches arise, stupid arguments that at times are more the result of egos clashing or hormonal highs and lows than actual disagreement over moral grounds, creative discord, aesthetic preferences etc.
But Mariam and I managed to re-emerge from every squabble with a greater knowledge of not only each other but our own selves too.
We are taking the business forward. I believe the term is “expanding”. I don’t like that particular term :) but reasons why have nothing to do with why I am writing this particular blog…
I just realized its been three paragraphs of very boring words without actually getting to the point. If this were being graded I’d be in serious trouble.
However, this incoherent rambling of words actually describes my state of feeling very lost at the moment.
We thought we knew what made a boss “good”.
We always try to share with our associates what’s in our mind. Our plans for the future and also for them…
We encourage them to constantly come up with new frontiers for The Cherry Bowl to delve in.
We reward them in ways we always felt our bosses should have.
We have always wanted them to feel the same high about life.
But it doesn’t seem to be happening…
What could be wrong?
I seriously don’t know.
Am I just aiming too high?
I’m sure I’ll come to some sort of conclusion in a few days. Have no leads yet tho…

2005-10-25T02:48:00.000-07:00

So many changes.
So many unknown territories ventured.
So many of them conquered.
And so many more to go!
I love the fact that work excites us.
No dream is impossible.
Thank you god. Thank you parents. Thank you friends.
Can’t say it enough. And definitely don’t say it enough :)
We all have it in us to become casualties of a disaster called LIFE. But if you take that disaster and laugh in the face of all that it throws your way and continue living with true hope… there is nothing stopping you!
The Cherry Bowl doesn’t want to ever be contained in any way. We want it to be an avenue for all people who want to explore their own potential and express their viewpoints.
Our next attempts should be towards providing a forum for like-minded and positive people to meet and grow. We can take our country places.
Lets share dreams, beliefs and doubts too. It’ll help get us focused.
Any takers?

2005-10-20T04:22:00.000-07:00

award-winning report

the best of times, the worst of times

2005-10-16T04:27:00.000-07:00

In good times, so often we discuss what our clients mean to us, how we feel about them, whether we want to continue working for them, what do we get out of them, and most importantly do we like them?

In bad times, the hour of discussion is up. It’s crunch time. The clients who you want to work extra for, the clients who convince you they are the right choice, are the ones who show you how human they are and how strongly they feel for the relief effort.

Those are the ones you like, and those are the ones you vow to work harder for.

Mariam

lets start giving-how & where.

2005-10-09T03:50:00.000-07:00

Places to give money/non-perishable items.

PAF museum, Karsaz rd-Initiative taken by Fakhr-e-Alam. Already people have proved their generosity by giving enough to fill 12 C-130s. VOLUNTEERS needed here.

Agha's-A relief fund stall has been set up.

Hassan Sq-A relief fund stall has been set up.

Geo Mir Khalil-ur-rehman foundation-rom 2pm to 4 pm sunday geo is hosting a telethon to collect donations. You can also deposit money in UBL account no. 01021598-5

Will post more places as i know.

there are signs everywhere

2005-10-06T09:50:00.000-07:00

sometimes, you are looking for a sign and unintentionally but very magically you come across it.
As a company we have been considering a lot of options and mostly its been a case of slight hesitancy on my part and lets-go-for-it approach on amna's part. even this reminds me of why we work well together. we dont both go take a plunge off the highest cliff, and neither do both of us stay hidden in the darkest recesses of a cave-we take a few steps forward, i pull her back one step then we re evaluate and then move forward again.

today in my thinking, i was looking out for inspiration and i came across this quote:

"If we listened to our intellect we'd never have a love affair, we'd never have a friendship, we'd never go into business, because we'd be cynical. Well that's just nonsense! You've got to jump off the cliff all the time and build wings on the way down." ~Ray Bradbury

i love it.

the universe called out to me and i am listening.

Mariam

The making of a relationship

2005-09-30T01:45:00.000-07:00

All partnerships have ups and downs. See bad times and good. Having gone thru a couple of the real downers and emerging triumphant as a team is what contributes to the faith one has in that particular relationship.
It was great when i came to the realisation that Mariam and I are two individuals who celebrate the differences in our personalities ... at times more than the characteristics we share.
We feel the subtle differences in points-of-views always adds value to our endeavours.
Relationships don't end. I believe that. Even if interaction between two parties ceases. the experiences they have shared remain. they are reflected in all future actions of both parties so how can we ever say anything is "over".
"this too shall pass" ? does it ever just pass? isn't that just wishful thinking? or am i the eternal pessimist?
aren't any and all hitches red flags? ok maybe not red ones :)
No misunderstanding in any relationship ceases to exist unless brought to a specific conclusion.
Should a company have ground rules in this regard?
Would anyone want to...or even be able to...work for someone they just don't see eye-to-eye with?
Im assuming the colective answer here would be a "no".
Then why do we persist on maintaining relationships by sweeping issues under the rug? Personal and professional.
As the years pass i seem to be becoming less of a fan of grey-areas. There's a black and a white. You can choose to be either/or and demand that your beliefs be respected.
But you cannot NOT choose.

eye to eye, ear, brain, heart.

2005-09-29T08:32:00.000-07:00

the most important thing to remember in a disagreement is that the disagreement ends right there-that there are a million other things you do agree on, and thats why it works so well. its just about taking a second to imagine the great working chemistry which exists-putting that moment in perspective.

its a moment-this too shall pass.

2005-09-19T11:12:00.000-07:00

amna & i at the costa launch-

2005-09-18T15:15:00.000-07:00

enjoying our first coffee & muffin

a day left to blast off

2005-09-18T03:13:00.000-07:00

One day to go to the Costa Coffee launch. Some butterflies, some tensions. Saturday saw us at work packing 200 giveaway bags, taking care of minor details-which always have the potential to turn into major catastrophes-talking incessantly to the printer, and making trips to purchase mundane things like scissors, ribbons, hand soap.

The site looks gorgeous with its canopies, and every time I visit it, I feel a little burst of pleasure at the bigger picture. The wide range of emotions my friends and I have experienced at espresso have made us a huge believer in the powers of lets-go-for-coffee, and in the magic of sharing-this has made me a die-hard fan of the developing coffee culture. The idea of another such place which would witness the real life stories of so many people was powerful to say the least.

This is one the major reasons we are extremely excited about working for Costa. Amna and I keep discussing how our choices have an indirect impact on where we want our city/country to be. We can never just take on work without considering the long-term repercussions of our involvement. I always find it amazing how agencies can just advertise for their clients and not care or think of the kind of social & moral values they are perpetuating. The clichéd fair & lovely advertising, the horrendous anne french nice-girls-don’t-shave philosophy, & even the thoughtless promotion of big bigger biggest billoards. All this seems to be fair game if your client requires it.

The positive thing though is that I know this is NOT the norm anymore. (well nearly not) The reason I can say this with great vehemence is that my fellow designers & friends all agree with me, and in their work follow the same ideology, and if we can convert a small percentage of people then we are adding to our growing army of responsible, committed, thinking, creative individuals.

its great to be choosy.

2005-09-16T15:57:00.000-07:00

It’s an assumed fact that clients get to choose the designer/design house they want to work with. The designer must present himself & his work and be judged by the client-its almost like speed dating, you have 10 minutes to say something which will catch their attention and then they move onto another candidate. How many times have we as designers come out of such an experience feeling just a little irritated with ourselves? Whether we admit it or not, anyone judging us negatively has an impact on our self-worth. Instead of putting ourselves out there to be critically analysed, I say lets scrutinize the client, lets look at his likes & dislikes, lets see if there is any chemistry and then decide whether we want to work with him or not.

With every new relationship we develop with a client, we, as the cherry bowl, realize more and more how essential it is for us to like the person we work with. When we find ourselves hitting it off with someone-developing a rapport-when we can feel the energy zinging, when a meeting doesn’t drain us, but in fact revives us, when we find ourselves being able to imagine a relationship without work, that is when we know we want to work with this certain someone. It is not as simple as i-have-work-i-can-give-you-money-you-must-feel-honoured-to-work-for-me. It is as complex as i-need-to-like-you-you-need-to-connect-with-me-we-need-to-communicate.

If you ever feel that a work relationship is a marriage of convenience, get out of it and don’t look back, hide the evidence-i can guarantee you will thank yourself later. Even now when I think back to my brief stint at a local advertising agency, I get depressed. Even now I have days when I look around at my work place and I get a momentary high at how amazing it all is. Those days at the agency, going to a meeting meant sitting through it digging your nails into your palms, listening to pompous men arguing about absolutely nothing, trying to sound important and all that you could hear would be DUH, I am a client, I am important, I am in a meeting, & DUH I am an agency head, I am more important, I am in a meeting. It was a game between false egos, inflated self-importance and lack of knowledge.

These days meetings are about minds, equals sitting together to reach conclusions, each respecting the other for his/her area of expertise. Being able to say No I am sorry I don’t agree, and then getting the blessed pause where you know the client is waiting to hear why you don’t agree, prepared to be converted, is a high a million times greater than a budget of a million rupees to be spent on 10 tv commercials for a telecommunications service provider.

I guess what I am trying to say is, if I don’t like you, if I cant imagine having a conversation with you, if you are not someone who will add value to my experience as a designer then I guess you can move on to the next person in line-I will keep my creativity for someone who deserves it.

Mariam

the juice

2005-09-13T08:56:00.000-07:00

the cheries are ready to rock and roll!

this is the un-official (official is too serious) journal for all the ramblings, highs & lows of a design house called The Cherry Bowl. 2 fun fearless females-we dont shy away from seeming too womanly-ready to take on the world.

keep reading for more succulent writing, sometimes aggressive, sometimes maudlin, always full of ooomph & zsa zsa zu (our favourite word)

there are 2 of us-mariam (creative director) and amna (corporate director)

till the next glass of juice-ciao.