The Refinement ClubMating Ideas

Why we do what we do

WHAT IS THE REFINEMENT CLUB

The Refinement ClubMating Ideas

GRO LARSSON & JOHANNES RUMMELHOFFWe both attended the Art Direction program at Westerdals School of Communication from 2006 -2009. At the end of this period we started working on some very big and very secret ideas.

WHO WE ARE

The Refinement ClubMating Ideas

A change of attitudeGro went to Hyper Island in Stockholm after Westerdals, and came back with some new thoughts. Meeting Johannes over a coffee and talking about how location based services, like Gowalla and Foursquare, could be better sparked a plan. We agreed that there were a lot of things we could make better, and that this called for a club. The Refinement Club.

2010

“Ideas are like rabbits. You get a couple, learn how to handle them, and pretty soon you have a dozen.”

- John Steinbeck

The Refinement ClubMating Ideas

Differing from our plans at Westerdals, we wanted to share our new ideas. We both had discovered that keeping ideas secret didn’t get you or your concepts anywhere. Neither would nursing just one idea forever either. So we decided on some rules for our club. Every Wednesday we would meet and work on a new concept, and the next Wednesday we would post it on our tumblr: therefinementclub.tumblr.com

SHARINGNo more secret plans

The Refinement ClubMating Ideas

In the beginning there were plenty of services, products and aspects of life we had the need to improve. That was what we did, we made dinner, solved problems and shared them every Wednesday. It was like going to the gym, but for the brain.

IN THE BEGINNINGCreative overflow

The Refinement ClubMating Ideas

NEXT PHASENo more problems?After approximately 6 months of blissful productivity, we started to run out of problems. It became harder, but we kept at it. At the same time we saw that the point of what we were doing wasn’t the concepts we came up with or that we solved problems, but the intensity with which we did it. We sat down to create something new every week, and we shared all our ideas with no reservations.

The Refinement ClubMating Ideas

CHANGE OF FOCUSMantra timeSo then we changed our focus more towards the sharing, towards exploring and facilitating ideas. We started thinking about the possibility of creating an idea community and our mantra became “Let ideas meet and mate”.

“If you have an apple and I have an apple and we exchange these apples then you and I will still each have one apple. But if you have an idea and I have an idea and we exchange these ideas, then each of us will have two ideas.”

- George Bernard Shaw

The Refinement ClubMating Ideas

Ideas become better when they have more mothers and fathers. Ideas that are shared sow seeds to other ideas and creates bigger, better and more unexpected concepts.

THE PHILOSOPHY& mission

The Refinement ClubMating Ideas

Sharing also helps you park ideas you carry around, and makes room for new and better ideas.

KILLING DARLINGSA technique

“The problem is never how to get new, innovative thoughts into your mind, but how to get old ones out.”

- Dee Hock

The Refinement ClubMating Ideas

We believe that money and production issues should be kept out of the creative process. Ideas that aren’t realized are not worthless, ideas that are not shared are worthless. The possibilities are endless if they are. One idea can become a thousand new ones.

KEEP REALITY OUTRestrictions

“Money never starts an idea. It is always the idea that starts the money.”  

- Owen Laughlin

The Refinement ClubMating Ideas

TO DISCOVER THE UNEXPECTED YOU

NEED TO COMBINE THE UNLIKELY. LIKE

DIFFERENT PEOPLE.

The Refinement ClubMating Ideas

‣ therefinementclub.com Sharing ideas

‣ facebook.com/therefinementclub Invite to discussion

‣ @johannesr & @rexcreation Ask for input

‣ Wednesday meetings Guests are welcome

‣ Pitch Nights Mass-refinements every 3 months

THE PRESENT

The Refinement ClubMating Ideas

We call our Pitch Nights “Pølser, Pils & Pitch”. It translates to Beer, Sausages & Pitch. It got that name because we like beer and sausages, and “pitch” fits nicely in with those words. We wanted to gather interesting people to talk about interesting things, and beer and food is a nice way to lure people to join us.

In the beginning the thought was that people would pitch their ideas, get input and meet people they could collaborate with.

Pitch NightFrom pitching to mass-refining

The Refinement ClubMating Ideas

Instead we start with an idea, or a problem, and work in plenum and groups to come up with several different ideas which we then share. Up until now we have arranged two Pitch Nights where we have worked on “How to use technology to encourage altruistic actions?” and “What comes after online dating?”

Next time we will work with “How to activize and leverage the resources of senior citizens?”.

Pitch NightFrom pitching to mass-refining

The Refinement ClubMating Ideas

‣ Brings people with different backgrounds and interests together

‣ Creates a breeding ground for ideas‣ Is a place where thoughts and

concepts can get together in an informal but controlled setting.

Results can freely be built upon and be used by anyone

PITCH NIGHT:

The Refinement ClubMating Ideas

‣ Benedikte Kluge Project Manager

‣ Stig Marlon Weston CYAN: studio

‣ Henrik Gowers Lindal CYAN: studio

PITCH NIGHT PEOPLE:

The Refinement ClubMating Ideas

A new idea from contributors was presented each day in the advent period of 2010

THE CHRISTMAS CALENDARInvolving

The Refinement ClubMating Ideas

A way for people to share their ideas/ concepts with The Refinement Club.

FEATURE FRIDAYInvolving

The Refinement ClubMating Ideas

OUR VISION IS TO CREATE A COMMUNITY THAT ACTS AS A

COLLECTIVE NOTEBOOK WHERE AS MANY AS POSSIBLE OPENLY

CAN SHARE THEIR IDEAS & HELP EACH OTHER DEVELOP

THEM FURTHER

The Refinement ClubMating Ideas

GET IN TOUCH ON FACEBOOKfacebook.com/TheRefinementClub