Lists. Lists. Lists. It’s that time of year and we’re not scared to contribute to the pool. For in many ways, in a world with an (over)abundance of accessible information, year-end-lists seem to an organized space for reflection. Kind of an… “Oh yeah, a lot has happened.” The good. The bad. The absurd. Each year, the Rule29 team complies a list of memorable moments via our team. Here is 2011′s.

Top 29 of 2011 (in no particular order)

1. Our (former) governor Blog-o gets sentenced to 14 years in prison.
2. Natural disasters devastate. Tsunami. Tornados. Earthquakes.
3. Kate Middleton allows young girls everywhere to continue dreaming.
4. Wall Street. Occupied.
5. Osama. Done. Obama. Up.
6. The world said goodbye to Steve Jobs.
7. The world didn’t end.
8. The world meets Siri.
9. Chicago gets Snowpocalypse’d.
10. We said goodbye to the Space Shuttle(s) (and @timmit watches at STS-133 – watch video).
11. R29 plays with wood type (at Hamilton).
12.  Justin Bieber cuts his hair.
13. Charlie Sheen wins. Popular culture loses.
14. Egypt revolts. Facebook/Twitter actually serve a purpose.
15.  John Galliano makes anti Semitic statements. Fired as head designer by Christian Dior
16.  We all get Life Kerned.
17. Terrance Malick comes out of hiding and graces us with “Tree of Life.”
18. R29 introduces GIVE. Stories Matter. Matters to You.
19. Cloud storage (finally) gets noticed.
20. R29 helps out at Turning Point with Grip & Faust.
21. Libya revolts. Gaddafi ousted.
22. Justin speaks at TEDx.
23. Alexander McQueens introduces us to “Savage Beauty” at the Met.
24.  Arcade Fire wins the Grammy’s. Indie fans stunned. Katy Perry fans ask “Arcade who?”
25.  Netflix believes themselves to be invisible. Gets put in their place.
26.  Joe Patterno exits Penn State. (Some) college fans realize there are more important things than football.
27.  AIGA Pivot. R29 helps design the “Perfect Pair“. For kicks.
28. Science progresses. Discovery of evidence of the Higgs Boson at CERN. Discovery of particles faster than the speed of light.
29.  Steve Buscemeyes.

What is on your list?

I’ll admit it…I’m a sucker for the end of the year. I love the concept of one thing ending and something fresh starting right around the corner. I make a list of things every year that I’m looking to change, be purposeful about, etc. And for the most part, I’m not too bad at following through on them. I think in life we all need to step out, make a change, pursue that dream, make a difference.

As most of you know, Rule29 tries to make some level of difference by being purposeful with our time and our impact – Africa, Story Telling, and  What Matters, to name a few. We strive to do our part and explore ways to pursue wonder and be aware. I hope, as a leader at Rule29 and a fellow creative, this is something that is not only making a difference outside our walls, but inside as well. To be transparent, though, in a lot of ways it’s easier to make changes at work. It’s just something we have built in to our day to day. But there are still some areas I feel I’m lacking… Read the rest of the entry >

We are big TED and TEDx fans at Rule29. And we are excited to share Justin’s first TEDx talk – See Different, Do Different. As people who wonder, we are built to see the world differently than most. It’s one of our unique, innovative traits. We all say we want to be a part of changing the world, but how do you actually accomplish this? Watch his TEDx Naperville talk and the other great speakers too.

There is a reason they call it Thanksgiving. It’s not about Turkey. It’s not about football. And it’s not about Black Friday Eve. Simply put, it’s about being thankful. And while the idea might seemed played, or even a bit cliche’ this time of year, there is something about the creating space to be thankful. To thank.

Historically, Thanksgiving is tied to the harvest. Our lives look different today. Our harvest is different.

If you read our previous post, you’ll know that the Rule29 team has been attempting to instill space to reflect on the things that matter. We’ve done this here. And we’ve decided to share a few below. All in all, we’d like to thank YOU for being a part of our lives, whether loosely, or closely. And for those who are on the closer side… can you guess who is thankful for what?

From Andy, Bob, Dawn, Justin, Kara (The Cheech), Katrina, Kerri, Sarah, Susan, and Tim (not in this order):

Read the rest of the entry >

What matters to you?

I’ve noticed that we ask this question to other people a lot around here. Whether it’s our clients, friends or family members, we are really interested in what matters to others. It means something to us, helps us to understand and live in harmony with each other. Why is it then, that we ask ourselves this question so infrequently?

In the spirit of the season, we would like to change that. So we are posing this question to ourselves and to you.

What matters to you?

We encourage you to take some time to stop and really wonder about it. Don’t be intimidated.  Start small. What matters to you today? Is it getting to work on time? Making sure you get through your to do list? Spending a couple quality hours with your family tonight?

Recently we created a space to collect the things that matter to us. It’s a site that holds the words and images that represent what is important to us (take a peek here). We’d love for you to take a look and if you’d like, take those ideas you’ve come up with and add to this collection of things that matter (you can also submit via the #matterstoyou hash-tag on Twitter).

So, try to set aside a moment to pause and consider what matters to you. It could be what’s in front of you right now.

Join us in sharing what matters to you!