naomiclarissa

[naomiclarissa]

[MUSIC] #OnRepeat - September Issue

After a few tech issues last month, I am proud to present the first official #OnRepeat - September issue. The feel of the songs below seem to fit the 'goodbye summer, hello autumn' mood that's starting to creep in right now. So overall, just a mellow and chilled vibe to get us started.

1. FKA Twigs - Two weeks (Video)

Artistically, love this girl. Both musically and visually everything she does is a little different and the video above displays exactly that.

3. The Code - 1|11 (Mixtape)

Another crazy-creative sound from the UK here. Absolutely loving the look and feel of this 11 track mixtape. I've included the song 'Her' below but do check out the mixtape on SoundCloud. Honestly, one to watch: https://soundcloud.com/thecxde

2. Sinead Harnett - No other way (feat. Snakehips)

More upbeat, but still a chilled vibe. The mellow vocals on this one are perfect to just kick back to.

3. Chance The Rapper & The Social Experiment - Wonderful Everyday

I actually heard this one on Zane Lowe's Radio 1 show in July and loved it. More than anything, love the sentiment, beautiful lyrics, simple message. You may have to give it until 1:50 for when it picks up a little. But again just an uplifting track.

4. Ms Lauryn Hill - Black Rage

I guess she's back again and of course touching on political and racial issues in the media, namely the US police killing of a young Micheal Brown in Ferguson, St Louis. Apparently she's performed this song for years in concerts but felt it fitting to release this earlier recording. I like the musical reference to The Sound of Music's 'My Favourite Things' originally performed by Julie Andrews. But it actually gives it quite a 'chilling' feel when juxtaposed against the cultural setting of the song.

That's it for September's #OnRepeat. Have a listen, share your thoughts in the comments box below, and of course tell me what you'll have on repeat this month. If you want to contribute to October's issue drop me a line in the 'Ask' tab at the top of the blog.

-Nx

[naomiclarissa]

[BRANDING] A Strategic Point Of View

Every 4 weeks I'll be sharing a blog post that is more specific to the world of brand strategy, marketing and business. I particularly have an interest in luxury, aspirational lifestyle and entertainment brands, so through case studies and thought-pieces I'll be taking a deeper look into these areas in an attempt to better understand, share and develop a point of view around the ideas and thought pieces surrounding these particular industries.

So the first [BRANDING] post on 31 August... excited to share my insights!

For the meantime, take a look at this post I'd written a few years back about product differentiation within the luxury category: [CASE STUDY] Dom Pérignon Vs Piper-Heidsieck

Nx

[naomiclarissa]

[MUSIC] This is #OnRepeat

Whether brand new or oldies, some songs are a perfect soundtrack to the moment. At the start of each month, I’ll be sharing a playlist of some of the tracks that I’ll have on repeat during that month.

The first monthly instalment of must-listens curated by me, kicks off next week for August. In the meantime, I’ve thrown together this 25-track playlist from my personal list of tracks I've had on repeat this past year. As you’ll hear it’s been a real mix of pop, house, hiphop/rnb and rock.

I love a mix of artists and musical styles, so each month it may just be a few random tracks picked from a range of genres; or a more carefully curated playlist, but really depends on what’s catching my ear at the time. Either way I’m just going to roll with it and see how it goes.

Will be interesting to see how this evolves over the next 12 months.

Let me know what you think of the playlist, tracklisting below. And of course, I want to know what’s on your playlist this month, so drop me a line in the comments below.

Enjoy.

-Nx

TRACKLIST:

CHVRCHES - Now Is Not The Time

Haim - Forever

Pharell Williams - Marilyn Monroe

Kanye West - Black Skinhead

Omar - Feeling You (Henrik Schwarz Remix)

Sam Smith - Stay With Me (Wilfred Giroux Remix)

Disclosure ft. Sam Smith - Latch

Gorgon City ft. Laura Welsh - Here For You

Julio Bashmore - Battle For Middle You

Jessie Ware - If You're Never Gonna Move

AlunaGeorge - You Know You Like It

Coldplay - Magic

Chris Brown ft. Aaliyah - Don't Think They Know

James Blake - Overgrown

Kanye West - Blood On The Leaves

A$AP Rocky, Drake - F**kin' Problems

J. Cole ft. Kendrick Lamar - Forbidden Fruit

Beyoncé ft. JAY-Z - Drink in Love

R2Bees ft. Wizkid - Slow Down

Kendrick Lamar - Bitch, Don't Kill My Vibe

Kelly Rowland ft. Beyonce, Kelly Rowland - You Changed

Arctic Monkeys - Do I Wanna Know?

Kendrick Lamar, Drake - Poetic Justice

Arctic Monkeys - Arabella

James Blake - Retrograde

[naomiclarissa]

[CULTURE] Last month I took 5 days off work and hooked up with my brother to spend a little brother-sister time in the City and immerse ourselves in some culture. Pops always used to take us out to ramp around London so we thought we try and do the same, just this time with a stop for the odd beer instead every couple of hours instead of an ice cream.

We picked a good day. It was hot, sunny and started the day right with a champagne breakfast at Côte Brasserie in Highgate. I decided on the Eggs Florentine, and in true Natt style he had the Full English.

Next we headed straight to Trafalgar square to take a walk around the National Portrait Gallery.  After viewing a few rooms we decided to shoot over to the British Museum. Upon arrival we were just like our 9 and 5 year old past selves, excited to see all of the amazing artefacts and marvel at the history. The only difference now, our stamina. Now 30 and 25 years old we quickly realised we just don’t have the same energy to run around the city like we used to. I actually need to get my fitness up.

From here we made our final stop at the South Bank Centre to see what was going on down there. Live Asian infused music (from a band which I wish I could remember the name of!), beers and art. Couldn’t have ended the day on a better note!

- N.x

[naomiclarissa]

[LIFESTYLE] 7 Tips For A Healthy Commuter Lifestyle

In my previous post I mentioned that I’d recently been searching for meal ideas that would better suit my commuter lifestyle, and this pretty much came about after coming to the realisation that my lifestyle really had changed since moving out of London. After a year of 2hr train journeys to and from work, grabbing food at train stations, and a constant state of feeling exhausted I really needed to improve my lifestyle choices. So I thought I’d write this blog post to share some of the things and tips that are helping me in leading a healthier commuter lifestyle, and could help you too.

BEING ORGANISED

At the moment there’s a lot on the agenda. Working full-time, studying, practicing yoga, and also working on a new business idea and freelance work. Being organised is something I’ve found to be vital in improving my lifestyle. When you spend up to 4 hours of the day commuting it can leave you with little time to do anything else. You quickly find you need to use the time you do have as efficiently as possible if you’re still to have a life outside of work.  So I now have a little regime going on to help my mornings and evenings to run smoothly, and usually plan everything in advance to ensure I have time to do everything. Whilst this may sound quite regiment and stiff, it actually helps me to be more flexible and shuffle any plans I do have around should anything unexpected pops up. I can clearly see where there’s gaps in my schedule and it just helps to prioritise activities and ensure I do everything that needs to be done.

DIET

It’s only recently that I realised how huge a part diet plays in making sure I have enough energy to support my commuter lifestyle. I often found myself with zero energy no matter how much sleep I’d had the night before and was just unable to get through all that I wanted to do during the week. So I've begun a diet that is high in slow burning starches, low in sugar and rich in iron which helps to keep the energy levels up. I also make sure I eat at regular intervals during the day. And now NEVER skip breakfast, especially since I’ve been making green smoothies every morning. Again, being organised and planning meals in advance definitely helps to make sure I’m eating right.

WELL-BEING

For a while I found it quite difficult to adapt to this new lifestyle and found I just wasn’t as happy an individual as I usually was. It’s actually proven that long commutes can have both adverse physical and mental effects:

Added stress - supposedly us women are especially prone to the psychological effects of travelling to work due to more responsibilities at home; making us more sensitive to the pressures of commuting such as time constraints and the reduced flexibility

Reduced social time - more isolation which can make people feel depressed

Weight gain - by eating into time that could be used for healthier activities

Increased cholestorol and blood pressure - from sitting in a car or train for lengthy periods of time

So with this I found it doubly important to make sure that I made the necessary improvements to make sure I have both a happy and healthy lifestyle. At the end of the day well-being comes first!

7 LIFESTYLE TIPS:

Here are some of the tips that I’ve found have made a huge difference to my daily commutes and can actually help to improve the quality of any lifestyle.

Get enough sleep - Everybody is different and some are able to function on less sleep than others, but personally, I have to get my 7 hours sleep. Sleep is vital not only for the body to be able to restore and rebuild itself but it’s also key for emotional wellness, the last thing you need is to have sleep deprived crankiness whilst in a packed tube on the Victoria Line. I now try to make sure I’m in bed by 10:30pm, half an hour before the time I go to sleep, which allows me time to pick up a book and unwind before drifting off. Plus, beauty sleep is real ladies!

Save longer workouts for the weekend - I used to try to fit in long gym and yoga sessions either before or after work as it’s a great way to energise before or unwind after work, but this just added to feeling burnt out during the week. Now I have a 15min yoga session first thing every morning and leave my hour workout and longer yoga sessions to the weekend. This way I find I’m still able to energise and prepare for the work day, but can enjoy longer sessions at the weekend without having to worry about wrapping them up quickly.

Eat right! - slow burning starchy foods like potatoes, cereals/oats, and whole-grain pasta/breads help to give sustained energy levels. Iron-rich foods including red meat, offal, green vegetables and mussels help to reduce fatigued which is another key one for us ladies as our iron levels drops at specific times in the month. Foods high in sugar content may give a quick energy boost but it’s often one that wears off quickly too, so I stay away from food and drinks high in added sugar, and caffeine too. Fruit and veg give that added vitality. And of course making sure you do eat enough is key too, the average man needs around 2,500 calories a day, and the average woman needs 2,000 calories.

Prepare meals in advance - To help with the smooth running of the week I often cook my meals on Mondays and Wednesdays to last me the work week, or at the very least prepare them so that when I need to eat it’s literally just a matter of turning on the stove/oven. This really does help to free up time during the week and just makes life a little easier. But of course for this planning your meals and buying the ingredients in advance is key.

Occupy your mind - Utilising the time you spend commuting to do some of the things you love to do or have on your to do list can help to make the commute feel less like lost hours in the day. Whether you commute by train, car, bicyle, walk or fly (for the fancier commuters amongst us), keeping your mind occupied is a great way to use the time productively and can also help to take your mind off any stress of the commute. Listen to some new music or language learning podcasts, read a book/magazine, catch up on some work, plan for the next day, or jot down that cool business idea you have.

Walk with (healthy) snacks - Getting caught in a traffic jam or train delay can find you left hungry, weak and irritable. Walking with some snacks just helps to avoid a hunger melt down and also stops you from wasting money on fast (and often unhealthy) food. Fruit, granola bars, and even home made smoothies are great snacks to walk with. But again, be sure to avoid snacks high in sugar, while they can give you a quick boost of energy, they’re more likely to leave you feeling tired/hungry shortly after.

Enjoy! - Just remembering to find the joy in everything you do and making the most of every situation can really help to improve your attitude towards your daily commute. We only have one life to live so we better enjoy it while we can!

So anyway I hope you find this post to be useful. I’m still going to share my new diet plan at some point but what are some of the ways that you've made the most of or have adapted your lifestyle? Maybe I've missed something that's been key to your daily commute? Let me know by sharing in the comments.

- N.x

[naomiclarissa]

[INSIGHT] A few months ago I subscribed to Campaign magazine, a weekly UK advertising magazine which takes a look at the ins and outs of the advertising industry, along with some of the best (and worst) campaigns. But I downloaded April’s Marketing magazine and found the articles to be far more thought-provoking, and it’s just a generally well-rounded overview of all things marketing. So I made the switch. If you work in industry or just are generally passionate about marketing I’d highly recommend it. -N.x

[naomiclarissa]

[LIFESTYLE] Green Smoothie Breakfast - So I’ve been reading a lot of articles recently on nutrition and diet to get ideas for me to create a perfect, easy-to-prepare meal plan that fits with the work commuter lifestyle I currently live.

Quick and easy to make with just four ingredients (mango, peach, spinach, water) this green smoothie is both filling and so tasty. It’s actually perfect for being on the go too!  And having moved into our apartment just a year ago, was a great reason to buy these new Salter scales.

I think I’ll write a longer blog post on the life of a commuter later this week with some great meal suggestions and recipes for all my other work commuters out there. But for now here is the recipe for this quick and easy green smoothie:

Prep time: 10 mins

Ingredients (one glass): - 40g Mango slices - 40g Peach slices - 40g Frozen Spinach - 200 ml Water

And you literally just throw your fruits in the blender, and add the water. Simple!

(Please excuse the pics, currently using an ipad to take pics so the quality is a little lacking right now.)

[naomiclarissa]

[CREATIVE] Art was always one of my favourite hobbies, so therapeutic, it just takes your mind off of everything else and really does keep you in the moment. I’ve always found it quite meditative. So a couple of months back I decided to get back into painting and bought myself a number of supplies. It was great, toke me right back to the days when my Pops would take me to this really small, old but cute art store in Crouch End, London. Now, I knew I wanted to paint something to hang on our walls. We’ve been in our apartment for just over a year now and still have no artwork up so I thought it would be perfect.

My first real art attempt resulted in the three small a6 sized canvases in the above right photo. I was really just playing with shape and colours but we both quite liked it. So recently I decided to re-create it on larger a4 sized canvases, using stronger colours and texture. Though there wasn’t much of a concept behind these first two paintings, they have inspired me to create a themed collection of abstract paintings which I can’t wait to start working on. I’m likely to post the finished pieces on here but who knows, could lead to a small exhibition one day. -N.x

[naomiclarissa]

[CULTURE] Every now and then, maybe once a year I just start to feel totally and utterly uninspired. A real deep sense of dissatisfaction and boredom. I get hungry for new ideas, a new perspective, a new way of thinking, new experiences. It usually occurs when I’ve found myself in the same routine day after day, going to the same places doing the same things, holding the same conversations, seeing the same faces. And again it doesn’t happen often but when it does I know it’s time to shake things up and get inspired. Changing my daily routine, buying new clothes, changing my hairstyle, reading a new book, discovering new music, finding a new Saturday morning hangout, travelling, going somewhere new, anything.

So to commence what I like to call ‘Shake Up’ season I decided to subscribe to Vogue Magazine.Now of course this is nothing major and you’re probably thinking this is hardly a ‘Shake Up’ and you’re right it’s not but I’m looking for some fashion inspiration and never been a big magazine reader so thought I’d start here! Also comes with free digital edition for iPad too which is perfect for me when I just don’t feel like carrying the print copy around on my daily commute into London. But again, it’s just a start, to get my actions moving. Because that is what it’s all about at the end of the day, taking action.I’ll follow up with ‘Shake Up’ season soon… N.x

[naomiclarissa]

[CAREER] Starting to feel less surreal #work #research #visa #northernnigeria

[naomiclarissa]

[CULTURE] SBTRKT feat. Jessie Ware, Sampha & Tic – r u n a w a y (Audio)

Only 1:15 long but love the sound of this new one from SBTRKT, longer version on the way me thinks (well, hopes).

[naomiclarissa]

[BLOG] HAPPY NEW YEAR 2014!

As we begin a new year I’m excited for the prospects that await us all in 2014.  I can honestly say 2013 was a great year for me both personally and career wise when it comes to growth and overcoming challenges (and there were many!). A little over a week into this year, I’ll be flying out for my first trip into Northern Nigeria, for an amazing insights project we are currently working on with the NIKE Foundation and their organisation, GirlHub.  I cannot wait to share my experience and exactly what my involvement is in the next coming weeks in a project that feels like it will be a huge step in my career. But whilst I prepare for the upcoming trip, I’ve been using this down time to reflect on the year that has passed, which on the personal front has seen me moving into my first apartment with my partner, buying a new car, travelling abroad, a real personal growth journey and really laying down some solid foundations for the future. (Click title to read more)

Career-wise I embarked on a slightly new direction within my career and landed a full-time position in a successful new company within brand and consumer insights, working on some global brands including Wrigley, Capital One Cup and Tag Heuer; providing interesting findings for agencies including Saatchi, DARE, Rapp; as well as producing some groundbreaking research within the pharmaceutical industry alongside Adelphi Research UK. I guess my main goal for the year ahead is to begin to really make headway in the industry, and start to establish myself as a switched-on and valued professional amongst my peers.  As well as the next career steps I’m eager to action, I also have an interesting project in the pipeline that I’ll be working on in my spare time, which I also hope to be sharing in the following months. So how will I be moving forward with the blog this year? Well, I think my growth this year will much rely on my ability to step outside of myself and really begin to express my ideas, thoughts and visions. And what better way to do so on the blog than stepping into the world of video and really begin to document my growth. I’ve been encouraged in the past and to be honest we are living in a visual world. So while I will continue to post periodic blog updates, I hope to supplement this with a lot more photo and video content as well as some interesting articles and case studies. Anyway, that’s my New Years update, what are your plans for the year ahead? Whatever they are, make it a great one!

-N.x

[naomiclarissa]

[CREATIVE] Art is a great form of expression, first time painting in years #art #painting #acrylics

[naomiclarissa]

[LIFESTYLE] After a killer Xmas burger with the colleagues we headed over to Winter Wonderland in Hyde Park, London. All I’ll say is empty 2pint beer glasses in exchange for fun fair ride tokens is quite possibly one of the best event ideas I’ve ever experienced!

[naomiclarissa]

[LIFESTYLE] Lago Di Como x Bellagio, Sept 2013

[naomiclarissa]

[PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT] The Art of Small Talk

So anyone that knows me will know I just am not one for small talk. Trying to draw a lengthy conversation out of me about the non-existent british summer whilst waiting for the tube to arrive is like trying to draw tequila from a stone with your bare hands. Wishful, and I can imagine quite painful.

I don’t think it’s so much that I’m unable to humour people, I of course do, and think my small talk is pleasantly stimulating when I allow myself to step outside of my mind for a few minutes. I think it’s just that I’m more into real, meaty, passionate conversation. Conversation that ignites my imagination; that provokes thought and gets my heart pumping a little stronger; and if it doesn’t I have very little attention capacity for it.

This is probably due to the fact that I think, ALOT. My mind is always ticking away and craves this constant stimulation at all times. So unless the subject matter can captivate my mind it does wander off. It’s very rare that you’ll see me relaxed and simply watching a film without something I’ve just seen on screen taking my mind somewhere else. If you do see me watching TV (which is usually a rarity) I will almost always have a notebook on my lap, mobile at my side and pen in hand jotting down another string of thoughts.

Now this, I am increasingly aware is slightly problematic. I work in an industry where the ease of ability with which you can connect with people and the conversation you spark up whilst buttering your toast in the office kitchen at 9am can be the difference between you landing a position on that global project the agency has just won, or losing your job to that new bright and sparky intern.

So why the long winded verse you ask? Well, after reading this article by Stylist Magazine, it really did get me thinking. This is something I really should work on!

As the article reads:

“Being able to make small talk can help you to create connections of all kinds,” says Gill Hasson, author of Brilliant Communication Skills. “It can open doors to all sorts of people and possibilities. Small talk can lead to big talk, which can lead to big people, and big opportunities.”

So I think this is going to be a part of the next phase of my career development.

Where and how to start?… Well buying one of the many referenced books in the article will probably be a good start.

I think I’m most interested in challenging my own stand point on “the art of small talk." Is it just a case of “my mind" wandering off as if it were it’s own person and only having attention for things that I’m REALLY interested in, or is it just a lack of being able to engage with and find interest in the more subtle things around me. I’m also keen to see the difference small talk will make in my day-to-day life. Will it open me to new opportunities and people?

I’ll most likely talk about how this goes on here so do check back.

And if I work with you, excuse if my practising small talk wears thin on your ears!

[naomiclarissa]

[CULTURE] #rivingtonstreetfestival #london #shoreditch