HOPE

Yay, it's over. Not yay in the sense of relief, like, oh that was an awful election. But yay in the sense that change has happened. We can breathe a little easier. Well, we can't breathe that easy because the financial outlook is still devastating. But there is HOPE. And that is what Barack Obama touted, HOPE. Right?

Not 100% true. The image of HOPE didn't actually come from Obama or his brilliant campaign team. It came from the street.

Shepard Fairey created the image with the slogan HOPE. The same guy who created the GIANT / OBEY icon a few years back. If you live in LA, you know what I'm talking about. But that colorful HOPE image you see above made it's way beyond Southern California and spread around the country. In his words, "The Internet allows these things to travel far and wide very quickly."

It is pretty amazing that an image so iconic came from the people. The consumers. And that is the world we live in. today. A world where Social Media can truly inspire change. HOPE. If you are a brand and you don't embrace the voice of your customer, then you are in trouble. Because they will speak. And what they say won't always be good. But let them speak. The upside is that they will sometimes say something positive. Shepard didn't create an image bashing McCain or the Republicans. He created an image of HOPE. He used his voice and his art for good. To help one brand vs. hurt another. And it inspired.

As I have mentioned before, I do not like politics. I hate what it stands for. I hate that on your way up you become indebted to so many people and parties that ultimately even if you have the best intentions, you had to sell your soul to get where you are. And I'm sure Obama has had to do this. And he'll make mistakes, he'll be ridiculed and parodied. But it was time for a change.

Something strange happened on Wednesday. I stepped out of my house and I could feel change. I could feel HOPE. People smiled at each other. There were people wearing Obama t-shirts at my local breakfast spot. Everyone was talking about the election. The old was out and the new was in.

Obama has the impossible task of cleaning up a massive mess left by his predecessors. But for one morning, maybe a whole day, no one cared. Change had come. HOPE had come.

All my hatred and even ignorance of politics aside, I can feel it. And I am reveling. I can feel the HOPE.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1q_tFP0j9C4