THE GAMECHANGERS  

QWAN

July 2014 Print Version α Brought to you by Intelæon qwanmag.com

QWAN is a creative notebook collection designed, curated and brought to you with tons of passion by Intelæon. Intelæon is a young and energetic organisation attempting to transform the way the

world thinks about and uses curiosity, creativity and grit in business, education and life.

QWAN [kwa-an]: “A word used to describe something beyond coolness. It is the sickest word you could use to describe something that is awesome.”

This QWAN is owned by: QWAN owner since:

1 .

The question is more powerful than the answer.

We are seriously thrilled that you holding the first copy of QWAN! So hello and welcome to the first issue of QWAN.

Throughout the ages passionate men and women, movers and shakers of the world have captured their thoughts, imaginations and ideas on pieces of parchment and paper. They laboured over their precious writings, compiling notes, observations and sketches. At times these writings led to further enquiry, to more inspiration or to a brand new discovery.

The quasi-modern version of these handwritten treasure books are blogs. But that still did not seem right to us. The genuine warm feel of writing with a pen on a piece can be replicated with a pen and paper only. Of course! In this modern world of reality distortion and “social networks” we wanted something, something authentic; to feel, to interact with, to be inspired with and to treasure. So we created QWAN.

QWAN is a notebook collection with a twist. It is a part puzzle book, part inspiration book and part sketchbook. Puzzles to stimulate and tickle your mind, inspiration to stir your soul and sketches to catch those amazing ideas.

More on how to use best use QWAN on the right side. Till the next issue: imagine, think, solve, create, inspire.

Do tweet your experience @qwanmag or send an owl to learn@intelaeon.com. Cheers M S Qureshi and The QWAN Team PS: Orange is the New Black! M S Qureshi is the Chief Curator of QWAN and Founder of Intelaeon. Tweet him @msaifq or email at msqureshi@intelaeon.com. QWAN is a work in progress, help us make it better for you, write to us.

 

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Cool! But how do I use QWAN mate?

Imagine. Think. Solve. Create. Inspire.

     

 

Each issue of QWAN will have a different theme; Gamechangers for this time. Based on the theme every odd numbered page will have a visual puzzle linking you to the answer (the inspirational figure for this issue). Remember there is only one answer!

The visual hints in the 4 squares link to a specific person. The hints could be events, people or objects specifically related to the Gamechanger. Pro Tip: for thinking in office, sit on a swivel chair and go round and round shouting ‘weeehoooo’!

Simulate your memory and attempt to make the connection. Be creative with your answers and use the blank page on the right to sketch. If entirely at sea try a good head massage or maybe laced coffee or check out the cheat sheet on page 23.

If the head massages and laced coffees weren’t enough there are some fabulous quotes on each page. Sketch and write your guesses and strokes of inspiration all over the blank pages. Pro Tip: Be messy, be quick, serendipity strikes the working.

You now have the name of a crazy idealistic Gamechanger. Write it in the white box and seal it! You also have a brain buzzing with activity, and connections. Creative juices are oozing. Channel everything, do no evil, move fast and inspire yourself, people around and change the world. Tweet while it’s hot @qwanmag!

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All that is gold does not glitter, Not all those who wander are lost.

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-J R R Tolkien .

5 .

                                                                               

The important thing is not to stop questioning. Curiosity has its own reason for existence. .

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                                                        -Albert Einstein

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7 .

                                                                               

You see things; and you say "Why?" But I dream things that never were; and I say "Why not?"

8 .

                                                                               

-George Bernard Shaw .

 

9 .

                                                                               

Never confuse someone else's inability to do something with its inability to be done. .

10 .

                                         

                                     

-Steve Maraboli .

 

11 .

                                                                               

Either write things worth reading, Or do things worth the writing.

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-Poor Richard’s Almanack .

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14 .

There is a crack in everything That's how the light gets in. .

   

-Leonard Cohen .

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16 .

A comfort zone is a beautiful place, but nothing ever grows there. .

   

-Unknown .

17 .

   

18 .

The most dangerous phrase in the language is, "We've always done it this way”. .

   

-Grace Hopper .

19 .

   

20 .

Never confuse the size of your paycheck with the size of your talent.

   

-Marlon Brando .

21 .

If it scares you, it might be a good thing to try..

   

-Seth Godi n .

22 .

Always doing what you're told doesn't mean you will succeed in life. .

   

-Jiro Ono .

All images starting from top left and moving clockwise Page 3: John Ruskin. Tarak Nath Das. A font inspired by the design of an accessory the Gamechanger wore. Observe and visualise :-). Leo Tolstoy. Page 5: Xerox Parc. Noah Wyle. 3rd is too obvious. Issey Miyake. Page 7: Washington Post. Apollo 11. Aerial photo of the world’s largest river by water discharge (total giveaway right?). Blue Origin. Page 9: The Elders. Nelson Madela. Around the World in 80 Days (2004 film). Superman Returns (2006 film). Page 11: The number is the clue. Idris Elba. Springbok. A place of confinement (the name would be an obvious giveaway). Page 13: Screen capture from a 1940 American satirical political comedy-drama film (film’s name is the obvious giveaway). Robert Downey Jr. Adolf Hitler. Hannah ‘X’ (where ‘X’ is also the Gamechangers last name). Page 15: A mural by Elihu Vedder's (1896), the title figure bears a tablet inscribed with the Gamechanger’s famous phrase. X's Last Card a cartoon by Englishman John Tenniel in 1862 (where X is the Gamechanger). Daniel Day Lewis. Man responsible for X’s death. Page 17: 1984 by George Orwell. The Giving Pledge. Instagram Logo. The text says it all! ;-) Page 19: The Prestige (2006 film by Christopher Nolan). Wardenclyffe Tower. Author Mark Twain. Elon Musk.  

23 .

   KEY

 

Whether entrepreneurs, inventors, leaders or authors, some men and women are able to see the world differently and change it forever. Here are some things we learn from great men and women. These points would be elaborated upon on our blog at qwanmag.com, till then connect the dots. 1. Genius is overrated. Be crazy. Be insane.

2. There are no original ideas. Just creative

inspirations and imitations.

3. They obsess over things, specially the minute details. The bigger ones become easier.

4. They see the larger picture. 5. They can connect the dots 6. Persistence wins. Always. 7. They write. A personal journal. A blog. A diary. A

sketchbook. Or QWAN. 8. They find a spiritual side. 9. They inspire people and even instill respect in

their competitors/sworn enemies!

24 .

   PRO TIPS FROM GAMECHANGERS

 

       

1. Mahatma Gandhi: Was profoundly influenced by Ruskin’s Unto This Last, even translating it into Gujarati as ‘Sarvodaya’. A Letter to a Hindu a letter from Leo Tolstoy to Tarak Nath Das advising him that non violent methods would help India gain independence, this deeply inspired a young Gandhi. The font is inspired by his glasses.

2. Steve Jobs: Saw the GUI first at Xerox Parc,then ‘copied’ it. Noah Wyle played Jobs in Pirates of the Silicon Valley. Co founded Pixar and his black mock turtlenecks were designed by Issey Miyake.

3. Jeff Bezos: Purchased Washington Post in 2013. River is Amazon. Founded Blue Origin a space flight company and he funded an expedition to recover an Apollo 11 Saturn V F 11 Engine.

4. Sir Richard Branson: Helped initiate a worldwide advisory council for peace ‘The Elders’. Nelson Mandela was a core member. Starred in cameo roles in these two films, among many others.

5. Nelson Madela: His prisoner number. Idris Elba played him. Springbok South African Rugby team – Invictus. His prison cell.

6. Charlie Chaplin: The Great Dictator. Robert Downey Jr. played him in the film Chaplin. His mother and he openly mocked Hitler.

7. Abraham Lincoln: Line’s from his Gettysburg Address. Cartoon on Emancipation Proclaimation played a role in the abolishing of slavery. Daniel played him and John Wilkes Booth assassinated him.

8. Mark Zuckerberg: Born on May 14th 1984, many have made associations to him, Big Brother and the book. Signed the Giving Pledge to donate most of his wealth. Facebook purchased Instagram in 2012. He can see blue best due to his colour blindness, if Facebook is blue due to this is not known/documented.

9. Nikola Tesla: He was played by David Bowie, his character was integral to the storyline. Wardenclyffe Tower was one of his inventions to prove wireless information transmission. Mark Twain was a great friend is Tesla, here he is holding a bulb in Tesla’s lab. Elon Musk is the founder of Tesla Motors which manufactures electric cars running on Tesla’s AC motor patents. He is a great Tesla fan and donated $ 1 million for a Tesla Musuem.

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   THE GAMECHANGERS

 

26.

What would you do if you had no fear? .

   

-Team QWAN .

27 .

Your agreement with reality defines your life.

   

-Steve Maraboli .

Ode is a poem written by the English poet Arthur O'Shaughnessy and first published in 1873. The words have inspired many people and have been admired by many. This is the opening stanza of the nine-

stanza poem. The phrase "movers and shakers" originates from here.

 

We are the music makers, And we are the dreamers of dreams,

Wandering by lone sea-breakers, And sitting by desolate streams;

World-losers and world-forsakers, On whom the pale moon gleams:

Yet we are the movers and shakers Of the world for ever, it seems.

- Ode by Arthur O'Shaughnessy

   

Carpe diem is an aphorism usually translated "seize the day", taken from a poem written in the Odes in 23 BC by the Latin poet Horace.

Carpe diem, quam minimum credula postero: seize the day, trusting as little as possible in the next day.

carpe freaking diem

What will you do?