You might question my inspiration for this post. You might even come away thinking what the heck was he thinking? That’s all reasonable when you consider the seemingly disparate pieces that led me to answer the desire to pull these elements together into a cohesive missive. Answering the call to write this overcame any sense of reason, logic or ease for that matter.
Underlying each of these different pieces is the idea of turning a page on a new chapter. The beginning, if you will of something different, changed or evolved from what was yesterday. We enter new chapters in our lives and business careers quite often – some more significant than others. Some not worth pausing to ponder, others seemingly earth shattering and completely disruptive.
The recent passing of my mother happened to be that disruption for me. In collecting images to celebrate the impact she had on everyone she met, I came across letters I wrote to her back in the 80’s while studying in Italy and a picture I took while in Pienza, Tuscany in 2011. That image, bright with sun and the Tuscan landscape folding out in the distance. Crisp with blues and yellows and the warm embracing smile of my mother, set the stage for everything. It was the spark that connected me to the past, present and future. The image prompted the collision of these ideas for me.
But just to be clear, this is not a sad story or an opportunity to eulogize. Instead, it’s intended to be a celebration of the confluence of these moments and memories and what they mean for tomorrow. What they mean for me and what they mean for Overabove.
The collision starts with “The City of Pius” itself. Better known as Pienza located in southern Tuscany.
Not only does a story that starts in Pienza allow me to stay true to my blogging theme of the inspiration I gain from my Italian adventures, but it actually connects all the dots. See, Pienza is recognized by historians, place makers and architects as the birthplace of Renaissance Humanism and the birthplace of new urbanism. Envisioning a town with the human in mind is exactly what Pope Pius II did when he set out to reimagine his birthplace of Corsignano and rename it after himself. This little hill town tucked within the Orcia Valley, set in motion a whole new way of looking at and designing place.
In our work with developers, operators and visionaries to position brands and market destinations, experiences and properties, we seek to connect humans to those places on a emotional level. Motivating them to visit, to play, to experience and to buy. Deep human motivators are central to the storytelling and central to how we focus our marketing.
This visionary citizen and later Pope from the Piccolomini family designed “the ideal city” that not only was intended to create a new approach to city planning, but it fundamentally changed how people interacted with their city and with each other and what they got out of those interactions.
A small but meaningful example are the seats one finds around the central piazza that create a place to gather for all generations. The idea being, while the parents and grandparents sit and chat, the young children play in the piazza. Finding ways to enjoy each other and the vibrancy of community was key. Bringing the human principals of worth, dignity and value fostered the self-realization and the opening up of possibilities for the individual.
This is also central to what I believe is important for our next chapter as a company – specifically for our central office.
So that one image and the other uncovered memories connected me to where we are today as an organization and where we are going tomorrow. History has a way of unveiling itself in remarkable ways it seems. Those words and pictures remind me how important people and human interaction is in our lives. They bring us back to a time when life’s distractions were maybe a little less deafening. A time when it might have been easier to say, “I love you.” This new chapter will allow us to build a space specifically for us and for our organization. I believe that it will fundamentally enhance the collaborative and creative spirit of the organization and will reinforce the strength of this dynamic team of talented individuals. And ultimately, ensure that the work we do for our valued and trusted clients will continue to matter.
As we embark on this new chapter for Overabove, moving from tenant to owner, we will be enthusiastically embracing the idea of humanism so well-expressed by Pope Pius II more than 500 years ago. We see the immense value of investing in our team and culture and bringing clients and team members alike together to enjoy a true community built on fundamental principles and experiences. After all, it’s conviviality that strengthens teams and client relationships.
In the coming days, weeks and months, stay tuned for more about this new chapter in our story. We’ll be sharing various forms of content as we bring to life this new space in this special little hamlet. The inspiration of those humanists long since gone can be felt here. The idea of human scale and a place for all generations and walks of life to come together, to be together here. To share, dine, shop and just experience one another.
We are tremendously excited to enter this new phase of our almost 20-year-old story as Overabove. The next 20 years are going to be very exciting.
I invite you to share with us.