One of my own side projects is being a trustee for student social action charity Student Hubs. Student Hubs is a network of student-led social action projects, social innovation acceleration, and community volunteering activities run at a number of UK universities including my own in Bristol. Last week I had I the pleasure of delivering … Continue reading An Innovation Culture for Student Hubs

This latest story in my #sideproject series is an acknowledged superstar of the scene – Gavin Strange. Gav is a senior designer for the interactive arm of Aardman Animation in Bristol but moonlights with an array of side projects including an online shop he runs with his wife – Strange, a multitude of film-making and … Continue reading Side Project Stories #9: Jam Factory

For the latest interview in my Side Project Stories collection I’ve turned to a former colleague of mine from my days running the Basecamp student start-up accelerator at the University of Bristol. Sam worked with me about four years ago as a graduate helping students get their business ideas started. He started his own journey … Continue reading Side Project Stories #8: Create-Hub

Lots of ideas start off in ‘stealth mode’: "It was my secret hobby, very much for my own amusement", this is how a now successful full-time children's author got started - with his 'secret hobby' of writing on his daily commute. However, central to many strategies for successful start-up ventures is the importance of sharing … Continue reading Dare to Share

Many people subscribe to the idea that we make our own luck; I’d entirely agree because the alternative is fate, and that suggests we’re little more than victims waiting for life to reveal the next page of the script to us. However, life clearly does throw stuff at us that we didn’t ask for so … Continue reading Making Your Own Luck

For the next interview in my Side Project Stories collection I’ve turned to one of my Centre for Innovation colleagues at the University of Bristol. Travis is one of the Design Thinking Teaching Fellows in the Centre and an Independent Design and Innovation Consultant for the remainder of the week. However, having spent the last 10 months … Continue reading Side Project Stories #7: Crea Inc

For the latest of my interviews about Side Projects I spoke to an old friend of mine with whom I had not spoken, in person at least, for 15+ years… in the intervening decade-and-a-half he’s developed a commuter’s idling into hobby, into a side project, and now into his ‘main project’. I was at sixth … Continue reading Side Project Stories #6: The Children’s Author

In my initial model for side projects I acknowledged a missing element; the market. Now for many side projects this doesn't necessarily matter, they're more about satisfying the project creator than anyone else. However, if you want that project to grow into an economically profitable venture you need an audience who are willing to pay … Continue reading The 4th Dimension – The Market

One major factor in initiating, developing, and feeling satisfied by a side project is creativity. Both my own interview subjects and the stories detailed by the Do Lecture's Side Project Report consistently highlight either the subject's desire to simply write/make/create/design/build or their desire to do so in pursuit of their own goals (rather than solely … Continue reading A Vehicle for Creativity

As part of my ongoing exploration of ‘Side Projects’ I’ve been interviewing some individuals whose extra-curricular activities might help investigate and explore both the nature of side projects and the strategies for success. For the fifth interview in the series I caught up with another friend whose side-projects are not just passion projects but really values-driven in … Continue reading Side Project Stories #5: The Cycle Touring Festival