Introducing... Matt Jackson

We all live and breathe creativity in this industry, but affectors' founder Matt Jackson literally lives, breathes and pursues it on a daily basis.

Since its founding in 2013, Jackson has been the backbone behind affectors' development and has helped to shape everything that it now stands for; to connect and move people's hearts and minds. He is intent on bridging the gap between art and commerce, which he does through staging a series of workshops, performances and installations, many of which are experiential and provoke a reaction of some sort among the audience.

The Aussie native speaks to shots about inheriting creativity, nurturing colleagues and choosing to not let down his son.

What does your role involve?

TRAINING – Workshops and one-on-one training to help people become aware of how they affect people and how they are affected by people in both the workplace and in life.

PERFORMING – Live spoken word performances of poetry with music and most recently dance.

MAKING – affectors of all disciplines collaborate together to make content that moves people on our clients’ behalf. These can be highly interactive and either analogue or digital.

How did you get to where you are now?

My Grandmother was an abstract painter. My father has a PHD in the Philosophy of Geology and my mother was an entrepreneur who continually defied the odds and is now the CEO of a large private education company. These influences led to a strong desire to express myself, challenge tired ‘best practices’ and continuously grow with the natural world around me.

What’s your favourite thing about your job?  

The tingles I get. This occurs when watching an audience resonate with a poetry performance, an “aha” moment expressed on the face of a trainee when they see something differently or when someone I work with transforms from a colleague to an inspiring stranger as they become congruent with who they truly are.

What’s a typical working day like for you?

I read for 10 minutes, write poetry for an hour, then catch the ferry into work. At work I can be creating content collaboratively with my co-trainers for a client workshop, delivering that content, rehearsing a live performance, writing a script for a production or working one-on-one with a client to help them apply creative thinking to their work and life or specific communication skills like negotiation or giving and receiving feedback. Then I head home in time to use all my creative and communicative skills to parent our 3-year-old son Rip. We bath together then read a story and I explain that the language of children’s stories is poetry and that is what Daddy does for work.

What made you get into this industry?

Since the Industrial Age and through the Information Age, our work practices have become less human. More quantitative and less qualitative. I don’t believe in any work place that requires people to be less human. I graduated from Melbourne University with two Bachelor degrees - Arts and Commerce. I help clients to look at the way we do business today through the lens of the arts in order to make people aware of how the way they work affects them and others. When people are growing professionally and personally at work then the workplace grows sustainably.

Tell me something about your job that few people know.

I thought of the concept for Affectors in 2011 but didn’t launch the business until 2013 which was the same year our son Rip was born. At the same time I was offered a steady job with a large consultancy firm which promised a high salary. It was a time of my life when security was very desirable. Whilst I was locked in limbo about the decision I had a daydream of a future conversation with my son where he was struggling with a decision. I knew my advice to him would be to follow his heart. I was terrified of being a hypocrite in that conversation so I launched the business and let go of my attachment to the illusion of security.

How is your approach unique?

The affectors philosophy focuses on the changes that occur in thoughts and feelings prior to the action taking place. The intent before the result. In a world that believes if it can’t be measured then it doesn’t exist we focus on making people aware of what is going on behind the scenes in their hearts and minds. We believe affect is what drives the passion behind their purpose to keep going.

If you could name one person who has inspired you so far in your life, who would it be?

The father of Lateral Thinking, Edward de Bono. Studying both Commerce and Arts at University often inflicted upon me the sense that I didn’t truly belong to either faculty. Reading de Bono’s books helped me to integrate both ways of thinking and encouraged me to develop my own way of thinking that contributed to the world in positive, creative and expansive ways.

I was lucky enough to meet him last year and ask if he believed we were all afraid of freedom. He answered that we were and that it is why people need to break creative thinking into steps and processes. After that he invited me to lunch, read my first book, The Age of Affect and endorsed it. I feel very fortunate to have met my hero and to have enjoyed the experience.

What’s one thing that you strive to do in your career?

Change the way we measure success and progress in society. We have typically measured it in terms of the ownership of private and intellectual property, financial wealth and fame. If we measured it in terms of self awareness and positive affect on others we would have a much more altruistic and collaborative way of life.

What are the biggest challenges that you’re seeing in your industry and how do you plan on overcoming them?

We produce and consume more and more information everyday. We don’t need more information we need a filter. I believe that filter is whether it moves your heart and mind in a meaningful way. We train people to become more conscious of what information gratifies them and what information merely stimulates or distracts them.

If there was one item that you wish you could’ve invented, what would it be?

Economics. That way when I taught the principles to the world I would have made sure that people understood its limitations and the consequences of applying it to all aspects of human life.

What’s the biggest lesson you’ve learnt so far in your career?

That you can learn something from every person in every moment if you can open your heart and mind.

What do you do to stay inspired?

I come up with little games I play daily to access a flow state easily. One of my favourites is to catch the ferry and surrender my will. I cannot make the ferry go faster or change its direction. I accept my place and tune into the ebb and flow of the waves, the boats, planes, birds and people coming in and out of view. I breathe the harbour air through my nose and close my eyes facing the sun bouncing off the surface of the water. Then I think to myself,

“Congratulations! You’re succeeding. The only reason you made it here is because you keep adapting. So… get on your way”!