NOPE. I AM NOT ANOTHER OLD SCHOOL AD FIRM WITH A NEW HIPPY BOUTIQUE NAME BUT JUST A LONELY INDEPENDENT CREATIVE DIRECTOR AND GLOBAL BRAND CONSULTANT DOING MY GENTLY RIOTING WORK REBELLION IN THIS COLLAPSING WORLD OF CHAOS, IGNORANCE, INSANITY, TRANSITION, HOPE, IDIOTISM AND POTENTIAL. REBEL IS REAL

I write, I think, I observe, I riot, I create. In English and in Finnish. Locally and globally. With massive multinational corporations and tiny promising start-ups alike from Bangkok to Tokyo from Helsinki to Lisbon from Seoul to Ho Chi Minh City from Singapore to Amsterdam from Berlin to Copenhagen and from New York to Palo Alto. I turn complex simple and simple interesting through rebellious yet humane storytelling that makes brands act, sound and feel different. My purpose is to convince all of my clients that there’s nothing wrong with being original, odd, imperfect, funny, witty, real, intelligent, open or little peculiar.

I often but not always work with projects related to all aspects of cultures and societies including sustainability, equality, racial and gender injustice, inclusivity, ESG, tech, change, digitalization, urbanization, sports, circular economy, human and environmental rights as well as social impacts, responsibilities and possibilities of all brands, companies, countries, cities, governments and NGO’s. I help my clients shape the world to be a bit kinder, a bit more fair, a bit more equal, a bit more open and a bit more empathetic and a bit more sensible place to be for people, animals, plants and aliens alike.

About 50% of my work is branding, consulting and advising. Some 20% falls under marketing and advertising even though I don’t really see the difference. Approximately 10% of my time is spent on my own “The Global Work Rebel Scholarship Fund, Riot And Mentoring Initiative” that I started with my old middle school in my born-nation Finland back in 2021. The rest 20% of my working hours I try to do nothing but think, read, watch quality films, documentaries and series, listen to music and people while just wondering through life yet somehow all that random wandering comes back to my work so that 20% of nothing equals 100% of everything.

I am a non-traditional non-linear thinker who does not see work as hours, days, weeks or weekends but since a lot of people still do my “full week”usually instead of 40 hours is max 20 hours and even that is way too plenty. If you want to work more and longer, that’s 100% OK with me. I like my job and I am very good in what I do but I am also confident that my only life should not be dominated by work but other things I find even more essential for good living.

I have never had an agency job. I have always been an Independent Creative Director & Global Brand Consultant. Not because I have to but I want to. Because I can and know how to. I’ve been operating like this for almost a decade, doing great things successfully with my own time and terms, long before most creatives were even thinking about something similar. In fact, for years most people within advertising, marketing or branding thought I was completely insane. Now many want to be like me asking for my advice which I usually shall give unless they are rude.

I have worked fully remotely since the early days of wifi. Not because I had to but because I wanted to. I believe quite possibly to be the World’s First Full-Time Remote Worker, a position I value more than any other title on this planet. For me freedom matters, independency matters, staying up and sleeping late matters, not wasting my own days, weeks, months or years on endless teams and zooms meetings matter. To me my life matters. Rebel is real.

I WILL ALWAYS CHOOSE KIND ANARCHY AND BROKEN IMPERFECTION OVER SAFE ORDINARY AND ETERNAL AVERAGE AND SO SHOULD YOU SINCE BOREDOM AND LACK OF AMBITION DESTROYS EVERYTHING THAT IS ESSENTIAL

I believe in bigger purpose than just selling, making profit or adding value. I am not an ordinary madman person who grew up within the industry but a misfit social scientist who has studied journalism, sociology and international politics in three different universities in two separate continents and who has a strong background in investigative news reporting and extra long feature writing both in the US that used to be my home and in Finland where I was born.

Nowadays I do everything from creative direction, strategy, concepts, activations, consulting, branding, mentoring and copywriting to scripts and voice-overs to brand films, tv commercials, outdoor ads, virtual and real life events to analog and digital campaigns to mentoring and advising.

I hate industry jargon and avoid using terms that mean nothing. I trust the research, occasionally yet softly use AI and understand even complex data but in the end of the day I still choose kind anarchy and broken imperfection over safe ordinary and eternal average. For me emotions absolutely are more important than numbers. Now and always. In collaborations, it’s usually the client who brings the insight. I bring the human touch and thinking.

I don’t work for my clients but with them. My goal is to eliminate all unnecessary rush, hurry, hassle and hustle of the co-op process. That’s why my default meeting time is 15 minutes instead of 60 minutes and surprisingly often even 0 minutes is enough. Time is valuable. Mine and yours. Let’s not waste it.

I know what I am doing and provide measurable results and sustainable growth. Multiple branding clients of mine have been acquired for millions and millions and millions of euros and dollars and cryptos which probably is a clear indication of the effectiveness of my skills and expertise. Over the years my work has also been featured in various leading branding and advertising publications such as Drum, Adweek, Little Black Book, Ad Age and Famous Campaigns even though I don’t believe that we need awards, shows, galas or media coverage validating creativity. I don’t mind you having awards but they don’t impress me. Your thoughts and character does.

I cherish non-traditional co-operation and humane openness but if you want be conservative, average and ordinary, I am probably not your chosen consultant to work with. That limitation I do have.

I HAVE A CRUSH ON MY CLIENTS WHO COMPLETE ME AND WHOM I TRY TO COMPLETE BACK IN THE MOST BEAUTIFUL WAYS POSSIBLE ESPECIALLY IF YOU WANT TO CHANGE HOW CREATIVE INDUSTRY WORKS

Categorization is boring. I am not. Neither are the people I work with. Since becoming The Global Work Rebel around 2018 I have co-operated with some pretty cool advertising, design, brand, creative, consulting, communication and entertainment agencies, start-ups, think thanks, NGO’s, non-profits and human rights and environmental organizations, film production companies, record labels and print houses, fashion designers, tech- and media firms, musicians, museums and culture institutions, restaurants, breweries, cities, countries and governments and artists, photographers, graphic designers, writers, professional athletes and pro coaches, politicians, activists, researchers, chefs, future thinkers, musicians, poets, stand up comedians and even top class mimics in five continents around the world.

My clients have won countless of awards in pretty much anything both in Finland and everywhere and I’ve got some trophies of my own in advertising, design, event creation, journalism and even sports and academics, including a certain pencil of D&AD’s, but as you already know at this point, they don’t define me or my work in any ways. In fact, I believe our industry would simply be better off without any award shows which I have decided not to participate unless absolutely unquestionably forcibly mandatory. If you feel differently, that’s fine by me. I respect your point of view. As long as you’ll respect mine.

In 2019, just before pandemic closed everything, I expanded my creative consulting services to Japan and Korea. In 2023, when I was finally able to relocate back to Asia I chose Bangkok to be my new base. I am currently in the process of building my South East Asia network with particular focus on Singapore. I also connect European and American brands to Asian markets and vice versa. So, if you’ll need help finding the right partners in Japan, Korea, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam or even the tiny nation of China I am your chosen rebel. Who has also successfully assisted number of my clients getting significant amounts of VC and other fundings in global markets. Please note that large part of my work is done internally with a lot of NDA’s and is therefore not included anywhere on this website. My client’s call, not mine. Sue them, not me. Hire me instead.  

THIS IS WHERE MY CURIOUS CASE OF GENTLY RIOTING CREATIVE REBELLION COMES FROM AND WHY DOES IT EVEN MATTER BECAUSE IT ULTIMATELY DOES FOR YOU, ME, THEM AND EVERYONE ELSE

My academic background is in social sciences, investigative journalism and narrative feature writing, both in the US where I used to live, love and study and in Finland where I am originally from.

I have, among the other things, written the longest feature story ever published anywhere and been the Editor-At-Large of the mystically fashionable Kasino A4 that once was the coolest magazine on Earth. I did my B.A. majoring in journalism and minoring in sociology and international politics and graduating with multiple honors and academic scholarships from the University of Kentucky known for nationally award winning student newspaper The Kernel that gave me my very first job.

After spending four interesting years in the US I returned to Finland and got accepted to The University of Tampere, the most prestigious journalism school of my native land, where I’ll be probably eternally enrolled with practically finished M.A. degree. One day I’ll tell you the story how I decided to throw my 90% completed printed master thesis made of paper to physical old school trash bin instead of finishing and returning it. Back then it felt like the right thing to do. It still does. In many ways that was the moment, ditching my nearly finished thesis, when my gently riot against the system of boredom started.

I still have a curious mind. I know when and how to listen but I also have opinions and gut to express them when required. That does not mean that I can’t be nice and polite and co-operative, because I am. It means that I appreciate openness and honesty and I believe in the creative power of different kind of thoughts, people, surroundings, ideas and backgrounds.

Instead of business books, advertising blogs, industry seminars or AI podcasts my creative inspiration and professional competence comes the things I see, hear, feel, observe and experience every single day and night on this planet. Novels, plays, films, poetry, arena concerts, alternative events, underground movements, punk gigs, exhibitions and other similar things happening in urban environments around the globe.

The understanding of past, current and future popular culture combined with natural curiosity towards history, human behavior, societies and social movements is the base for everything that I am, believe and do as an Independent Creative Director & Global Brand Consultant.

More than anything I believe in the ancient crafts of reading, writing, hearing and thinking. Never before have kind sophistication, general knowledge and higher education been as important as they are now in this absurdly ridiculous times of Age of Ignorance and Idiotism that we are witnessing in multiple continents my born-country Finland very much included.

I AM A REBEL OF KINDNESS, EMPATHY AND MODERN DAY STORYTELLING WHO WILL ALWAYS FIGHT FOR TOTAL EQUALITY AND CONDEMN ALL FORMS OF RACISM BECAUSE NOTHING IN THIS WORLD MATTERS MORE THAN HUMANITY

I am a rebel. Always have been, always will be. An urban brand activist with a history of co-organizing massive human right demonstrations. I will forever support the universal equality and resist and condemn all racism and inequality. That’s the way I wanna live, love and work. Being out spoken and taking a stand. Challenging status quo and resisting outdated old norms. Respecting others and supporting those in need.

It’s no secret that I see a lot of errors, glitches and toxic conservatism in the industry where I work. I believe creativity should and easily could be much more than inside award shows, galas and competitions within our own narrow-minded community. I am confident that advertising, branding and consulting can and they should do good. More now than ever before.

I want and need my clients to value and respect me just as I respect and value them. I believe that manners matter, vibes matter, communication matter. For multiple times I have firmly declined to collaborate with some of the biggest and most famous brands on the planet, because I have chosen to let myself to be used by our industry and neither should you or anyone. Creativity is far more important than that. I don’t believe that the best creatives should work for the biggest brands for free, or discounted prices, but – pro bono’s and NGO’s excluded – I do expect to get paid properly on my services that – in addition to purpose, meaning and honesty – will generate you fame, growth and income.

I am nothing close to being perfect but a person of many flaws but I try to act and get better. I believe that words matter. That my words matter. More than anything I believe in kindness, empathy, equity and modern day storytelling. Without story there’s still nothing. Please be something.

THIS IS ALSO ME

Terrible piano player, excellent reader, proper surfer of life, master of kind irony, true friend of observations and bicycles, tax and trucker cap lover, Graphite Pencil D&AD winner, eternal fan of Leonard Cohen and the Kentucky Wildcats, hipster-capitalist, reluctant member of advertising juries, frustrated Covid-19 survivor, former professional soccer player and NCAA Div 1 student-athlete and NSCAA Academic All-American whose pro career was over at the age of 18 due to injuries but who still sort of “almost” got signed by the best club team in the world, global citizen with a global creative network, sarcastic, hater, of, Oxford, comma. 21st century digital boy, comma break ruler who doesn’t only think outside the box but blows up the box. Music lover who appreciates Fontaines D.C., Yard Act, Big Special, Bar Italia, Arctic Monkeys, Radiohead, The Strokes, Blur, Arcade Fire, The AA and Nina Simone and who instead of brand consultant sometimes calls himself band consultant. Someone who is still learning and who knows pretty much nothing of anything. Someone who tries to fail more often. Someone who doesn’t care what career means. Someone who tends to ask a lot of questions, even those that are both unpleasant and dumb. Someone with many roles. Someone who sometimes leads, sometimes follows, sometimes advises. Someone with no office spaces but all spaces anywhere, including beaches and sidewalks and rooftops of random buildings, are his offices. Someone with a solid reputation that luckily seems to be going around. Someone who forms strong connections with his clients whom many have become friends. Someone who doesn’t usually work twice with people he does not like. Someone who was using skypes, teams, zooms, slacks or hangouts and whatevers when the rest of the world was still stuck at the physical office spaces and rules that made no sense like it was 2019. Someone who never called all that remote work or hybrid work but simply work. I still do. Rebel is real.