I was reading Lia Haberman’s Substack last week (highly recommended, by the way), and she shared where creativity stands right now — here are my takeaways.
Takeaways:
Design is emotional, not just aesthetic. “Well-designed” doesn’t mean polished or corporate — it means content that connects emotionally, feels human, and is easy to process
Stop chasing polish; prioritize connection and authenticity
Gen Z leads the shift. They embrace imperfection, experimentation, and co-creation. Their “creative maximalism” blends memes, layered visuals, and global cultural references
It’s not about the format, it’s about how it makes you feel. It’s about content that hits an emotional chord. It could be a scrappy TikTok or a graphic carousel
Thoughts in regard to Sircle:
There’s still room for stylized content, but the bar is different now
There is still a time and place for photography, stop motion, and 3D animation, but they have to do more than “look pretty”
Which we have always said at Sircle! Every piece of content needs to be strategic and have a WHY
The biggest takeaway is that content must feel human, emotional, and connected. A polished stop motion or 3D piece works best when it has storytelling, humor, or surprise baked in
Content variety is all about balance
Brands that only put out “perfect” content risk seeming out of touch. But when polished assets are layered into a mix with UGC, scrappy iPhone shots, and trend-based content, they feel intentional and premium, not sterile.
UGC can be positioned as the always-on content and keep photography/3D/stop motion as the hero moments (launches, campaigns, brand storytelling).
