The three worst helmet logos are rather obvious. Helmet logos with letters are boring and unimaginative. Two are from Gotham.

Here was the criteria for the best NFL Helmet Logos. The criteria for the worst is just the opposite.

1. Image only. Logos that have letters or initials are unimaginative. A good logo is iconic.
2. Artistic interpretation of the mascot.
3. Uniqueness – A helmet treatment that conveys the mascot in a novel way.
4. Local or regional meaning. A logo that drawings on the local culture and is incorporated into the image gets extra credit.

The New York Jets helmet is the worst in the NFL. Why? It is busy, full of letter, the NY is barely discernable, the football icon is small and primitive. If you have to type the name and the nickname of your team on the helmet, you lack imagination. They can do better.

Ahh, the New York Giants logo. Big city, nickname Giants - and they use small letters? The use of letters alone is silly. But, this helmet logo makes no sense and does not say anything about the about anything.

The Tennessee Titans has more going for than just letters, but it has nothing do with Tennessee. It has a “T” with some comet motif and three stars. It just seems contrived. It just a bad design and a bad nickname.

This week I will render an “authoritative” opinion on the best three NFL helmet logos. Next week I will do the worst three NFL helmets.

Here are the criteria for a good logo that weighs into my choices. 

1. Image only. Logos that have letters or initials are unimaginative. A good logo is iconic.
2. Artistic interpretation of the mascot.
3. Uniqueness – A helmet treatment that conveys the mascot in a novel way.
4. Local or regional meaning. A logo that drawings on the local culture and is incorporated into the image gets extra credit.

This seems more like I am judging figure skating.

Atlanta Falcons – The Falcon is the best stylized treatment of all NFL logos. Good use of color and anatomical features like the eyes, beck, wing, and talon. (image source is www.sportslogos.net)

Cincinnati Bengals – The Bengal strips are unique; some say ugly. But I think this is the most inspired helmet design in the NFL. They do a good job on thier uniforms too. (image source is www.sportslogos.net)

Seattle Seahawks – I don’ know what a Seahawk is. But if its image was designed by the aboriginal tribes of the Pacific Northwest, then it might look something the this logo. This Seahawk image did a great job of incorporating strong regional cultural design (image source is www.sportslogos.net)

Share with me your favorite helmet logos. Tell me why you like it and don’t be a homer!

You can drawing your symbols about you at www.mikons.com

I saw this logo while riding my mountain bike crossing some railroad tracks in Northern Idaho – The Great Northern Railroad. It is a great image representing of the feat that Railroad Companies had to overcome laying track across the Northern Rockies. Although the use of animals is common among logo creators, few use the Rocky Mountain Mountain Goat.

Consider the ubiquity of animals like lions, bulls, and eagles in logos. They certainly share a common meaning with us all. But the risk that companies take when using animal representations in logos is that they compromise uniqueness in branding.  Other companies selling bicycles and outdoor apparel have used the mountain goat image, but none are as strong the Great Northern Railway logo.

Here is a cool simple icon or logo for Girl Friend that was made at Mikons.com.  This is a good symbol because it draws off some iconic images that we already relate to.  The initials like are reminiscent of the “CK” of Calvin Klein.  And pink is obviously feminine.

Make your symbols and start your own iconic communication at Mikons.

The lore of St. Patty has it that this patron Saint would roam the Irish countryside wearing the common three-leaf clover to symbolize the Christian Trinity.  Saint Patrick has a fascinating story.   It is claimed that he died on March 17, 493. 

The Irish call the common ubiquitous white clover the Shamrock.  In fact, the Irish Government has registered the Shamrock as an official trademark.

Was the shamrock lucky?  Well, if you happened to pick on of the rare mutant four leaf clover  it was.  It was lucky because it was rare.

Here is Luck O’ the Irish to you!

Do you see that logo?  What comes to mind when you look at it.  Witness what you think as look at it.  Notice that you bring all your biases to bear as you take inventory of your feelings while you look this now iconic logo.

Now, move your political disposition aside and watch this video by Bill Whittle fo PJTV.  If are attached to the polarity of our contemporary political scene then you will either rejoice at the message or revile it.  But if you put yourself in the place of an observer, then will understand the point of the title of this post.

Whatever your biases are beware of what you believe.

Explore the power of icons for yourself at www.Mikons.com and www.MikonMixers.com.

Mona Lizard

I subscribe to Seth Godin’s blog.  I have read many of his books and am always taken by the simplicity of his insights.  This blog post by Seth dates back to late January, but has stuck with me.  It is about Courage and being Brand You.  Being YOU happens when you exercise the courage to stare down our own biology and begin to become YOU.  Here is what Seth has to say.

How can I explain the never-ending irrationality of human behavior?We say we want one thing, then we do another. We say we want to be successful but we sabotage the job interview. We say we want a product to come to market, but we sandbag the shipping schedule. We say we want to be thin but we eat too much. We say we want to be smart but we skip class or don’t read that book the boss lent us.

The contradictions never end. When someone shows up and acts without contradiction, we’re amazed. When an athlete just does the sport, or when a writer just writes the words, we can’t help but watch, astonished at the purity of their actions. Why is it so difficult to do what we say we’re going to do?

The lizard brain.

Or as Stephen Pressfield describes it, the resistance. The resistance is the voice in the back of our head telling us to back off, be careful, go slow, compromise. The resistance is writer’s block and putting jitters and every project that ever shipped late because people couldn’t stay on the same page long off to get something out the door.

The resistance grows in strength as we get closer to shipping, as we get closer to an insight, as we get closer to the truth of what we really want. That’s because the lizard hates change and achievement and risk.

The lizard is a physical part of your brain, the pre-historic lump near the brain stem that is responsible for fear and rage and reproductive drive. Why did the chicken cross the road? Because her lizard brain told her to.

Want to know why so many companies can’t keep up with Apple? It’s because they compromise, have meetings, work to fit in, fear the critics and generally work to appease the lizard. Meetings are just one symptom of an organization run by the lizard brain. Late launches, middle of the road products and the rationalization that goes with them are others.

The amygdala isn’t going away. Your lizard brain is here to stay, and your job is to figure out how to quiet it and ignore it. This is so important, I wanted to put it on the cover of my new book. We realized, though, that the lizard brain is freaked out by a picture of itself, and if you want to sell books to someone struggling with the resistance (that would be all of us) best to keep it a little more on the down low.

Now you’ve seen the icon and you know its name. What are you going to do about it?

Are you looking for that symbolic iconic image of YOU?  Go to Mikons.com and create the Brand YOU!

Vote for the Best Team Logo – and don’t be a homer.

You can make your own fun sets of mikon choices and “personality profiles” at www.MikonMixers.com.