Mindshift

YouTube channel branding

Project: Logo & Brand Design
Client: Mindshift
Role: Logo & Brand Designer
Deliverables: Visual identity, logo system, YouTube graphics

In 2023, I began working with Brandon as Mindshift was finding its footing as a new YouTube channel. Building on his previous success as a book reviewer, the channel was already developing an audience and a distinct voice, creating an opportunity to give that momentum a stronger visual foundation.

What began as an exploration of the channel’s visual direction grew into the branding of Mindshift (formerly “Mind Shift”), beginning with a logo and channel art before expanding into a broader visual identity. Brandon also brought his audience into the process, using community polls to gather feedback on logo iterations and help shape the final direction.

Logo design

“The individual has always had to struggle to keep from being overwhelmed by the tribe...”
— Friedrich Nietzsche

There are tradeoffs in social belonging. At its worst, conformity erases autonomy. When that becomes the cost, some choose the risk of individuality. Building on firsthand experience, Mindshift advocates for saving the individual from groups that would do harm to their uniqueness and independence. The logo is an inspirational symbol of unyielding individuality when challenged by the status quo.

White squares represent minds bound by ideology ("the tribe"). They're held together by a grid that rigidly maintains their size and orientation. The negative space creates a cage or prison, a sign of social and ideological control. The logo is extremely simple — a square made of squares — so that "thinking inside of the box" is hinted at strongly.

The orange square represents a mind that's shifted. It bears the same shape as the others, where human similarity and kinship remain, but the color and slant mark a difference — the mark of an individual, strength, and personal sovereignty.

Shape language & visual identity

The visuals are fun, geometric, kinetic, and a little edgy. If edges aren't sharp, then they're often blurred by an atmospheric sense of heat. Abstract references to metamorphic rock, gems, metals, or diamonds are intended to symbolize what commonly goes on inside of those who undergo religious deconstruction.

Like a rock that becomes a gemstone, a person can be transformed by the difficult social pressures of life. Energy enters a person to face this challenge, changing them into something new over time. This narrative is what Mindshift is about, a channel dedicated to challenging thoughts and authority, including one’s own limiting beliefs, in pursuit of freedom, truth, and rationality.

Outcome

The channel design was met with strong enthusiasm from both Brandon and his community. Since then, Mindshift has grown from 10,000 to 100,000 subscribers, and Brandon has made appearances on shows like The Hang-Up with Matt Dillahunty, MythVision, Deep Drinks, Paulogia, and hosted popular guests on his own podcast like Trent Horn and Britt Hartley.

“I’ve done the ‘Fiverr’ thing, and they failed in comparison to the attention and the work I got from Kaleb.”
— Brandon, Mindshift

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