Seth’s Blog: Without training wheels
Sage wisdom in concentrated form
Eric Avner
Great interview with Eric about the philanthropic lab I'm working with this year. "No yarn-bombing (sorry)"
A Checklist for Everyday.
Megan and DJ are great thinkers and I love this list.
9 Steps to Hating Yourself a Little Less
My friend Erik said this was a good 10 minute read. I'm filing it away. Cursory skim suggests I will enjoy this piece and find something meaningful and file it away and forget it when I really need it the most. :-)
Adam Driver on Arts and the Military
What an articulate and passionate man, this Adam Driver. Great TED talk and demonstration of his non-for-profit. / via Coudal
Goldie Hawn in an ABC interview.
I've always liked Goldie, and love what she's been up to out of the spotlight (mediation techniques for kids to be more mindful). Dig this quote: “I think it isn't about finding happiness,” Hawn said. “It's about staying mindful about what makes you happy, and those are two different things.”
Dad’s raw, beautiful post about wife trying to get pregnant delivers every single emotion.
Dan is my neighbor, and this provides a glimpse into his incredibly thoughtful mind.
The Amateur Cloud Society That (Sort Of) Rattled the Scientific Community
Pretor-Pinney wanted an alluring title for his talk, to draw a crowd. “Wouldn’t it be funny,” he thought, “to have a society that defends clouds against the bad rap they get — that stands up for clouds?” So he called it “The Inaugural Lecture of the Cloud Appreciation Society.” And it worked. / via Jake from People's Liberty
OOUX: A Foundation for Interaction Design
Cursory glance says this approach is intriguing and valuable. To read in depth later. via @tomstuder
South Park Writers Share Their Writing Rule #1
“but” and “therefore”
A Minute — Lucy Knops
An app to do nothing for one minute.
How To Pay Attention
20 Ways To Win The War Against Seeing by Rob Walker / via Coudal
At Work with Wolff Olins’ Humble, Non-“arsehole” Designers
Being humble speaks to having the wisdom to look around the room, wonder what everyone else is bringing to the table, and ask ‘what can I learn from them?’ / via @meganmdeal
We Are What We Build, by Eric Meyer · The Manual
It's up to us to build a web that takes a stance on how we should treat each other. / via Waxy (I saw the presentation form of this talk at XOXO 2015, it was moving)
Matters Brand
Featuring the NOW watch, which I LOVE. / via Swiss-Miss
Seth’s Blog: On saying “no”
"If it's going to distract you from the work that truly matters, pass."
It’s not you. Bad doors are everywhere.
"Don Norman's seminal book on design, The Design of Everyday Things, was motivated by the issue." Great video and insight.
What makes a good life?
Robert Waldinger has research to explain.
Seth’s Blog: How to talk about your project
These are good questions.
How BuzzFeed’s Jonah Peretti Is Building A 100-Year Media Company
"Rather than write one definitive article and publish it on every platform (the de facto standard in the media business), BuzzFeed would tailor content specifically for the network and audience where it’s being viewed." All that and more. Long read. / via Kottke
Anywhere but Medium
I like Medium, but I fear any service that is the sole location of one's content / via DaringFireball
IBM Design Thinking
This looks meaty, with nuggets like "Empathy: first with each other, then with our users.” / via Yewknee
Neal Stephenson is a sociomediapath
(and his site is really hard to read) --- I get the challenge of consuming vs creating. This post by Neal is simply a description of how he plans to use social media in the future. I could chew on this topic for many more scrolls
Dear Teacher: Heartfelt Advice for Teachers from Students
Seriously good. / via Wendy
You Don’t Get Forever
I was very lucky to be in the audience for Amit Gupta's talk at XOXO. I'll (probably) never forget what I said to my neighbor at the end.
How We Hold Our Gadgets · An A List Apart Article
Interesting to see how different sized devices have different hot zones. Logical, but infuriating when designing for such variables.
Classes & Events : Society of Grownups
intrigued.
I’m Sorry I Didn’t Respond to Your Email, My Husband Coughed to Death Two Years Ago
"Probably the biggest finding of the past two years for me is that being comfortable being uncomfortable is a very effective way to be a human." A sad story, a tinge of hope for new beginnings in this personal piece. / via Kottke
How to Live Wisely – The New York Times
Solid exercises. / via studiomate Tom
How to Write a Condolence Note
I've searched this exact phrase before, looking for genuine answers. This provides wonderful options. / via swiss-miss
Paramedic shares perspective about minimum wage increase
A wonderful perspective at that
The User Experience of Creative Sprints
This sounds like something something work something, but probably valuable and I should read it.
The Science of ‘Inside Out’ – NYTimes.com
to read later because I LOVED the movie extra lots. /via Kottke
Joe Neyer: Dying with dignity by living with quality
This man was a friend of our studio, and this article is incredibly moving
Obvious Always Wins
When designing your site, or application, or mobile app, make sure the most important bits are exposed.
On writing post-fatherhood
I don't have kids, but I think there's value in this notion to not give up on The Thing
Steve Albini: State of the Music Industry 2015
Worth a listen
Everything I know about a good death I learned from my cat
great piece. favorite line? " One of her favorite moods is murder"
How Etsy Alienated Its Crafters and Lost Its Soul
I never go to Etsy first or to browse, I only go directly to folks I dig when sent via a link. It used to be a place I could get lost in...
Writing Your Way to Happiness
The research wonders if you refine your personal narrative, can you change your behaviors. I think most definitely, you can. At least enough to believe it. / via NextDraft
Cultural concepts
New words (for me) to understand: Friluftsliv, Shinrin-yoku, Hygge/Gemütlichkeit, Kaizen, Jugaad... Essentially I'm all for learning new things that help me justify enjoying life more.
The Sixth Stage of Grief is Retro-Computing by Paul Ford
It's not even noon and I spent three chunks of time getting through this essay about life. It was so worth it. My virtual highlighter ran out of ink.
Three rules for a happy designer
I like these rules very much. / via @thefoxisblack
What is something someone said that forever changed your way of thinking?
There are good parts of the internet.
How the Colbert Report is made
I'm trying to find a way to listen to podcasts. This is a perfect episode to inspire me. I'm just 7 minutes in and I'm digging hardcore. (Agreed about Reddit. It's not as interesting as it used to be.) Additional note: Stephen learned how to write through improv.
Error Page
"...please, enjoy life. Take it by both hands, grab it, shake it and believe in every second of it..."
And So There Must Come an End
"...please, enjoy life. Take it by both hands, grab it, shake it and believe in every second of it..."
A lesson – Bobulate
"Creative pursuits hold an inherent need for choice, whether we consider music, art, literature, dance, or design. Every great story is surrounded by white space of some kind. Blank spaces are powerful. The author and designer choose not to lay out a page with text to every edge. Its white space is part of the story it tells. What we choose to leave out creates the story." Love this piece by Liz Danzico / via SwissMiss but it reminds me I need to dust off the RSS for more gems
I Want To Live
An illustrated perspective about life, loss and working through it. Powerfully good. / via @waxy
How to Be Polite by Paul Ford
I can't pick out a single phrase to sum up the joy I had reading this piece about manners, empathy and when you get down to it? Love.
A salad with too many walnuts or a sauce with too many capers is like a Sunday with too many free hours – you stop appreciating the pleasure they provide.
A quote from April Bloomfield from her new book 'The Chef Says'
Hit the Reset Button in Your Brain
If you’re feeling overwhelmed, there’s a reason: The processing capacity of the conscious mind is limited.
You Are Not Late by Kevin Kelly
"The last 30 years has created a marvelous starting point, a solid platform to build truly great things. However the coolest stuff has not been invented yet — although this new greatness will not be more of the same-same that exists today. It will not be merely “better,” it will different, beyond, and other." / via @austinkleon's excellent email newsletter
Response to Bustle’s 31 Questions About Kim Kardashian Hollywood
Kfan offers thoughtful response to some questions about Kim's video game. I'm not a fan of fame, but I'm trying to find my core of love. Writing like this helps me.
Productivity Quest: Ultra-Schedule
yes to this way to fill up a calendar Jessica Hische
Read a book instead
Austin Kleon made a fine wallpaper for his phone
The Daily Routines of Famous Creative People
An infographic of interest, though I feel these rhythms cannot be rote.
The Curse of Smart People. (The context is business, but it applies to everything)
"...logic does not always agree with reality, and the obviously right solution does not lead to obviously happy customers, and it's unsettling because maybe smartness isn't enough, and maybe if we don't feel like we know what we're doing, it's because we don't." / via DaringFireball
Bill Callahan. Dan Bejar. Will Oldham. Cass McCombs.
Each explain how their songs come into existence. Or at least try. / thx @meredithlistens
Searching for Necessity
Tomorrow Today traveled to 11 American cities to connect with visionaries of civic, cultural and social innovation. Just beginning to digging into this.