Explore DesignShifts
Here, you’ll find the DesignShifts we’re exploring both in theory and in practice. Each topic explores Shifting the posture, power, perspective, practice, and the purpose of design.
DesignShift: From Expecting And Evaluating to Experiencing And Enjoying
DesignShift: From Reactive to Rooted
As designers, how do we stay rooted in an industry that is always changing? It’s estimated that 90% of the world's data was generated in the last two years alone. With a constant stream of “new” information, trends quickly become truths as we try to design what’s new and what’s n
When algorithms and that internal voice tell us to read, respond, and engage with everything, how do we let go of reactivity and become rooted in the things that matter?
DesignShift: From Reactive to Rooted.
DesignShift: From Performing to Process
If creativity becomes about clicking a button to turn our work into reality, haven’t we lost what creating is all about? The PROCESS of bringing something to life… The trial and errors… The unstructured play… The mistakes that turn into unexpected solutions…
DesignShift: From performing to process.
A while ago, I heard someone say that they like how AI can help them bring their ideas to life instantly. I remember thinking that this person is either overworked or does not like the creative process.
If we want to skip the making part of “making” something, do we really want to make or do we just want to "make it"?
DesignShift: From Extraordinary to Ordinary
A lot of design is done in the name of innovation and recognition. We try to design what’s new and what’s next in order to become a leader or gain recognition. But as we chase the extraordinary, are we losing sight of what really matters?
DesignShift: From chasing the extraordinary to valuing the ordinary.
Our strive for more often makes us feel less. Less happy with the work we are doing. Less satisfied in our relationships. Less content with the things we create. The same way we fail to notice the beauty of ordinary people, we forget to notice the beauty of an ordinary life.
DesignShift: From Consumption to Contentment
What would it look like to move design from a tool that supports consumption to a practice that centers contentment?
Our endless focus on MORE creates a world where we feel “less than”. And when we feel “less than”, we consume in order to fill the void created by a mind that is always running.
What if design could help us learn our triggers, see things more clearly, and maybe even make us feel more satisfied with what we already have?
This post is inspired by a great conversation with Anna Rátkai, who explores design and overconsumption.
DesignShift: From Fear to Love
What would happen if we shifted our mindset from one that is motivated by fear to one that is catalyzed by love?
I often think about how fear drives many of our decisions and actions. The fear of people stealing our ideas. The fear of the competition going to market before we do. The fear of getting fat. Or old. Or forgotten.
Fear can motivate us to take action; To go to the gym when we don’t feel like it or to keep working on our ideas when inspiration starts to fade. But fear also brings with it a sense of not-enoughness. The fear of not doing enough. The fear of not being enough.
What if… fear is not the best way to achieve our goals or save the planet? What if LOVE could be our motivator and catalyst? Fear is rooted in scarcity: I’m not enough and I don’t have enough. Fear prioritizes “me.” Love centers wholeness: I am already enough and there is enough for everyone. Love prioritizes “we”
What if… instead of saying: “l am fighting climate change because I'm scared the world will end” we said: “I love this earth so much, therefore I want to do everything I can to protect it.” Instead of thinking: “I need to share another post because I am scared that I will become irrelevant, we centered the idea of: “I love this topic/idea and I want to gift it to people?”
If we moved from fear to love, how would our work change? If we moved from fear to love, how will our lives change?
Let’s shift together
No one knows it all. Together we know a lot. See a Shift that aligns with your current work or passion? What to co-write a shift or host a collaboration session? I would love to connect.