Design is an emergent process largely driven by learning. That means we need to: It takes work to do all three. But that last one can be particularly tricky. Sometimes, folks fixate on an idea they already have and may not actually be open to shifting based on what they’ve learned. Other times, our organizations and/or […]
“I don’t know where to start.” This is a phrase I’ve heard before from folks who want to build a stronger equity design practice but aren’t sure what first steps to take. Here’s the thing: There is no right place to start. Everyone is at a different point in their journey, with different experience to […]
After last week’s email—which discussed a disagreement I once had with a funder about the definition of “healthy food”—I received a question from a reader about how to navigate difficult equity conversations with collaborators who hold power. My answer: It depends. Here are some questions to ask yourself—and answer with honesty—when these situations arise and you need to consider your ability […]
So you’re energized about prototyping out a new idea. The team wants to get community feedback. You start to develop a plan. It’s time to take a moment—to intentionally pause—and consider how power imbalances will show up here. It’s not so much a question of “if” they’ll show up. In our work as designers, power imbalances are almost always present. And, in […]
Having a knee-jerk reaction to a situation can serve a purpose. Like when a fuzzy critter pops out unexpectedly from behind a trash can. Instinctively jumping backward makes sense, from an evolutionary perspective. Having a reactive response as a design team? Not so much. As designers, we’re doing emergent work, which means we’re making decisions […]
Dominant culture operates with a sense of urgency. (And that might feel like a big-time understatement, depending on where you work.) In the fields of design and innovation, we consistently feel pressure to deliver yesterday. As a result, we often jump to producing solutions without taking meaningful time to consider and unpack what’s informing our […]
Everyone holds stress in different ways. This lady carries it in her jaw. (Fellow TMJ disorder folks, I see you.) After years of inconsistently addressing my tension issues, I finally committed to physical therapy at the start of the year. It seems to be going well, so last week, I asked my physical therapist how I would […]
