Anticipate but...
The first element in my alphabetic mnemonic list for successfully practicing design is: Anticipate But… This involves a dance between two forces – preparedness and stillness. Consider meetings, for example. They’re a regular fixture of any architecture or design practice. It…
Balance Beautifully
The “B” element in my alphabetic mnemonic list for successfully practicing design is: Balance Beautifully. Whether you’re arranging flowers or designing a building, this concept is crucial. We tend to think of balance as a state of harmony between extremes. We find it with…
Create Courage
The “C” element in my alphabetic mnemonic list for successfully practicing design is: Create Courage. Design is a journey to a new place. New means risk. Why go there? If you don’t have a reason to take a risk, you won’t. Courage means having a bold vision that overshadows the…
Delight in Diversity
The “D” element in my alphabetic mnemonic list for successfully practicing design is: Delight in Diversity. Why is diversity in design practice so often simply tolerated rather than enthusiastically embraced? If your business is business as usual, you might think of diversity as…
Engage Enthusiastically
The “E” element in my alphabetic mnemonic list for successfully practicing design is: Engage Enthusiastically. Are you enthusiastically engaged and passionately sharing the work you are doing? If you’re not feeling fully engaged in your work, and you’re not enthusiastically…
Find the Figure
The “F” element in my alphabetic mnemonic list for successfully practicing design is: Find the Figure. When was the last time you were accused of not seeing the forest for the trees? In our caffeinated, attention-deficit inducing Information Age, the deluge of imagery in our…
Get Grounded
The “G” element in my alphabetic mnemonic list for successfully practicing design is: Get Grounded. Riddle: What do electrical work and artistic painting have in common? Answer: They both require being grounded. Granted, they have very different grounding techniques, but the…
Humans have needs
The “H” element in my alphabetic mnemonic list for successfully practicing design is: Humans Have Needs. When was the last time you were somewhere you thought you didn’t belong? Probably within the last 24 hours. I’m talking about buildings and places where your comfort as a…
Improve Iteratively
The “I” element in my alphabetic mnemonic list for successfully practicing design is: Improve Iteratively. In the design process, what happens after you have that big “aha!” moment? Arriving at a core concept or gestalt idea for a project is exhilarating, but if you don’t know…
Joy is Contagious
The “J” element in my alphabetic mnemonic list for successfully practicing design is: Joy is Contagious. Our founding fathers almost got it right: “…life, liberty and the pursuit of…” Joy. It seems like a dirty word, or something that’s too good to ask for. And yet we’ve all…