WORKLIFEDESIGN

Brilliant ideas are all around us. The challenge today seems to be identifying those that can actually provide some insight into the questions or issues that we are facing.

To sort through the chaff, I find I will listen to the recommendations by colleagues, clients, family, friends and trusted interweb sources. They’ll often mention magazines, books, blogs, websites, events or simply ideas that are inspiring them.

Three of these little gems have really impressed me this year.

the design files

type blog

www.thedesignfiles.net

Caste your mind back to a time before the internet… drift … drift … drift … Did you ever cut out photos, ads, illustrations, products, etc from magazines and keep a file of your cherished desired items? No? Oh well, I’ve been a long time fan of The File and I love seeing what’s in Lucy Feagin’s File on all things designie. She interviews all sorts of creative types about their work and life and also features interiors of homes that are alive with their occupants’ obsessions, passions and personalities. One of my favourite posts this year has been on notebooks (you know, those things some of us still scribble in) but I’m just as taken by the furniture, fabrics and art of local makers. Lucy is truly gifted in finding the gorgeous and often simple objects that make our spaces full of wonder and beauty. [the design files: recommended by Kate James]

dumbo feather, pass it on

type mook

www.dumbofeather.com

I’m fairly new to the dumbo feather world but it is certainly a place that I intend to regularly visit. dumbo feather is a mook (sort of a magazine, sort of a book) and each quarterly issue features the stories of  five ‘remarkable individuals’. There a side-articles within each feature which draw out some of the ideas touched on a little more.  I find as I bounce from one article to the next, I keep being struck by a strange feeling. It’s the feeling that something very special is being said. It’s the feeling that this little mook is quite brilliant – not only in the people and ideas it gives space but how it does it. It looks and feels beautiful. [dumbo feather: recommended by Kate James]

fear.less

type online mag

www.fearlessstories.com

Fear is one of those things that most of us are well acquainted with. It holds us back, makes us do stupid things and usually oversteps its purpose of keeping us alive. So this magazine, that features the unique stories of people overcoming fear, is such a treasure. I like it because it has interviews with people I greatly admire such as Robert Thurman, Sharon Salzberg, Karen Armstron, Ben Zander and Howard Zinn as well as people I’ve never heard of who are just getting out there and living (as the blurb says) ‘remarkable lives’. fear.less is a free monthly online magazine that you can download or view online. [fear.less recommended by Christine McDougall]

How stories can help you remember what’s important

Sometimes I discover new ideas or designs or artists or writers through these publications, but mostly they help me remember.

I’ll be looking through the photos of someone’s home in The Design Files and remember that I really like a particular period of furniture design, or art, or fabric or the way light can be used to change the mood of a room. I remember how physical objects impact upon my space.

I’ll be looking at an issue of fear.less and remember that I really quite like the way Seth Godin formats his ebooks in landscape so you don’t have to scroll down and down and down and down. Or, I’ll remember that ebooks don’t have to look like books but can have their very own style which makes them easy to read and easy on the eye.

I’ll be looking at dumbo feather and remember that writing doesn’t have to be so minimalist. I’ll remember that stories that inspire don’t have to be “woo I’ve made it. I’m so cool.” but can have doubts and obstacles and heartache. In fact they are better if they do because they are more realistic and show the resilience and creativity of the human spirit. In the face of all this crap, this person continues.

It’s brilliant ideas like this that help me remember what’s important, and being aware of that makes all the difference in how I work and live.

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“It’s not hard to make decisions when you know what your values are.” Roy Disney

In order to go into the world and live a life you love, you need to know a little bit about yourself. You need to know what’s important to you, what your values are, and how they can guide all the decisions – big and little – you make in your life.

Being aware of your values not only helps you with decisions but also gives you direction. You are able to ask yourself at any time, “Is doing this helping me create a life I love, or is it hindering me?” You begin to live with intention, rather than adrift in the drama of your own and other people’s lives. Your purpose becomes clear.

Getting in touch with your values also helps you reconnect with and understand your passion for life.

A passion for animal rescue may reflect how important the treatment of all living creatures is for you.

A passion for the provision of services for immigrants may reflect how important social justice is for you.

A passion for, um, disco music may reflect how important feeling joy may be for you.

There are all sorts of ways to get clear on your values. You can look at moments in your life when you’ve had heightened emotions (happy, sad, angry, etc) and draw out the value that was being honoured or in conflict in those situations.

One of the easiest ways I’ve found is by doing a Values Sort. It took me 20 years to find a really good list of values but I finally came across the list used in research by Miller, C’DeBaca, Matthews and Wilbourne which captures the core values quite well. (As well as having scope to ‘add your own values’)

To help you get clear on what’s important to you, I’ve developed the handy Sorting Out Your Values exercise.

Download Sorting Out Your Values