Imagine a sandy beach... where drawing a line marks your space. This line is your boundary, clear and essential. In design, boundaries are like that line in the sand—they define what’s acceptable and what’s not. They ensure you can make choices that reflect your values and ethics. Boundaries aren’t just about saying “no”; they are about creating safe, respectful, and productive spaces for everyone involved. Think of Johnny Castle’s famous line from Dirty Dancing: “This is my dance space, this...
8 days ago • 1 min read
“Knowledge is power.” Francis Bacon coined this sizzling term in the 16th century, sparking the rise of the scientific method. Nowadays, we might say, “information is power.” In design, this is especially true when discussing project rules and norms. These rules shape our collaboration, defining participation and knowledge sharing. Rules can be straightforward, like how long a co-design session lasts, or subtle, like expected behaviour during critiques. They also cover language, jargon, and...
14 days ago • 1 min read
“I do not understand the human race/Has so little love for creatures with a different face./Treating animals like people is no madness or disgrace./I do not understand the human race.” - Doctor Doolittle - Did you remember the Pushmi-pullyu from Doctor Doolittle? It was that two-headed llama that often struggled to move forward with any sense of clarity about its true direction. When it comes to deciding on the goals and outcomes of a project, designers can often feel like this: stuck between...
22 days ago • 1 min read
"Leadership is not about being in charge. It is about taking care of those in your charge." Simon Sinek The ability to decide who is included or excluded from a project—both those who do the work and those who inform the work— is a significant aspect of design leadership. This encompasses decisions about: Team roles Recruitment Participant selection Leadership assignments These are all influenced by access and role power. This influence extends beyond project setup and continues to shape the...
29 days ago • 1 min read
Isn't it disturbing how an emoji can evoke a whole story about privilege? 👍🏿 👍🏾 👍🏽 👍🏼 👍🏻 👍 Continuing on from our previous newsletter about power, we're diving straight in the deep end with a look at privilege. It is a seriously hot topic these days, as many of our biases and beliefs around subjects such as race, gender, sexuality, neurodiversity, and mental health are being examined and deconstructed. The word 'privilege' comes laden with implied meaning about the people who hold it. And...
about 1 month ago • 2 min read
"The way out, is in." - Melis Senova On Tuesday 4th of June, I was a co-keynote presenter at RMITs Research Conference. It was a great combination of content with Dr Nina Terrey from ThinkPlace taking the systems view, and yours truly taking the inner development view of regenerative design. Many people have reached out since and requested a copy of my presentation. In it, I have included a copy of the Design Character Framework and the conceptual model that describes the building blocks of...
about 2 months ago • 1 min read
"Power is present in our work. Whether we like it or not." - Melis Senova At some point in every Design Character course, someone realises that one of their most important values is Power. The response to this realisation is almost predictable. First, comes judgement. Then, comes shame. Then, comes acceptance. Then, comes empowerment. Not every value has this effect. The judgment is always internal, so is the shame. Over time, as they reflect on how this relates to how they practise design,...
about 2 months ago • 2 min read
"Energy flows where attention goes." - Tony Robbins The word energy is bandied around a lot these days. To be clear, in a design and leadership context, we're looking at the energy of attention. Where are we focussing it, in what ways, and with how much oomph? Here are four types of energy to consider in the work you do. IntellectualAs knowledge workers, we primarily use intellectual energy by thinking. The brain takes up 2% of our body weight, yet uses 20% of our resting metabolic rate....
2 months ago • 2 min read
How do you press hold on meaning making? Look to Mindful Attention. Last week we covered four main types of attention as they relate to design and leadership. This week, we're pausing here for a deeper look at mindful attention. Imagine a design scenario where you are in a group interview. Different people are sharing different aspects of their experience. They are simply describing what happened and what they did. A participant says something that you quickly interpret and extrapolate the...
2 months ago • 2 min read