Inspired by an infographic by inbalancedar.com
Ways to Refocus A Team
How to give a critique?
Inspired by an Instagram Post by Chris Do
In his post Chris Do talks us through the Sandwich Technique for giving a critic.
It goes a little something like this:
Start by focusing on what is currently working.
Give specific and constructive criticism. What can be improved?
Always end on a genuine positive note.
Chris is smashing it with his instagram carousel posts at the moment, I can barely keep up with reading them let alone making nudenotes on them!
I am trying to note down as many as I can and will be sharing them soon. Watch this space.
I am going to work on a blog article about my process of turning Instagram carousels into nudenotes.
Let me know in the comments below if this interests you?
How to Stay Positive in a Negative Situation
Inspired by a post on Pinterest.
How do you stay positive in a negative situation?
A positive mental attitude is sometimes a struggle to maintain in this chaotic modern environment.
Staying positive is something you have to constantly work on — it can have a dramatic effect on how you see the world around you, and your impact on it!
These questions can help you gain a much needed rational perspective on all the things that put a downer on your life.
All the tools you needed to start 2020 off in the best possible way!
7 Core Behaviours for Honourable Leadership
Inspired by The Honour Code created by Lee Ellis
How do you lead with honour?
Lee created this list to:
"inspire leaders who are seeking to live with character, courage and commitment everyday".
Sounds like a good plan to me.
Here's the list:
Tell the truth even when it's difficult.
Treat others with dignity and respect.
Keep your word and your commitments.
Be ethical.
Be courageous.
Act responsibly; do your duty, and be accountable.
Live your values.
How many of these do you seek to fulfil everyday, when interacting with others?
Lifehacks Pt. 6
Inspired by posts made by lifehack.org , which I discovered on Pinterest.
Who doesn't love a good lifehack ?
We all love discovering a short cut that will save us time, money and effort. In these nudenotes I am sharing 4 lists full of wisdom.
In this packed spread of notes you can find:
Everyday Habits That Drain Our Energy.
8 Hard Truths About Life I Wish I Knew Earlier.
8 Quotes To Keep You Motivated Everyday.
Goal Setting To The Now.
I love reading and sharing these bite-sized bits of life wisdom. Who knows when they will come in handy!
9 Proven Strategies to Become More Charismatic
Inspired by a Business Insider Article.
How to become more charismatic?
Do you have trouble communicating with others?
Are you an introvert looking to reach out more?
Developing your charisma could be the answer. .
Charisma is one of those skills that you develop over time, and is the result of learned behaviours.
You're not born with it - you grow into it.
How do you do this?
According to Psychology Today Charisma is the ability to attract, charm and influence the people around you. Who doesn't want more of that ability?
Hopefully these 9 strategies will help you develop your own charismatic abilities. It's a tricky skill to develop but this list has definitely helped highlight areas I need to improve.
The Six Keys To Packaging Design Success
Inspired by a section from the book Packaging Design Workbook by Steven DuPuis and John Silva.
What makes for a success piece of packaging design?
I am a Packaging Designer by day, and I'm always keen to learn new and exciting techniques to improve my process or outcomes.
This book is a great deep-dive into packaging design, from its origins and processes to some insightful case studies. I would definetly recommend it to any one interested in packaging design.
Successful packaging design is the cross roads between so many creative disciplines.
The six keys in this spread of nudenotes highlights that.
Don't react - proact.
Connect on an emotional level.
Don't settle for parity.
Focus on core values.
Collaborate.
This six keys have opened my eyes to some new interesting ideas I hope to weave into my packaging designs.
Which is your favourite key to packaging design success?
11 Killer Tips To Stop Saying "Ummm" Forever
Inspired by an infographic by London Speaker Bureau.
How often do you say 'ummm'?
For most of us, public speaking ranks high on their worst fears.
As the nervous energy rises inside you, all your bad habits rise to the surface — the most common of these is the use of filler words 'ummm', 'so', etc.
Using these filler words is a credibility killer.
Mastering your internal nerves takes time and experience, and even then, it doesn't ever truly disappear.
While I was studying Product Design at University, I spent a lot of time presenting work and listening to others present.
This constant exposure to public speaking helped me overcome a lot of these bad habits — but even now, I still find that a little 'ummm' sneaks out.
I’ve still got much to learn about being a better public speaker, but I know these notes have given me a few more ideas and techniques to use.
Whether you’re giving a speech, sharing your ideas in a meeting or facilitating a brainstorm, I hope these 11 tips help you to stop filler words from creeping into your lives.
If you have any other tips to stop saying filler words, let me know in the comments.
A Retired Navy Seal Commander’s 12 Rules For Leaders
Inspired by an article on Business Insider.
What can a retired Navy Seal teach us about leadership?
A lot, actually!
I really enjoyed reading about his thoughts on leadership in the article, and I’ll be adding his book, Extreme Ownership: How US Navy SEALs Lead and Win to my ever-growing reading list.
Here is one of my favourite quotes from that article:
"Just as discipline and freedom are opposing forces that must be balanced, leadership requires finding the equilibrium in the dichotomy of many seemingly contradictory qualities between one extreme and another.
By being aware of these seeming contradictions, a leader can more easily balance the opposing forces and lead with maximum effectiveness."
Which is rule is your favourite?
10 Step Strategic Planning Process
Inspired by an infographic created by on Red Sage.
How do you put together a strategic plan?
It's a common misconception that strategic planning takes a tonne of time and resources.
Many businesses and brands wait too long to create a strategic plan. This results in a foggy vision of your goals, the road to which will unclear.
Strategic Planning lifts that fog and allows your brand and business to grow and improve in the right direction towards your goals.
It can be a long and complicated journey, but it doesn't have to be - I hope these nudenotes help you develop your own strategic plans. So you can achieve your brand and business goals!
Techniques That Will Improve Your Communication Skills
Inspired by an infographic I discovered on Design Taxi, which was originally created by NeoMam Studios
How do you improve your communication skills at work?
Communication is the key to success in many things but especially business.
Sometimes to communicate correctly it seems difficult, but just because it is difficult doesn't mean its not worth the extra time and effort needed to ensure your communication skills are on point!
Some of you with a keen eye for detail will notice a blurry cap in my notes. The reason for this is I actually got the titles for two of the sections the wrong way around. I managed to photoshop the main spread image but couldn't fix the others.
Communication doesn't have to be a danger zone that we all tip-toe around. My hope is that these notes help you to communicate better in emails, conversations and meetings at work so you can achieve your goals faster and more effectively than ever before.
Ready. Set. Innovate.
Inspired by an infographic created by entrpreneur.com.
Top 10 Agile Fails
Inspired by an infographic created by taskworld.com.
Is your agile framework failing?
An agile framework is one of the most popular approaches to software-development. Although many of these techniques and processes can easily translate into other creative disciplines.
Business and organisations that use an agile approach are quick to respond and adapt to changes in the market place or environment.
But we all know, things that can go wrong, will go wrong - as the age old design mantra goes:
"Plan for the best, but prepare for the worst".
In these nudenotes we take a look at the common fails of the agile framework and mindset and how to overcome them.
Whether you are a product designer, software designer, graphic design , packaging designer or any other type of designer. I am sure you will relate to many, if not all of these fails.
I hope these notes shine a spotlight on some fails you may not have notice within your own teams and projects, and light the way to overcoming them.
Remember what Chris Do says:
"F.A.I.L - stands for: First Attempt In Learning."
Increase Your Hustle: Ways To Work Smart and Healthy
Inspired by an infographic created by Think Creative Collective
How do you increase your hustle?
Increasing your hustle does not need to come at the cost of your healthy, happiness or most importantly your sanity.
We often hear and use phrases like "living for the weekend" or "thank god its Friday" - these phrases always seemed strange to me. Living only 2/7th of your life seems like crazy and a bit of a waste!?
It's time to reframe how we look at our hustles to ensure they are healthy for our mind, body and soul. I hope the nudenotes help you with your own reframing.
Let me know in the comments below if you have any other tips and tricks for smarter and healthier ways to work.
20 Cognitive Biases That Screw Up Your Decisions
Inspired by an infographic created by Business Insider.
Do your biases screw up your decision making?
Would you even spot it if they did? I know, I don't - I have already made several nudenotes already on Cognitive Biases, the more I dive into this topic, the more intriguing and useful I find them.
I'm not one to normally someone who naturally thinks about these kind of things. However, from a Designers perspective, the more I read about them, the more I feel understanding these cognitive biases and how to deal with or overcome them, is crucial to good design and a smooth creative process.
If your a human being I am sure you have dealt with, been a victim of or even been a part of one of these biases - I know I defiantly have!
Let me know in the comments below which cognitive biases you most suffer from, or have suffered from.
p.s. Did anyone spot the Salience Bias I've snuck into the title? 'S-c-r-w-e' all the letters of Screw just one letter out of place, all the recognisable parts, but still incorrect. Don't under estimate cognitive biases.
How To Communicate Under Stress
Inspired by an infographic I discovered on Pinterest created by the University of Illinois.
How well do you communicate under stress?
We all know communication is the cornerstone of success. But, when we are under massive stress it can feel like good communication is just a waste of time and energy. Especially when you are just trying to get shit done!
We all know deep down that in fact the opposite is true. When the pressure and stress begins to build up good communication is more important than ever. In these nudenotes we take a deeper look 3 key principles of communication: Speak Carefully, Listen Attentively & Respond Accurate.
Each of these 3 principles has been broken down into 4 actionable tips we can use right now to improve are ability to communicate with those around us when the pressure is on. Let me know it the comments below which of these points you are going to start using from now on.
How To Deal With Rude People
Inspired by an infographic created by personalexcellence.co which I discovered on Pinterest.
What is the best way to deal with rude people?
It's Friday - and I am sure no matter how much we try to avoid them, I bet you have had the pleasure of dealing with some rude people this week.
It seems rudeness is everywhere, and dealing with it - is just part of modern daily life. But does this always have to be the way?
"As children we are told not to respond to rudeness - but you can't let rude people have their way! I hope these techniques help you deal with them better"
In Personal Excellence's blog they recommend focusing on the positive, and gratitude:
"When you come across rude people next time, think about the positive things instead. Be grateful that you have kind people around you. Be grateful that you have things that many others don’t have. Nurture your relationship with those you care about instead. This way you will grow in positivity and attract more great people into your life."
Do you agree? What techniques do you have for dealing with rude people?
(Apart from flipping the bird or swearing till you run out of breathe - two of my personal favourites!)
How To Get People To Like You (Heck, even Love You)
Inspired by an infographic created by inc.com which I discovered on Pinterest.
How do you get people to like you?
Heck, even love you!?
These little seemingly insignificant things can have a massive impact on how others perceive you.
Don't underestimate the power of these seemingly silly techniques, they could be start of an amazing new friendship or relationship.
Deiter Rams’ 10 Principles of Good Design.
Inspired by Deiter Rams’ 10 Principles of Good Design.
What makes a good design?
I suppose it all comes down to how you quantify 'good' - it means different things to different people.
In the late 1970s, Dieter Rams put together '10 Principles of Good Design'. Every designer worth their salt knows these 10 principles, they are the design equivalent of the biblical commandments.
It's fair to say these principles are pretty timeless, over 50 years later and they're still excellent guiding principles for any category of design.
Want to know more about these principles or Dieter Rams himself check out the Vitsoe website, and the awesome documentary Rams by Gary Hustwit.
There is a great bit in the documentary where Dieter Rams is over seeing a new exhibition of his work and takes a stroll around the rest of the exhibition which showcases some of the most famous and well known pieces of industrial design.
Dieter goes on to deliver some amazing and honestly brutal critiques of their work based on these 10 principles he holds so dear.
It's definitely worth a watch!
How To Win Any Argument
Inspired by an article by Business Insider.
How do you win any argument?
We all know how fast a clam sensible debate can turn into a vicious argument. As Creative Professionals we all know that we potentially walk along that knife edge every time we walk into a critique with a client.
Although that is a worst case scenario, we have all been there right!?
Impossible to persuade the other person, no one backing down.
I hope these tips will help you to keep a cool head, will you communicate your case in a courteous, concise and clear manner.
No more awkward arguments for you or your clients anymore.