The Crown, Game of Thrones, The Handmaid’s Tale – it’s the golden age of prestige television. Budgets, artistry and star power in television have apparently never been higher.
There’s just one thing.
It turns out that the most popular, most streamed shows aren’t epic or politically prescient or extravagant.
They’re feel-good.
You’ve seen the decorations appearing and heard the music starting to play… Christmas is just around the corner!
How does it make you feel? Excited? Overwhelmed? Already behind on planning?
For most of us, this season is truly a mix of the wonderful and the stressful. And when we think back, we can recall Christmas memories that were incredibly precious, magical moments, as well as ones that… well… we’d rather not relive.
Maybe you’ve had years where you’ve come to the end of the Christmas season and felt a little too stretched – financially, emotionally or physically. Maybe sometimes your Christmas season has felt like it was mostly shaped by all the invitations and expectations of those around you, rather than by what is truly most important to you and your loved ones. Or maybe you just want to intentionally design moments this Christmas for those around you that reflect your values and priorities.
When I surveyed readers of this blog, one of the strongest themes that emerged was a desire for greater clarity in your lives. So what kind of deliberate experiments might help along that journey?
Well, recently I’ve been mulling on the phrase “Less but better”.
It’s the credo and book title of German designer Dieter Rams, famous for his minimalist approach to design and an influence on the design aesthetic of Apple.
You may have seen a video spoof that was created a number of years ago re-imagining Apple packaging in the Microsoft packaging style of the time. It demonstrates beautifully the merit of the ‘less but better’ principle in design.
Of course, it’s not just in design that Rams’ credo is worth consideration. The deliberate design of our lives should also prompt us to consider the ways in which ‘less but better’ might be worth implementation.
In my own life, I’ve been experimenting with designing a life of greater clarity by pursuing ‘less but better’…
How do you feel when you think about your inbox?
Overwhelmed? Guilty? A vague sense of dread, perhaps?
Today I want to share one tool which can help you gain more control over your email inbox in 3 ways. I’ve been using it for over a year now and I am loving it!
One handwritten note on a scrappy piece of paper hung above my desk throughout my university years.
It held just one sentence…
