Feb 4, 2021Life Between Buildings, Life Between ClubhousesWhy is Paris one of the most beloved cities in the world? One of the most romantic? Jan Gehl would say: we love Paris, because it is one of the most walkable cities in the world. In his seminal book, Life Between Buildings, he studies pedestrian traffic. He shows us…Technology2 min read
Feb 3, 2021An Heuristic Evaluation of Calm (Meditation App)I love the Calm app. I’ve tried Headspace a few times, but Calm is actually more my cup of tea. Why? Calm has actually helped me build a habit of meditating. Each day, I look forward to meditating. I now consider myself a student of meditation, rather than a dabbler. …6 min read
Dec 11, 2020The Eisenhower Matrix and Tiny HabitsYou might be familiar with the Eisenhower Matrix: It’s a framework for deciding what to prioritize. You think about whether something is important or not important. Then you think about whether it’s urgent or not urgent. Here’s an observation: the tiny habits that help you to achieve a goal live…Habits2 min read
Dec 9, 2020Emotional Granularity, Nonviolent Communication, and EmojisI learned a new idea called “emotional granularity.” I was listening to The Knowledge Project, a podcast by Shane Parrish of the Farnam Street Blog. Lisa Feldman Barrett is the researcher behind the idea. Emotional granularity is when people describe their emotions with specificity. For example, rather than say a…Psychology2 min read
Nov 28, 2020What it takes to sell $5 fried wings and beansI spent everyday of high school working at my parents’ Chinese takeout joint. In Miami, this meant American style Chinese takeout with a Cuban flavor. I’m standing behind a counter. The phone rings. “Ah-lo, gimme the five dollar special with, uh, the wings and a side of frijoles.” “Will that…Personal2 min read
Oct 17, 2020Free Tools for Running Remote Meetings (That Don’t Suck)If you’re reading this, you know the struggle. Google Jamboard You get to use sticky notes, pen tool, text tool, and others. If you want to brainstorm around a topic, you can simply write your prompt at the top. Then you ask people to write sticky notes. Set a…Remote Working3 min read
Sep 22, 2020The Lean Coffee: A Meeting Format for Democratic DiscussionsIt’s been about half a year since I’ve been working from home. Meetings are even more frequent now. Yet, have they become better meetings? More efficient? More useful? More… enjoyable? It depends on how you define a “better” meeting. For me, “better” is not so much about the tool, as…Productivity3 min read
Aug 8, 2020Staying Curious through the Five Minute JournalWhat does it mean to be curious? It means paying attention to moments. There are a few lines from a book that keep popping up: “Each event spoke with a cryptic tongue. And the moments of living slowly revealed their coded meanings… There was the delight I caught…Writing6 min read
Aug 1, 2020On the Beauty of TinkeringWhat is tinkering? Trying things out. Not knowing what will happen. Not knowing you’ll arrive at the “solution” today, if ever. Recently I bought an AeroPress so that I can make a less sucky cup of coffee. Watching the documentary, AeroPress Movie, I paused at this one moment. This frame…Coffee2 min read
Jul 21, 2020After Effects to Code with LottieImagine there’s a way you could toast bread without firing up the stove, flipping the bread in a pan, and burning your fingers along the way. Lottie is the equivalent of this tool. Once in a while, a tool like Lottie comes along that changes the game. I hear often…Design2 min read
