101 Design Rules

Design is the bridge that gets us from where we are to where we should be. It is future-making.

Seek simplicity only on the far side of complexity.

We perceive through images. We think in metaphors. We learn by stories. We create with fantasy.

Stuck on a problem you can’t solve? Go bigger. Expand it. Make it giant. Do not try to contain it, or simplify it, or reduce it. Make it so large that you can begin to see a new pattern. Solve the larger problem and the smaller one will get solved along the way.

We perceive through images. We think in metaphors. We learn by stories. We create with fantasy.

In the end, it’ll not be what you took. It’ll be what you gave away.

Listen for when someone is dismissing your ambitions. Only the petty do that. Avoid them. Instead, seek out those much better than you; they’ll make you feel that you can achieve your dreams, as theirs are probably even larger. They’ll wave you on to the finish line.

When someone disagrees with you, do not defend yourself. Instead, listen. Ask them to explain, validate their concern, expand on it, and affirm their point of view. Only then will anyone listen to anything you have to say. I wish someone had told me this in my teens.

It is never about winning. It is never about losing. It is only about contributing. It is only about learning.