Taste

When you sharpen your discernment, you stop being swayed by trends. You stop needing consensus. You stop reacting to every new thing like it’s urgent.

You become someone who builds their own signal—because you know how to listen for it. You know what feels grounded. And you trust that instinct more than the metrics.

Taste Is the New Intelligence

Taste is often dismissed as something shallow or subjective. But at its core, it’s a form of literacy—a way of reading the world. Good taste isn’t about being right. It’s about being attuned. To rhythm, to proportion, to vibe. It’s knowing when something is off, even if you can’t fully articulate why.

The people with taste aren’t always the loudest.... See more

stepfanie tyler • Taste Is the New Intelligence

The conversation around taste tends to focus on what it takes to develop it, but not what it takes to use it and unlock its potential, which is confidence .

Having and developing taste is one thing, but remaining connected to our taste is another. In order to take advantage of our taste, we have to be able to access its insights and guidance, which... See more

Taste as a Function of Confidence

I was a film geek. Film geeks don't have a whole lot of tangible things to show for their passion and commitment to film. They just watch movies all the time. What they do have to show is a high regard for their own opinion. They've learned to break down a movie. They understand what they like and don't like about a film. And they feel that they're

While it’s probably one of the corniest things I’ll ever write in this column, I’ve come to believe that developing taste is not so unlike going to therapy; it’s an inefficient, time-consuming process that mostly entails looking inward and identifying whatever already moves you. It’s the product of devouring ideas, images and pieces of culture not... See more

Elizabeth Goodspeed on the Importance of Taste – And How to Acquire It

But what is good taste? It’s commonly mistaken as personal preference, but it’s more than that — it’s a trained instinct. The ability to see beyond the obvious and recognize what elevates.

emilkowal.ski • Developing Taste

Everyone in design circles loves to pontificate about taste, but it's always the people with portfolios that look like a Vegas casino who have the most to say. Taste is the emperor's new clothes of the creative industry, claimed by all, possessed by few, recognized only by those who already have it. But the twisted... See more

The famous Anton Ego speech in Ratatouille:

In many ways, the work of a critic is easy.

We risk very little, yet enjoy a position of those who offer up their work and their selves to our judgement.

We thrive on negative criticism.

Which is fun to write and to read.

But the bitter truth we critics must face, is that in the grand scheme of things, the