Wow, I definitely should have kept up with my writing.
I think I’ve been busy with the actual curriculum and delivery of the workshops that it’s been hard to actually sit and think. If you’re keeping up, thank you so much. If you are not, please let me know, and I can point you in the right direction.
Life Design is something that I have embraced in 2018 with my professional work. I use it with students, coworkers, and in teams around campus. I won’t bore you with great details, but if you want to learn more, go here.
I decided to try and offer a few sessions based on two books: Designing Your Life by Bill Burnett and Dave Evans and Designing a Life You Love by Asye Birsal. These two books are really helpful in getting the process of thinking about the future in a really accessible and personal way. What I’ve been doing is a low-key prototype of what it means to offer meaningful experiences to friends and not quite friends. Incorporating things like miro.com into the space has been epic because it helps to keep the space vibrant and engaging. Folks are not just doing the work on their own, but they are doing it ‘together’, can see each other, and can give each other feedback in real time. It’s quite beautiful to watch.
Alongside the sessions, I’m trying to capture the work via extensive notes that I share with folks who subscribe or are VIPs in the streams. These notes are pretty much a play by play for my streams. I have a much shorter and very very brief version for folks who do not subscribe.
I’ll do a quick assessment for where I am:
I like: I appreciate the community for being present and engaging in the way that they do. Folks definitely go all in. I have a few lurkers, and that’s life. I know that they are pretty much bots but whatever. The folks who are in the space are engaged, I get to see them doing the work in real time, and it’s super rewarding. This is part of the reason why a walkthrough is SUPER important - the less time I spend figuring out what to say, I can focus in on folks so can improvise in meaningful ways (and it helps me find my way back if I get too into things!).
I wish: I could do this in real time or at least in zoom. I’m thinking about the possibility of doing a sub only stream, but not sure if that’s where I want to take it. I think there’s something special about sharing in real time with real voices…the act of saying things, really truly saying ish out LOUD, is a game changer.
I wonder: if i could redo this series again, maybe in a week-long series. so there’s little time in between sessions? I wonder if I can translate this into a book club format? I wonder what other content I can produce in this format?
So that’s where I am right now. More to come? Of course.