In this issue of The Brief:

1. What designers can learn from filmmakers

2. Using NotebookLM to research this article

3. Things to watch, read, and explore

If you’re like us, you may be on the hunt for a last-minute gift for the creative people in your life. Why not give the gift of education and inspiration by gifting a year-long subscription to Design Better Premium? We’ve even made a 🎁 handy gift card that you can send virtually, or print out and mail, or gift in person.

What designers can learn from the creative minds behind Everything Everywhere All at Once, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, and Crazy Rich Asians

by Eli Woolery

The first time I saw a movie that captured the essence of being in a dream was Federico Fellini’s opening scene from 8 ½, where the protagonist is stuck in a nightmarish and surreal traffic jam, and escapes by floating away, only to be tugged down like an errant kite at the end.

A critical component of Fellini’s creative success was his ability to draw from other disciplines. He was a cartoonist, and often sketched his characters out prior to production. As fellow director (and Monty Python co-creator) Terry Gilliam put it:

Fellini was a cartoonist, I was a cartoonist. We both came from the same background. Which means you look at the world and you stretch it, you pull it, you distort it.

—Terry Gilliam

As designers, we can draw lessons from creative disciplines like filmmaking to make our own work better. Here are a few examples from our recent interviews with a costume designer, film score composer, and production designer.

Embrace constraints

Growing up in the 80’s, I was obsessed with Star Wars—not unusual for a kid of that era. Part of what drew me to it was the battered, lived-in feeling of the costumes and sets…this seemed to be a world that could have existed a long time ago, in a galaxy far away.

So I was more than mildly disappointed by 1999's Phantom Menace…it wasn’t just the poor writing and terrible supporting characters (Jar Jar Binks!), but it felt too glossy and perfectly produced to have the same authenticity as the original series.

What changed in the intervening years? I’d argue that George Lucas lost the constraints that made his first films compelling, namely the limited budgets (and limited technology) that forced him to find creative solutions to filmmaking challenges. Shirley Kurata, costume designer for Everything Everywhere all at Once, made an argument for the importance of constraints in creativity in our recent interview with her.

I like having those limitations because it narrows the focus…I think it's really more fun and challenging…trying to find a way where you could use existing pieces…or creating costumes that work with existing costumes as we're combining it. There's lots of ways of doing things where it looks way more expensive than it is. And I think that's part of the challenge of being a costume designer is trying to find these solutions.

—Shirley Kurata

Constraints are important in film scores as well. Composer Brian Tyler, who has worked on film and television projects like Yellowstone, Crazy Rich Asians, Mario Brothers, and many others, intentionally sets restrictions for himself, such as limiting the range of instruments or recording techniques he uses.

I'll give myself the five restrictions…you want to find a tonal palette. So sometimes I'll do a film, like Escape Room…because of the tone of what that is, I'm only going to use synthesis— but outboard synthesizers that [date from] 1983 back to 1972.

But instrumentation-wise, it is very clear what that limitation would be…Crazy Rich Asians, where it was jazz and a traditional score, I want it to be where that's a score I could have recorded in 1940.

The restrictions…open up a creativity flow that is, to me, very, very necessary.”

—Brian Tyler

Embracing constraints in the design process can mean the difference between Jedi-like execution, and Jar-Jar level failure. Here are a few ways to use constraints in your design process:

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Alastair Simpson is accustomed to adaptation. The first half of his life was spent in the pursuit of a professional football career (or soccer as we call it in the States). But things didn’t go as expected, and he found himself searching for a new path in life.

Football taught him discipline and to focus on excellence, traits that transferred well into a career in design. He’s led design teams at Atlassian and today, he’s VP of Design at Dropbox.

We spoke with Alastair about how he applies design principles to parenting, the role craft plays in making great products, and creating a work environment that supports the creative process.

Bio

Alastair Simpson reports to the CEO and serves on the Executive team at Dropbox, where he leads the design team across all creative disciplines, including Brand, Product Design, Research, Content Design, and Operations. He also co-led, designed, and implemented Dropbox's transition to a Virtual-First working model. Previously, Alastair was Head of Design at Atlassian, where he played a key role in scaling the design team from 20 to over 300.

Premium Episodes on Design Better

This is a premium episode on Design Better. We release two premium episodes per month, along with two free episodes for everyone. ✨New benefits: Premium subscribers also get access to the documentary Design Disruptors and our growing library of books, as well as our monthly AMAs with former guests, ad-free episodes, discounts and early access to workshops, and our monthly newsletter The Brief that compiles salient insights, quotes, readings, and creative processes uncovered in the show.

Upgrade to paid

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Masterclass: MasterClass is the only streaming platform where you can learn and grow with over 200+ of the world's best. People like Steph Curry, Paul Krugman, Malcolm Gladwell, Dianne Von Furstenberg, Margaret Atwook, Lavar Burton and so many more inspiring thinkers share their wisdom in a format that is easy to follow and can be streamed anywhere on a smartphone, computer, smart TV, or even in audio mode. MasterClass always has great offers during the holidays, sometimes up to as much as 50% off. Head over to http://masterclass.com/designbetter for the current offer.

Wix Studio: With Wix Studio, agencies and enterprises can create, develop and manage exceptional web projects with hyper efficiency. And if you're worried about the learning curve eating into time you don't have, don't be. Wix Studio is intuitive by design, so your entire team can hit the ground running. For your next project, check out wixstudio.com.

Wine Access: We love wine, but often feel overwhelmed by the options out there. But we recently joined Wine Access who not only ship to your door some of the world’s most inspiring wines, they also educate subscribers with full color information cards that accompany each bottle. You should totally join The Waitlist Wine Club. Just visit wineaccess.com/waitlist and use Promo Code: DESIGNBETTER for $25 off your first shipment.

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It's often said that design can change lives, but few know this truth more intimately than Jaime Lopez, Chief Design & Marketing Officer at Flatiron Health. She and her team are on a mission to improve every person’s experience with cancer.

We'll be talking with Jaime about her team's UX process, what it's like to do mission-driven work, leading across design and marketing, and more.

Join us for an AMA with Jaime Lopez, one of the most impressive design leaders we know.

About Jaime Lopez

Jaime Lopez is the Chief Design & Marketing Officer at Flatiron Health. She has over 15 years of startup product, design and marketing experience with a passion for creative problem solving and building and mentoring teams.

In her role at Flatiron Health, Jaime uses her background to create and deliver high-quality experiences to oversee the company’s entire marketing and design suite.

Prior to joining Flatiron Health in 2016, Jaime led the design team at Opower, a startup working to address climate change, and worked for clients such as The Pan American Health Organization, Nestle, HP, Product (Red) and Neil Diamond.

Jaime holds a bachelor’s degree from the Art Center College of Design with a focus on Design for Social Impact. Her work has been recognized by Communication Arts Magazine, HOW International Design Annual Awards, Art Directors Club, Print Magazine, and The Fast Company Innovation Awards.

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Jason Giles is tuned into the habits of successful product design teams, not only because he’s been leading them for 15 years, but also because his team at UserTesting makes essential tools used by top design teams around the world. Jason thinks of the collaboration process in his team as similar to a jazz band where improvisation and exploration go hand-in-hand. We’re anxious to learn more.

Watch the live interview at UserTesting’s THiS conference above

We’re excited to share this sponsored bonus episode, recorded live in Austin at The Human Insight Summit (THiS)—as UserTesting helps designers and product teams gain shared insight—seeing and hearing how another person engages with the world around them and taking in their perspective.

Learn more about UserTesting

Bio

As VP of Product Design at UserTesting, Jason leads a team of designers, writers, and researchers across the US, Canada, and UK with the mission to enable real human insight and lead a movement for empathy.

Jason Giles began his professional career as a designer at Microsoft, where he effectively “grew up” alongside the UX discipline itself. Having actively participated in that evolution, Jason transitioned to design management where he has focused on building teams with great cultures that deliver awesome product experiences.

Chapter 3: Pencils Before Pixels

The work of the modern designer lives in the abstract world of the computer, where every move we make is precise and effortless. Precision has its place, but not in the early stages of the creative process, when our ideas are still nebulous. There’s danger when creative exploration starts with perfection.

Perfection can create the illusion of certainty, something architect Frank Gehry avoids as he begins a project. It’s discovery he craves. Craig Webb, Design Partner at Gehry Partners, has heard Gehry say many times, “If I knew where I was going, I wouldn’t go there.” To Gehry, peak creativity lies in the unknown.

His process begins with rough concepts. He and his team sketch, make models, then reflect. If the outcome isn’t right, they throw it out to begin again. Crude outputs early on make the work less precious and completely malleable.

"I’ve worked out my language through the sketches and through the models."

Frank Gehry — GEHRY PARTNERS

The hundreds of models and sketches that cover the walls and surfaces of Frank Gehry’s studio are the artifacts of a creative process that starts wide, where there’s space for discovery of the best ideas before committing to a single direction.

Figure 1. Frank Gehry’s studio is an explosion of sketches and models, artifacts of a creative process that values discovery.

Though Gehry’s work is unique, his process is not. Many creative thinkers start wide and narrow down. Unfortunately, many software design teams take a different approach—they start narrow and refine too soon.

Steve Jobs once famously likened the computer to a bicycle for the human mind. Computers help us make short work of complicated tasks and connect us to vast amounts of data—superpowers indeed, but when misapplied they can hinder the creative process.

Computers let us jump straight to pixels—a space of precision where everything aligns to a grid, vividly colored and fully formed. Precise outputs are precious and hard to abandon. This narrows creative exploration to just a few ideas well rendered.

To find the best design solutions, we should follow Frank Gehry’s lead: crudely render many ideas to find the solution worthy of a more precise investigation.

We can make more space in our creative process for critical thinking and better design by putting pencils before pixels.

“Sketching is extremely powerful because it is incredible fluid”
Kevin Cheng — INCREDIBLE LABS

The power of a pencil

The pencil is a humble tool that’s sparked millions of great ideas. It’s the inverse of a computer; it’s simple and limited in functionality, but its limitations make it effective.

“I start everything important with pencil and paper.”

Russ Unger — 18F

Pencils are important to the creative process because:

1. Pencils are inclusive. They’re not just for designers—anyone can use a pencil to express their ideas clearly. The pencil is the great equalizer.

2. Pencils are low-fi. Quick sketches give no impression of a complete thought, signaling to all that it’s okay to offer feedback.

3. Pencils aren’t fiddly. Instead of getting lost in software settings or style, you’ll focus on your ideas.

4. Pencils are fast. You can explore vastly different solutions to the same problem in minutes, and you won’t feel bad throwing your sketches out because you invested so little time.

There’s a magic that happens when we put our ideas on paper. Dave Gray, Founder of XPLANE and co-author of Gamestorming, describes sketching as “a conversation with yourself.” Gabriela Goldschmidt, professor emeritus at Technion Israel Institute of Technology, made similar observations in a study of the sketching practices of architects published in the Creativity Research Journal. She discovered that although sketches start from ideas already within the mind, they can mutate into the unexpected—forming new ideas.

Sketching is a thinking activity!

PRO TIP

Gamestorming together The bestselling book Gamestorming: A Playbook for Innovators, Rulebreakers, and Changemakers by Dave Gray, Sunni Brown, and James Macanufo includes more than 80 games—many of which involve sketching—to help you get your whole team working together to generate new ideas.

Many product designers already know this intuitively. Stanley Wood, Design Director at Spotify, told us, “Many of our designers sketch, but just so they can think through various ideas. Most of the time they don’t show them to anyone.”

And sketching, of course, is also a powerful communication device. The design team at Slack shares sketches with colleagues to invite conversation about concepts without getting distracted by style.

“We all start on paper at Slack and then explore from there. It’s rare that people are so good with a tool that they can think within it. Having squiggly lines on paper keeps you focused on real problems. You can move through ideas much faster, and there’s also something about the fact that a sketch is so clearly not the final product. People don’t get confused by the style and instead focus on the concept.”

Diogenes Brito — SLACK

The Mailchimp design team discovered that sketching is an important bridge to engineering colleagues. Todd Dominey, MailChimp’s Director of Design, noticed that “Pixels freak people out!” When engineers see a high fidelity design comp, they get the impression that the important decisions have been made without them, and now they’re expected to simply execute the design. But when a sketch is presented, it’s clear that the creative process is still wide open for their participation.

Keep reading! Get Principles of Product Design.

Principles of Product Design by Aarron Walter presents the best practices employed by the best designers and teams. This 168 page book features insights from Netflix, Google, Slack, Airbnb, and more.

Available in PDF and epub formats.

Get the book

In this issue of The Brief:

1. What designers can learn from Kendrick Lamar and Kamasi Washington

2. Design thinking and financial planning

3. Things to watch, read, and explore

Design Better premium now includes new benefits including access to the documentary film Design Disruptors, and for the next week only you can get a year of premium for 25% off, our only sale of the year.

What designers can learn from Kendrick Lamar and Kamasi Washington

by Aarron Walter

I find there’s a lot of navel-gazing in design, which is at times tedious. I love to look at design systems, new UI designs, and software taking a fresh approach to a familiar problem. But looking only to other designers for inspiration limits our potential.

Creative thinkers in adjacent spaces have secrets to share about process, collaboration, and craft if we look beyond the confines of design. I’m a shitty guitar player trying to get better, and the deeper I go into music, I can’t help but recognize some valuable lessons that could transfer nicely to design.

A generous creative process

Jazz is built on a contradiction: there is structure and structure gets broken. A chord progression maps out the foundation of a song—the sequence of chords that make it recognizable and repeatable. On top of this structure, melodies and solos bring the music to life.

Then comes improvisation, where jazz truly shines. It breaks and reshapes structure, pushing a song into uncharted emotional territory.

Jazz virtuoso Kamasi Washington, whom we recently spoke with on Design Better, describes improv as “making space for the moment.”

There's always improvisation. There's always space for the moment. To me, the music always has the final say. Musicians believe if something happens in a moment that's not on the page that's beautiful, it supersedes the written music no matter what.

But I will say that when we're making an album in general, there's more of a vision for the songs. When we were in the studio, I have a vision for the song. Now, someone could play something and change that vision. But I do come in with a vision.

—Kamasi Washington

Washington is describing two ways of thinking in the creative process: open mode and closed mode. Let’s pull these apart then look at what shapes the creative growth of many musicians.

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Sometimes, a creative transformation occurs after a painful experience in our lives. This certainly happened for our guest today, Bishop Briggs, who lost her sister at a young age in 2021. After a period of intense grieving, and struggling with depression, her son was born in 2022, and she went on to win The Masked Singer in 2023.

We spoke with Bishop about how her creative process evolved during these life-changing events, as well as how she approaches creating with consistency, connects with her audience, and the surprising results of her experiments with generative AI.

Also, a quick note for anyone who might be sensitive about the topics of depression and suicidal thoughts, Bishop does discuss these topics during the course of our interview, most notably around the 10 minute mark of the episode.

Bio

Bishop Briggs, born in London to Scottish parents from Bishopbriggs, Scotland (the inspiration for her professional name), discovered her passion for music early. Her first performance was at a Tokyo karaoke bar at age four, shortly after her family relocated there. Growing up amidst Tokyo’s vibrant karaoke culture and a home filled with Motown and Beatles music, she began writing songs at age seven, performing them for her family.

At 10, she moved to Hong Kong, where she lived until 18 and graduated from Hong Kong International School. Pursuing her dream of a music career, she relocated to Los Angeles to attend the Musician’s Institute.

After moving to Los Angeles, Bishop Briggs began her career performing at local venues before releasing her debut single, "Wild Horses," in 2015. In 2018, Bishop released her debut album, Church of Scars, followed by her second album, Champion, in 2019, featuring hit singles like the title track and "Jekyll & Hide." After losing her sister and manager in 2021, she channeled her grief into songs like "High Water" and "Art of Survival." Her 2022 single "Superhuman" celebrated the birth of her son, and she performed at Coachella while pregnant.

In 2023, Bishop won The Masked Singer as "Medusa," becoming the youngest and first British winner in the show’s history. Her EP When Everything Went Dark, featuring the single "Baggage," was released later that year, continuing her evolution as an artist.

Bishop stands at a transformative moment in her career with the release of her third studio album, Tell My Therapist I’m Fine, released in October 2024. Known for her anthemic hooks and emotional depth, Bishop plunges deeper than ever into the highs and lows of recent years, blending introspection with her signature powerhouse sound. The album reflects a seasoned artist at her most confident, drawing from a life immersed in music and shaped by profound personal challenges. With over three billion streams to her name, Bishop continues to channel her experiences into songs that resonate deeply with her audience.

Bishop Briggs is currently on tour through Spring of 2025.

Premium Episodes on Design Better

This is a premium episode on Design Better. We release two premium episodes per month, along with two free episodes for everyone. ✨New benefits: Premium subscribers also get access to the documentary Design Disruptors and our growing library of books, as well as our monthly AMAs with former guests, ad-free episodes, discounts and early access to workshops, and our monthly newsletter The Brief that compiles salient insights, quotes, readings, and creative processes uncovered in the show.

Upgrade to paid

Visiting the links below is one of the best ways to support our show:

Masterclass: MasterClass is the only streaming platform where you can learn and grow with over 200+ of the world's best. People like Steph Curry, Paul Krugman, Malcolm Gladwell, Dianne Von Furstenberg, Margaret Atwook, Lavar Burton and so many more inspiring thinkers share their wisdom in a format that is easy to follow and can be streamed anywhere on a smartphone, computer, smart TV, or even in audio mode. MasterClass always has great offers during the holidays, sometimes up to as much as 50% off. Head over to http://masterclass.com/designbetter for the current offer.

Wix Studio: With Wix Studio, agencies and enterprises can create, develop and manage exceptional web projects with hyper efficiency. And if you're worried about the learning curve eating into time you don't have, don't be. Wix Studio is intuitive by design, so your entire team can hit the ground running. For your next project, check out wixstudio.com.

Wine Access: We love wine, but often feel overwhelmed by the options out there. But we recently joined Wine Access who not only ship to your door some of the world’s most inspiring wines, they also educate subscribers with full color information cards that accompany each bottle. You should totally join The Waitlist Wine Club. Just visit wineaccess.com/waitlist and use Promo Code: DESIGNBETTER for $25 off your first shipment.

If you're interested in sponsoring the show, please contact us at: sponsors@thecuriositydepartment.com

If you'd like to submit a guest idea, please contact us at: contact@thecuriositydepartment.com

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We’ve added a new book to the Design Better Premium library: Principles of Product Design. It guides you through the best practices of great product designers and their teams, and is filled with wisdom from some of the brightest minds in design. It’s available in epub and PDF formats.

More books will be available soon in your membership soon including our Design Leadership Handbook and Collaborate Better Handbook.

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Eli & Aarron

Design Better Premium makes a fantastic gifts for friends, colleagues, or anyone looking to take their skills to the next level.

Subscribe now and save 25% →

25% off for 1 year

Here’s what you’ll get:

• Exclusive Content: Four full-length, ad-free episodes a month featuring the brightest creative minds, from legendary jazz musicians like Kamasi Washington, to illustrators like New Yorker cartoonist Jason Chatfield, to experts on creative work and ADHD like Skye Waterson.

• Interactive Learning: Monthly AMAs with big names in the industry, with practical advice on topics like career, leadership, and design at scale from people like Leslie Witt, Doug Powell, and Dan Mall.

• The Brief: Our design principles deep-dive newsletter delivering unique insights from our guests about the creative process.

• Early Access and Discounts: Be the first to grab tickets at special rates for events like our AI + Design Thinking workshop.

Plus, our newest book

We’ve added a new book to the Design Better Premium library: Principles of Product Design. It guides you through the best practices of great product designers and their teams, and is filled with wisdom from some of the brightest minds in design. It’s available in epub and PDF formats

More books will be available soon in your membership soon including our Design Leadership Handbook and Collaborate Better Handbook.

And, Design Disruptors, the product design documentary

As a premium member, you’ll also have access to the groundbreaking documentary Design Disruptors, which features designers at Google, Netflix, Lyft, Dropbox, and more.

Subscribe Now and Save 25% →

25% off for 1 year

This sale ends next week, so don’t miss out. Thank you for being part of this journey with us.

With gratitude,

Eli & Aarron

Successful design-driven companies building the best products with the strongest design teams have practices in common. These extensively researched core best practices will help your team design better, faster, and more collaboratively. Combined with the power of design thinking, these product design principles with insights from Netflix, Google, Slack, Airbnb, and more will accelerate your team’s design practice.

Length: 168 pages

Available in PDF and epub formats, free for Design Better Premium subscribers

What’s in the Principles of Product Design

Guess Less

The software industry celebrates stories of lightning-strike success so much, you’d think hunches and risky bets could create unicorns. The best product design teams understand the reality—customer research forms the bedrock of successful products and companies.

Story First

Humans have used stories to foster collective understanding since the beginning. The most powerful designs start with a story—the why—and where your designs fit into people’s lives. Using product stories, journey maps, storyboards, and user personas, teams can build empathy and understanding before designing.

Pencils Before Pixels

Every design begins somewhere, in imperfection. Sketching brings together designers and key stakeholders so they can collaboratively find the best solutions without getting lost in design details.

Show and Tell

When it comes to feedback, there’s little room for polite reserve within a design team. Use design reviews, retrospectives, design standups, and careful space planning to facilitate a culture of feedback within your team—your designs and designers will benefit.

Fast Feedback

Building great products requires an iterative process. The more your team tests their designs through prototyping, the faster you’ll discover needed course corrections or new possibilities. Through building blocks like pattern libraries and user feedback, teams can always design with fresh eyes.

Lateral Design

Your org chart can greatly influence the design process at your company. Bridge gaps between design, engineering, research, product, and others with cross-functional teams, sprints, working groups, and other structural changes that enable better lateral design.

Break the Black Box

As your company and design org mature and scale, it gets harder to maintain the visibility and transparency crucial for great product design. You’ll need to take on streamlining communication, surfacing design within the company, and more big-picture challenges beyond your desk.

About the author Aarron Walter

Aarron Walter is a design and technology leader. He started the user experience design practice at Mailchimp and helped grow the company from a few thousand customers to tens of millions. Later at InVision, he studied the design teams at some of the most admired tech companies to identify the traits that influence success. When the COVID19 pandemic emerged, he joined former CDC Director Dr Tom Frieden at Resolve to Save Lives to help US public health teams, the Africa CDC, and the WHO use design and technology in emergency response. He's the author of a number of books, the latest of which is the second edition of Designing for Emotion. Aarron's design guidance has helped the White House, the US Department of State, and dozens of major corporations, startups, and venture capital firms.

Twitter | LinkedIn | Website

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Watch the video below, or listen above or on your favorite podcast platform

Before we get to the rest of the list, we want to share that Design Better premium now includes new benefits including access to the documentary film Design Disruptors, and for the next week only you can get a year of premium for 25% off, our only sale of the year.

Eli’s list

Solo Stove Pi Fire

Solo Stove, which you might know for their incredible smokeless fire pits, has a pizza oven attachment that I recently picked up. It cranks up to 600 degrees and gives you that authentic wood-fired flavor in just four minutes. I’ve been using madrone and oak wood, and it’s been a hit with the family.

SoloStove PiFire Pizza Oven accessory $189

MagnoGrip Magnetic Wristband

This one’s super simple but really handy—a magnetic wristband for holding screws or small tools while you’re working on a project. It came to mind because I was helping out with a community playground build recently, and I kept fumbling with screws, holding them in my mouth or awkwardly reaching for my tool belt. This would’ve been perfect.

MagnoGrip $15.99

Oddli

Ellie Chen and Jensen Neff, two students from our Stanford product design class, started a company called Oddli. They were inspired to tackle the problem of waste in the fashion industry, specifically “deadstock” fabric that often ends up in landfills.

Oddli focuses on sustainable, high-quality fashion using deadstock and other eco-friendly materials. One great example is their patchwork apron—it’s $98, which is definitely an investment, but it’s beautifully made, unique, and sustainable. This isn’t fast fashion—it’s thoughtful, long-lasting design that helps reduce waste. Supporting a brand like this feels great, especially knowing it was founded by such passionate and talented young designers.

Sophie’s Patchwork Apron by Oddli, $98

Circe by Madeline Miller

My favorite book this year is Circe by Madeline Miller. I’ve been on a bit of a sci-fi and fantasy kick lately, and this one really stood out. Honestly, I’d been stuck in a rut with books that just weren’t grabbing me—but Circe hooked me right away. It’s a fresh take on Greek mythology, focusing on Circe, a minor character from The Odyssey who’s reimagined as the main character here.

Get the book $14

Gyotaku fish prints

One of my creative outlets outside of Design Better is making prints using a Japanese technique called gyotaku. It’s traditionally used to capture impressions of fish, and since I do some spearfishing, I’ve been using edible ink to create prints of the fish I catch—so I can still eat the fish afterward. One of my friends, Nae Hayakawa, who is a Japanese designer helped me create the hanko stamps that are used as signatures on the prints.

Learn more about the prints.

Buy a shirt here: $33

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What to Cook When You Don’t Feel Like Cooking

Sticking with the cooking theme, I’ve got a great recommendation from a local author here in Carmel Valley, Caro Chambers. She has a fantastic Substack called What To Cook When You Don’t Feel Like Cooking, and my wife, Courtney, recently picked up her book.

The recipes are super simple but really delicious, and the best part? Even our kids love them. If you’ve got picky eaters, you’ll know how rare that is! Instead of juggling multiple meals, we’ve been making dishes from this book that everyone actually enjoys. Highly recommend it if you’re looking for quick, crowd-pleasing meals!

Get cookin’ $24

Design Better Coffee

We recently sent some Design Better coffee to former guest and New Yorker cartoonist Jason Chatfield, who loved it. Grab some as a gift (or to fuel your own creativity).

Design Better Coffee ☕ $22

Custom gift caricature by Jason Chatfield

Speaking of cartoonist Jason Chatfield (who also has two Substacks here, New York Cartoons and Process Junkie), if you’re looking for a really special gift, he’s available for personalized gift caricatures.

Get a custom caricature $399 and up

DU/ER clothing

One of our newer sponsors, DU/ER, makes fantastic clothing that’s as stylish as it is functional. I’m actually modeling their tech fleece denim jacket right now—it’s soft, durable, and even has a water-resistant coating. They’ve got a great lineup of pants, shirts, and outerwear too.

DU/ER Tech Fleece Denim Jacket $169

Faherty

Sticking with the fashion theme, I have to give a shout out Faherty. A little backstory: Aarron and I were in Savannah, Georgia, prepping for a live show, and I realized I hadn’t packed a good shirt for the stage. Aarron suggested checking out Faherty, and as soon as I walked in, I was hooked.

Their clothes definitely have a California surfer vibe, but they’re polished and really well-made. I ended up getting one of their sweater shirts—it’s incredibly soft and quickly became part of my daily wardrobe. The quality is fantastic, and their return and exchange policy is super generous—60 days, no questions asked. I’ve become a big fan of the brand.

Get the Legend sweater shirt $178

Bespoke Post

This one’s a gift idea for Aarron, and it’s kind of a choose-your-own-adventure. The company is called Bespoke Post, and they create themed boxes featuring products from small or local makers. The themes range from barware to outdoor gear, so there’s a lot to choose from.

Bespoke Post Aged box $49 (for members)

Aarron’s List

Birdie

This small device is like having a fire alarm in your pocket. When you pull the pin it flashes and beeps incredibly loud so you can get the attention of everyone around you. Birdie $30

Cook’s Illustrated: The Science of Good Cooking

Learn the principles of cooking through the lens of science. Lots of great recipes that will help you master the basics. It’s also a fun read!

Get the book $37

The Odyssey, a graphic novel

Gareth Hinds brings this classic and many others to life with beautiful illustrations. A great read for adults and kids alike.

Get the book: $14

The Work of Art: How Something Comes from Nothing

Design Better guest Adam Moss has written a valuable book for anyone doing creative work. Kara Walker, Tony Kushner, Sofia Coppola, Stephen Sondheim, Barbara Kruger, Ira Glass, Samin Nosrat, Marc Jacobs, David Simon, and many more share their approach to the work they do in this book. 

Get the book: $27

Mushroom Mountain foraging course

Learn how to forage for tasty local mushrooms safely with an online course run by this North Carolina business. They also share high quality mushroom fruiting supplies so you can grow your own.

Mushroom mountain course: $60

Leatherman Signal

Designed for the outdoors, this multi-tool packs a firestarter, hammer, one-handed blade and an emergency whistle.

Leatherman Signal: $140

Quince cashmere pajamas

This is an absolutely decadent gift for someone you love or yourself! Mix and match a cashmere top style with Quince’s cashmere jogger and you have the best pajamas ever! If holiday guests have to see you in your PJ’s, they should be these.

Quince cashmere (men’s): $90 top, $100 pants | Quince cashmere (women’s): $100 top, $100 pants

MasterClass

MasterClass is the only streaming platform where you can learn and grow with over 200+ of the world's best. People like Steph Curry, Paul Krugman, Malcolm Gladwell, Dianne Von Furstenberg, Margaret Atwood, Lavar Burton and so many more inspiring thinkers share their wisdom in a format that is easy to follow and can be streamed anywhere on a smartphone, computer, smart TV, or even in audio mode.

MasterClass: holiday discounts as low as 50% off

Elsa Peretti jewelry from Tiffany

Renowned for her distinctive sculptural, organic aesthetic, the captivating jewelry of visionary designer Elsa Peretti’s jewelry is iconic. Tiffany offers a wide variety of her work in various materials and forms, many drawing upon forms in the natural world.

Elsa Peretti jewelry: $750 and up

Give the gift of education and inspiration

As we wrap things up, we want to express our heartfelt gratitude to all of you who support Design Better. Whether you’re a listener, a subscriber, or someone who shares the show with friends, you make everything we do possible—and we’re incredibly thankful.

Our Design Better premium members get access to 4 full-length, ad-free episodes a month, monthly AMAs with big names in design and tech, discounts and early access to workshops, and our monthly newsletter The Brief.

And this week we’re adding two new benefits: you can get access to the groundbreaking documentary film Design Disruptors, and we’re adding an additional book to our library, Principles of Product Design.

If you’re not yet a member, or if there’s someone in your life who would benefit from the gift of education and inspiration, now’s the perfect time to join. For the next week only, we’re offering our one and only discount of the year: 25% off a full year of Design Better premium.

It’s a great way to dive deeper into the ideas and tools that can help you level up as a designer—or to give someone else the same opportunity. Thank you again for being part of our community. We couldn’t do this without you.

25% off Design Better Premium

Directed by Matt D’Avella and Jennifer Fineran, the film features interviews with design luminaries (and Design Better Guests) like John Maeda, Julie Zhuo, Mia Blume, and Jason Mayden.

From the original film description:

The future of business is being written by companies and products that—intentionally or not— shake billion dollar industries. In design disruptors, enter the world of 15+ industry-toppling companies—valued at more than $1 trillion dollars combined—with one unifying secret advantage: the transformative power of design.

Design disruptors reveals a never-before-seen perspective on the design approaches of these companies and how they are overtaking billion dollar industries through design.

Watch the preview above, and get access to the full film as a Design Better Premium member:

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It’s usually around the holidays as the year draws to an end that I start to reflect on my goals and how I want to grow in the coming year. I have often turned to MasterClass to help me expand my knowledge and satiate my curiosities about disciplines I’ve yet to explore. 

MasterClass is the only streaming platform where you can learn and grow with over 2…

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We were extremely saddened to learn today about the passing of Enrique Allen, co-founder of the Designer Fund.

Enrique’s co-founder Ben Blumenrose wrote this moving tribute to his friend and colleague.

We were fortunate to interview Enrique a few months ago (though we were unaware he was battling an illness at the time). We’ve re-published the audio here on Substack, free of ads, and below are the original show notes.

If you’re looking to help Enrique’s family, you can donate to a 529 for his son's education.

Until Designer Fund was founded by Enrique Allen and Ben Blumenrose, venture capital investments rarely considered design strategy when investing. Companies like Stripe, Notion, Gusto, and Omada Health—all in Designer Fund portfolio companies—see design as a competitive advantage and a tool for acquiring and retaining customers. Enrique Allen told us all about the tremendous value design is creating in these and many other companies.

We spoke with Enrique about how they chose design as an investment lens, the changing role of design from when they started until now, why venture capital might not always be the best way to fund a startup business, and how they think about finding good partners and co-founders.

Bio

Enrique Allen was the co-founder and managing partner at Design Fund. Previously, Enrique was a designer at venture capital firms, including 500 Startups, Facebook’s fbFund, and Venrock, where he helped invest in companies like Lyft (NASDAQ: LYFT), Wildfire (acquired by Google) and Behance (acquired by Adobe). He was a Stanford University alum, former Division 1 soccer player and senior lecturer at the Stanford d.school.

When Aarron was in college studying painting and drawing, he had an absolute certainty about the path my career would take. He was going to move to New York, make it big as an artist, and never look back.

And Eli, as an undergrad in product design, wasn’t sure what a career in his field even looked like. The skillset wasn’t clearly defined yet. The outdoor product companies he was eyeing wanted me to conform to a neat little box: “Are you an industrial designer, or a mechanical engineer?” He wasn’t sure how he fit in.

Did our careers unfold as we expected? Absolutely not. Life and careers rarely go according to plan. There’s so much beyond our control. But, despite the unexpected twists, there are lessons that can guide us in the right direction. And that’s what we’re here to explore today in this special live episode of Design Better, recorded right here at the Savannah College of Art and Design.

Today, we’ll be speaking with four design leaders who took a winding path but all found their way to significant work.

Bios

Kate Aronowitz

Kate Aronowitz is a design executive who has built her career empowering teams at some of Silicon Valley’s most iconic companies. In addition to her role leading GV’s operations team, Kate coaches GV portfolio companies on cross-functional design processes, scale, product development, and management strategy.

Kate has built world-class design teams at eBay, LinkedIn, Facebook (now Meta), and Wealthfront. She joined the first user experience team at eBay before taking her experience to LinkedIn, where she started the user research team. As Facebook’s first design executive, Kate grew the organization from 20 to 200, establishing multidisciplinary design teams in front-end engineering, user research, content strategy, and communication design.

Listen to our previous interview with Kate

Steve Johnson

As VP of Design at Netflix, Steve leads a diverse, multidisciplinary, Emmy-award-winning Experience Design organization. His team's commitment to discovery, product innovation, brand development, and personalization has set the standard for streaming media platforms across the world. Prior to Netflix, Steve also led design teams at LinkedIn and Adobe.

Listen to our previous episode with Steve and his colleague Rochelle King

Jaime Lopez

Jaime Lopez, Chief Design and Marketing Officer at Flatiron Health, Jaime Lopez is the Chief Design & Marketing Officer at Flatiron Health. She has over 15 years of startup product, design and marketing experience with a passion for creative problem solving and building and mentoring teams. 

In her role at Flatiron Health, Jaime uses her background to create and deliver high-quality experiences to oversee the company’s entire marketing and design suite. 

Prior to joining Flatiron Health in 2016, Jaime led the design team at Opower, a startup working to address climate change, and worked for clients such as The Pan American Health Organization, Nestle, HP, Product (Red) and Neil Diamond.

Kat Holmes

Kat Holmes is EVP and Chief Design Officer at Salesforce where she's driving the future of AI, Data, and CRM experiences. As the author of the best-selling book Mismatch: How Inclusion Shapes Design, Holmes works with multidisciplinary teams to set a foundation for why designing with excluded communities drives better solutions for everyone. Her work has been featured by NPR, BBC, Fast Company, Forbes, The Economist, and many more.

Formerly at Microsoft and Google, she's led experience design for some of the most influential technologies in the world. She pioneered Microsoft's transformative executive program for inclusive product innovation. She was named one of Fast Company's Most Creative People in Business and her award-winning Inclusive toolkit was inducted into the Smithsonian Institution's Cooper Hewitt Design Museum.

Her work stems from three core values: There’s no such thing as an average human being. People should be in the lead, not just the center, of technology. Work with people you enjoy being around and make something worth making.

Premium Episodes on Design Better

This ad-supported episode is available to everyone. If you’d like to hear it ad-free, upgrade to our premium subscription, where you’ll get an additional 2 ad-free episodes per month (4 total). Premium subscribers also get access to our monthly AMAs with former guests, ad-free episodes, early and discounted access to workshops, and our new enhanced newsletter The Brief that compiles salient insights, quotes, readings, and creative processes uncovered in the show.  

Upgrade to paid

Visiting the links below is one of the best ways to support our show:

Wix Studio: With Wix Studio, agencies and enterprises can create, develop and manage exceptional web projects with hyper efficiency. And if you're worried about the learning curve eating into time you don't have, don't be. Wix Studio is intuitive by design, so your entire team can hit the ground running. For your next project, check out wixstudio.com.

Wine Access: We love wine, but often feel overwhelmed by the options out there. But we recently joined Wine Access who not only ship to your door some of the world’s most inspiring wines, they also educate subscribers with full color information cards that accompany each bottle. You should totally join The Waitlist Wine Club. Just visit wineaccess.com/waitlist and use Promo Code: DESIGNBETTER for $25 off your first shipment.

If you're interested in sponsoring the show, please contact us at: sponsors@thecuriositydepartment.com

If you'd like to submit a guest idea, please contact us at: contact@thecuriositydepartment.com

Read more

Jazz is a constantly evolving art form, offering some of the richest lessons in creative collaboration. A melody and chord progression provide the foundation, but as each musician brings their unique improvisational perspective, the music takes on unexpected, transformative shapes.

If you ask any fan of the genre who’s pushing jazz into new territory, Kamasi Washington’s name will come up—likely at the very top. His 2015 album The Epic won the American Music Prize and stands, in our opinion, as one of the greatest jazz records of the 21st century. Kamasi contributed to Kendrick Lamar’s Grammy-winning To Pimp a Butterfly, scored Michelle Obama’s Netflix documentary Becoming, and has collaborated with musical legends like Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter, Lauryn Hill, Nas, Snoop Dogg, Chaka Khan, and many more.

In this episode, we spent an evening with Kamasi, exploring his creative process, what he’s learned from his collaborators, his philosophy on collaboration, and his latest album, Fearless Movement.

• Zero Gravity, Wayne Shorter documentary on Amazon Prime

• Kamasi’s newest record, Fearless Movement

• The Epic

• Kamasi Washington’s website

Bio

Kamasi Washington, born in Los Angeles in 1981, grew up surrounded by music, with a saxophonist father and a flutist mother who nurtured his musical talent from a young age. Kamasi’s journey began with drums and piano in his early years, progressing to the clarinet at age seven and finally to the tenor saxophone at twelve, mirroring his father’s path. His high school years at Hamilton High School Music Academy were pivotal; there, he joined the renowned Multi School Jazz Band and learned from jazz icons like Herbie Hancock and Wayne Shorter. Kamasi’s talent was quickly recognized when he won the John Coltrane Saxophone Competition, and he co-founded "The Young Jazz Giants," which marked his early step into professional music.

Kamasi's musical evolution continued at UCLA, where he studied ethnomusicology and expanded his understanding of global music traditions. This foundation supported his wide-ranging collaborations beyond jazz, where he worked with artists like Snoop Dogg, Raphael Saadiq, and Kendrick Lamar. Yet, despite his diverse influences, Kamasi remained firmly rooted in jazz, ultimately channeling these experiences into his innovative sound. His 2015 debut album, The Epic, was a monumental release—a three-disc exploration of jazz that introduced a unique blend of spiritual depth and musical complexity. The album garnered critical acclaim, broadening Kamasi's reach and establishing him as a leader in modern jazz.

Over time, Kamasi has continued to push musical boundaries, often exploring how jazz intersects with other genres and art forms. His compositions and collaborations reflect his belief in music as a tool for connection and social expression. From his Grammy-nominated score for Michelle Obama's Becoming to his involvement in the supergroup DINNER PARTY alongside Robert Glasper and Terrace Martin, Kamasi’s work embodies a spirit of collaboration and a commitment to creativity across disciplines. His contributions not only honor the jazz tradition but also expand it, connecting new generations to the genre’s expressive possibilities.

Premium Episodes on Design Better

This is a premium episode on Design Better. We release two premium episodes per month, along with two free episodes for everyone. Premium subscribers also get access to our monthly AMAs with former guests, ad-free episodes, discounts and early access to workshops, access to our (small but growing!) library of books and participation in book giveaways, and our new enhanced newsletter The Brief that compiles salient insights, quotes, readings, and creative processes uncovered in the show. 

Upgrade to paid

Visiting the links below is one of the best ways to support our show:

Wix Studio: With Wix Studio, agencies and enterprises can create, develop and manage exceptional web projects with hyper efficiency. And if you're worried about the learning curve eating into time you don't have, don't be. Wix Studio is intuitive by design, so your entire team can hit the ground running. For your next project, check out wixstudio.com.

Wine Access: We love wine, but often feel overwhelmed by the options out there. But we recently joined Wine Access who not only ship to your door some of the world’s most inspiring wines, they also educate subscribers with full color information cards that accompany each bottle. You should totally join The Waitlist Wine Club. Just visit wineaccess.com/waitlist and use Promo Code: DESIGNBETTER for $25 off your first shipment.

Methodical Coffee: Roasted, blended, brewed, served and perfected by verified coffee nerds 🤓 : https://methodicalcoffee.com (use code "designbetter" for 10% off of your order).

If you're interested in sponsoring the show, please contact us at: sponsors@thecuriositydepartment.com

If you'd like to submit a guest idea, please contact us at: contact@thecuriositydepartment.com

Gali Erez, Head of Wix Studio at Wix, has had quite a journey, from a background in graphic design at CalArts, through transitioning from print to digital in her early work at Warner Brothers, where she helped envision media's digital future. Along the way, she has learned some principles that helped her during her time as an individual contributor, and also guide her as a leader: sharing ideas early, giving tough feedback, and using storytelling as a leadership tool.

We speak with Gali about how AI is changing web design workflows, the research process her team uses, and what’s kept her excited to work at Wix for over 10 years.

This is a sponsored bonus episode we’re excited to share, as Wix Studio is a product that helps diverse users, from casual creators to professional web designers and developers, with a  platform that balances simplicity and customization.

Learn more about Wix Studio at https://www.wix.com/studio

Learn more about Wix Studio

Bio

Gali Erez is the Head of Wix Studio at Wix and has been with the company for over a decade. She studied graphic design at CalArts, where she experienced the transition from print to digital design. Her early career included a product design internship at Warner Brothers, where she worked on innovative ways to bring media online.

At Wix, Erez has held various roles, starting as a UX designer on the DIY editor and later transitioning into management. She played a key role in developing Wix ADI, an AI-driven platform that simplifies website creation, and led the creation of Wix Studio, a professional-grade platform for web designers.

Erez's leadership style emphasizes transparency, incremental innovation, and adaptability to changing team dynamics and industry trends. Her work focuses on democratizing web design, balancing accessibility with professional-grade features, and leveraging AI to enhance efficiency and creativity in design processes.

Jazz is a constantly evolving art form, offering some of the richest lessons in creative collaboration. A melody and chord progression provide the foundation, but as each musician brings their unique improvisational perspective, the music takes on unexpected, transformative shapes.

If you ask any fan of the genre who’s pushing jazz into new territory, Kamasi Washington’s name will come up—likely at the very top. His 2015 album The Epic won the American Music Prize and stands, in our opinion, as one of the greatest jazz records of the 21st century. Kamasi contributed to Kendrick Lamar’s Grammy-winning To Pimp a Butterfly, scored Michelle Obama’s Netflix documentary Becoming, and has collaborated with musical legends like Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter, Lauryn Hill, Nas, Snoop Dogg, Chaka Khan, and many more.

In this episode, we spent an evening with Kamasi, exploring his creative process, what he’s learned from his collaborators, his philosophy on collaboration, and his latest album, Fearless Movement.

• Zero Gravity, Wayne Shorter documentary on Amazon Prime

• Kamasi’s newest record, Fearless Movement

• The Epic

• Kamasi Washington’s website

Bio

Kamasi Washington, born in Los Angeles in 1981, grew up surrounded by music, with a saxophonist father and a flutist mother who nurtured his musical talent from a young age. Kamasi’s journey began with drums and piano in his early years, progressing to the clarinet at age seven and finally to the tenor saxophone at twelve, mirroring his father’s path. His high school years at Hamilton High School Music Academy were pivotal; there, he joined the renowned Multi School Jazz Band and learned from jazz icons like Herbie Hancock and Wayne Shorter. Kamasi’s talent was quickly recognized when he won the John Coltrane Saxophone Competition, and he co-founded "The Young Jazz Giants," which marked his early step into professional music.

Kamasi's musical evolution continued at UCLA, where he studied ethnomusicology and expanded his understanding of global music traditions. This foundation supported his wide-ranging collaborations beyond jazz, where he worked with artists like Snoop Dogg, Raphael Saadiq, and Kendrick Lamar. Yet, despite his diverse influences, Kamasi remained firmly rooted in jazz, ultimately channeling these experiences into his innovative sound. His 2015 debut album, The Epic, was a monumental release—a three-disc exploration of jazz that introduced a unique blend of spiritual depth and musical complexity. The album garnered critical acclaim, broadening Kamasi's reach and establishing him as a leader in modern jazz.

Over time, Kamasi has continued to push musical boundaries, often exploring how jazz intersects with other genres and art forms. His compositions and collaborations reflect his belief in music as a tool for connection and social expression. From his Grammy-nominated score for Michelle Obama's Becoming to his involvement in the supergroup DINNER PARTY alongside Robert Glasper and Terrace Martin, Kamasi’s work embodies a spirit of collaboration and a commitment to creativity across disciplines. His contributions not only honor the jazz tradition but also expand it, connecting new generations to the genre’s expressive possibilities.

Premium Episodes on Design Better

This is a premium episode on Design Better. We release two premium episodes per month, along with two free episodes for everyone. Premium subscribers also get access to our monthly AMAs with former guests, ad-free episodes, discounts and early access to workshops, access to our (small but growing!) library of books and participation in book giveaways, and our new enhanced newsletter The Brief that compiles salient insights, quotes, readings, and creative processes uncovered in the show. 

Upgrade to paid

Visiting the links below is one of the best ways to support our show:

Wix Studio: With Wix Studio, agencies and enterprises can create, develop and manage exceptional web projects with hyper efficiency. And if you're worried about the learning curve eating into time you don't have, don't be. Wix Studio is intuitive by design, so your entire team can hit the ground running. For your next project, check out wixstudio.com.

Wine Access: We love wine, but often feel overwhelmed by the options out there. But we recently joined Wine Access who not only ship to your door some of the world’s most inspiring wines, they also educate subscribers with full color information cards that accompany each bottle. You should totally join The Waitlist Wine Club. Just visit wineaccess.com/waitlist and use Promo Code: DESIGNBETTER for $25 off your first shipment.

Methodical Coffee: Roasted, blended, brewed, served and perfected by verified coffee nerds 🤓 : https://methodicalcoffee.com (use code "designbetter" for 10% off of your order).

If you're interested in sponsoring the show, please contact us at: sponsors@thecuriositydepartment.com

If you'd like to submit a guest idea, please contact us at: contact@thecuriositydepartment.com

Read more

For many of us, the love of craft and creativity drew us into design. But as design becomes a career, a whole new skill set is required—leadership, navigating workplace dynamics, and building and guiding creative teams. These aren’t lessons taught in design school, but we’re fortunate to have Doug Powell here to help us get started on that path.

As the former VP of Design at IBM, Doug played a pivotal role in shaping IBM’s design practice and is now exploring new insights with other industry leaders on This is a Prototype, his podcast. Doug’s career is storied, yet his advice is refreshingly approachable.

• Doug Powell’s website

• Doug Powell’s design leadership course on Maven

• This is a Prototype podcast

Watch the video from this event

Premium subscribers get access to recordings from all AMAs.

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We’re students of the creative process, and so is Adam Moss, author of The Work of Art: How something comes from nothing. Formerly the editor-in-chief of New York magazine, these days Moss is on a quest in his studio to understand painting and through it the mysteries of the act of creation. 

Questions about why people create—and the diversity of process across mediums—led Adam to write his book, which features interviews with a host of inspiring folks. Kara Walker, Tony Kushner, Sofia Coppola, Stephen Sondheim, Barbara Kruger, Ira Glass, Samin Nosrat, Marc Jacobs, David Simon, and many more share their approach to the work they do in the book. 

We talk with Adam about the red threads that run through such varied creative expressions, finding the right creative partners, how to feed creativity, and how his own work has been influenced by his investigation into how creativity unfolds. 

Bio

Adam Moss was the editor of New York magazine, The New York Times Magazine, and 7 Days. As editor of New York, he also oversaw the creation of five digital magazines: Vulture, The Cut, Daily Intelligencer, Grub Street, and The Strategist. During his tenure, New York won forty-one National Magazine Awards, including Magazine of the Year. He was an assistant managing editor of The New York Times with oversight of the Magazine, the Book Review, and the Culture, and Style sections, as well as managing editor of Esquire. He was elected to the Magazine Editors’ Hall of Fame in 2019.

Premium Episodes on Design Better

This ad-supported episode is available to everyone. If you’d like to hear it ad-free, upgrade to our premium subscription, where you’ll get an additional 2 ad-free episodes per month (4 total). Premium subscribers also get access to our monthly AMAs with former guests, ad-free episodes, early and discounted access to workshops, and our new enhanced newsletter The Brief that compiles salient insights, quotes, readings, and creative processes uncovered in the show.  

Upgrade to paid

Visiting the links below is one of the best ways to support our show:

Wix Studio: With Wix Studio, agencies and enterprises can create, develop and manage exceptional web projects with hyper efficiency. And if you're worried about the learning curve eating into time you don't have, don't be. Wix Studio is intuitive by design, so your entire team can hit the ground running. For your next project, check out wixstudio.com.

Wine Access: We love wine, but often feel overwhelmed by the options out there. But we recently joined Wine Access who not only ship to your door some of the world’s most inspiring wines, they also educate subscribers with full color information cards that accompany each bottle. You should totally join The Waitlist Wine Club. Just visit wineaccess.com/waitlist and use Promo Code: DESIGNBETTER for $25 off your first shipment.

Design Thinking + AI Workshops: We’ve been continuing to run our AI + Design Thinking workshops, including for Fortune 100 companies that are developing some of these technologies. Participants love the chance to play and experiment with some of these tools, and we have an additional public session coming in mid-November.

One of our big takeaways is that many people simply don’t have time in their day-to-day workflow to explore this new technology, and this workshop provides just that—a valuable space for experimentation, discussion, and reflection on how the world and our jobs are changing with generative AI.

Register for November 13th

If you're not yet a Design Better Premium member, if you sign up for a yearly account we've got a few 50% off tickets for new yearly members. Just sign up for a new account at the yearly level and we'll share the discounted ticket code with you if you write to us at subscriptions@thecuriositydepartment.com.

Adobe’s In the Making: As a Design Better listener, we have another podcast we think you’ll enjoy. Adobe’s In the Making hosted by Teresa Au takes an honest look at the challenges and rewards of being part of the creator economy. Building a business around your creative pursuits ain’t easy. Wouldn’t it be great to learn from those who have done this before?  Check out In the Making from Adobe to learn more about how to build a creative career and life. Subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen.

If you're interested in sponsoring the show, please contact us at: sponsors@thecuriositydepartment.com

If you'd like to submit a guest idea, please contact us at: contact@thecuriositydepartment.com

Read more