We’re not just making pretty interfaces, we’re actually in the process of building an environment where we’ll spend most of our time for the rest of our lives. We’re the designers. We’re the builders.

Spine tingling stuff from Wilson Miner’s Build 2011 talk.

Go without a coat when it’s cold; find out what cold is. Go hungry; keep your existence lean. Wear away the fat, get down to the lean tissue and see what it’s all about. The only time you define your character is when you go without. In times of hardship, you find out what you’re made of and what you’re capable of. If you’re never tested, you’ll never define your character

Henry Rollins, via Minimal Mac

Stop the comparisons. Today.

It’s a great habit to observe your peer’s work but it’s important to always remember that design is not a competition. Be inspired and take influence from those talented people in your industry but remember nothing good can come from comparisons. Why not compare today’s work to your work a year ago?

Allow your skill to catch up with your taste

Ira Glass puts it better than I could:

Nobody tells this to people who are beginners, I wish someone told me. All of us who do creative work, we get into it because we have good taste. But there is this gap. For the first couple years you make stuff, it’s just not that good. It’s trying to be good, it has potential, but it’s not. But your taste, the thing that got you into the game, is still killer. And your taste is why your work disappoints you. A lot of people never get past this phase, they quit

Excerpt from this interview.

Educate yourself

Pick up a book, address that growing Instapaper queue. Learning a new skill or reinforcing an established skill can motivate you more than you realise. Don’t constrain yourself to your own industry, look further afield and prepare to be surprised by the results.

Stop finding excuses not to work

“It would be so much better if…” “If only it wasn’t…”. You will never land a perfect project. You will never have the perfect client. Your office will never be the perfect temperature.

Switch it up

Change your working habits – wake up at 5 am or stay up till 3am – work in a coffee shop or public library. I find nothing grinds me down more than a routine. Take advantage of all the flexibility your job can offer.

Get healthy

Eat better food; drink more water; take more exercise; sleep longer. Don’t underestimate the power of fresh air and daylight. A brisk walk, a jog or a bike ride can lift your mood and change your perspective.

Keep a to-do list

Keeping a to-do list can be a challenge in itself. I don’t put everything on mine, only the menial tasks I’m likely to forget. When I’m not in the mood for creative work I tackle the to-do list. Knowing I’ve got a few of those boring jobs out of the way can boost my mood enough to get me back in the game.

Maintain your working environment

Keep your workspace clean and tidy. Invest in some decent lighting and a few pictures for the walls. Ensure you have a door to shut or some quality headphones so you can enjoy a quiet moment. You’re more likely to spend time in a workspace that’s a pleasure to be in.

Separate work and play

Don’t work on the sofa, don’t play at your desk. If you work in an office don’t bring your work home with you. It seems like a simple thing but when home working is commonplace and remote working is so easy  you’d be surprised how much the line can blur.

Don’t stop working

The worst thing you can do is sit around and wait for inspiration to find you. When you are feeling at your worst it is tempting to fire up the xbox, lose yourself in social networking or watch those endless reruns.

Inspiration exists, but it has to find you working. – Pablo Picasso

The longer you spend away from work the harder it will be to pick it up again. The more you work, the more you work.

Experts—journalists, analysts, consultants, bankers, and gurus can’t “do” so they “advise.” They can tell you what is wrong with your product, but they cannot make a great one.

I just woke up to the sad news that Steve Jobs has passed away. Rest in Peace 

Carving the Mountains from Juan Rayos on Vimeo.

I would buy one of these for all of my friends.

A fantastic collection of tips and insider advice about what it’s really like to be a designer,  this article kept me up far too late.

Last week I attended New Adventures in Web Design 2011, and I wanted to write a few thoughts about the day. Instead of a blow-by-blow account I’m going to share what I thought made this conference so special, and why I will be attending again. The photos used in this post are all from the Flickr group pool.

The Location

Nottingham is a university city with a vibrant creative community but most importantly it’s located in Central England. This means that those of us who don’t live in the south-east are able to attend without take a week off work and learning what an Oyster card is. It’s also got the East Midlands airport nearby, meaning international attendees are accounted for too.

The Venue

The Albert Hall is a spectacular venue. I heard it criticised by a few for the size of the foyer area during breaks, but I liked that you were elbow to elbow with web geeks. I attended alone, but managed to speak to loads of great people because, in most part, we were forced together in the cosy foyer.

The Talks

Throughout all of the talks I didn’t see one line of code. I don’t go to a conference to learn specifics and take diligent notes, I go to be influenced and inspired by industry leaders. Talks were time-boxed to just 30 minutes, meaning they were lean, focused, efficient and left me wanting more.

The Community

Both before and after the event it felt like the whole web design community had been talking about this conference. Simon Collison is a prominent member of the web design community and we all wanted to see him succeed. While there, everyone from the attendees and volunteers to the speakers were approachable, friendly and always smiling.

Podcasts have become a staple of my weekly routine, I find they are the best way to use those hours of the day I spend travelling to work, driving or doing household chores to do something positive.

I listen to a wide range of podcasts and below is a small list of some of my favourites:

Web Industry

Boagworld: An excellent podcast for anyone “designing, developing or running websites on a daily basis”. It is about to go through a big format change but the 200+ show archive is still available.

Think Vitamin Radio: A bi-weekly podcast from the guys at Carsonified delivering industry news, interviews and case studies. They cover everything from web design to web business so most people will find something of interest

The Big Web Show: Industry veterans Dan Benjamin and Jeffrey Zeldman interview a different guest each week, topics range from web standards to the publishing industry. I’ve found this show so interesting, particularly when they discuss the historical web industry.

General Interest

Stuff You Should Know: Howstuffworks.com‘s flagship podcast. Josh Clark and Charles W. ‘Chuckers’ Bryant walk you through some well chosen topics and themes.

This American Life: If you are going to pick one podcast make sure this is it. Absolutely fascinating topics, brilliantly produced and it’s impossible not to like the host Ira Glass.

Radiolab: This popular science podcast is terrifically produced and the topics and themes are riveting. One of my favourites, full length shows are infrequent but when they publish them they are pure gold.

Answer Me This: Very British, a new one for me although it’s been going for ages. Helen, Olly and Martin the sound man answer listener questions. Very funny and really easy to listen to.

Bonus – Gaming

Gaming podcasts are a guilty pleasure for me, although I can’t file them under passive learning.

Bombcast: A weekly podcast from the guys at giantbomb.com. They are all veterans of videogame journalism and really know their stuff, one of my week’s highlights.

Got any shows to recommend? Let me know in the comments.