Pray about it.

I like the idea in these thoughts that my friend shared from a book he has been reading. It talks about how we can find success in breaking through the old patterns that we want freedom from...

I die to self by the act of belonging to Christ.

-Galatians‬ ‭5‬:‭24‬ (ESV)

What is my identity?

-Ed Catmull

-Unknown

Light reveals/creates something beautiful; while darkness breeds destruction. May we confess to one another so we might magnify God's beauty. I will lift high Jesus' name by my surrender to Him.

-‭Jesus of Nazareth (John‬ ‭12‬:‭32‬ ESV)

If a person attracts through his personality, that becomes his appeal. If, however, he is identified with the Lord Himself, then the appeal becomes what Jesus Christ can do. The danger is to glory in men, yet Jesus says we are to lift up only Him.

-Oswald Chambers

I commit to carrying this thought with me today.

-St. Francis of Assisi

I have fielded texts and DMs asking my opinion. I copy/pasted the following from one such reply.

Short answer is SIZE and stewardship of resources. What's the purpose you want to accomplish with a "pocketable" device? It should be a tool for you to be a good friend. It should remind you to be where you want to be and it should keep you connected to your extended circles. It should take good photos. It should not be a barrier between you and your loved ones. It should also not cause you to spend more for a phone bill than is prudent. A larger screen will only lure you into looking at it more. At the expense of who you might be across the table from. At the expense of your data bill. I also question how well the camera lens will fare as it squeezes in and out of pockets and countertops when it sticks out so obnoxiously. I also use my phone instead of my DSLR whenI want to travel light - the big phone seems counterintuitive... One more issue, if you're going to spend $700 (and you do spend that entire cost with the initial fee and *monthly charges for the next two years; you better make sure it is worth abandoning what you currently have in your hand…

*We save $25/month on each of our phones that are out of contract. $300/year is a steep cost for something that’s not going to truly be beneficial.

What do you think? Am I missing something crucial to the decision of what to do with this choice?

Tell a story. Be an artisan. Craft the magical.

Give good notes; be a good coach. Do not "play small." Give the gift of honest and constructive criticism - it is a real gift if your team trusts that you are for them.
Being full of hope, bring your full self to any and every situation. Know your unique talents and steward them well.

Use your creative mind as a gift to the team. When at your best, you'll ask helpful, focusing questions that will guide us toward a better future.

Always take a chance on better, even if it seems threatening. Break paradigms - dare to bend the implications of what people think they know.

Ideate where we might go as we consider "hopeful, unknown, future possibilities."

Tomorrow is not rooted in the past unless you are lazy in your vision. May we call each other to the higher standard. Let us reach for the stars.

May we be known by love. May ours be a collective voice of hope. May we realize our potential to create a beautiful future.

Do not hesitate to step up where others shrink in fear. Charge as a warrior in the service of joy. Never cease speaking up and offering your very best work. Be relentless in generously sharing the gift you uniquely can be - to your ecclesial community and the world beyond.

I read this prayer this morning and have found encouragement in it. I've been contemplating it as my morning moves along.

Here are a few photos (that help me consider those thoughts and remember perspective) from last week's camping trip with some dear friends of ours.

We as designers should never create until we've read the script or at least talked with the Producer/Director to fully understand the vision. Depending on our experience/maturity we can (and potentially ought to) be ready with concepts based on what we suspect might work, but only if we can hold loosely to our ideas and evolve them with an open mind to complete change. The number of ideas I have moved to the back pocket is probably more impressive than the portfolio of 2,000ish designs that I've executed. A clever design idea is only a good design idea if it helps tell the story well.

Story trumps all.

I like this reminder. It goes along with my tagline:

achieving the greatest intersection of stewardship and creativity

I took a break & read my wife's latest post. She's been blogging daily since we started this program - http://choosinglovenotfear.tumblr.com/ - here writing here is just one more point on the long list of things I think are amazing about her.

Anyway, I thought I'd copy/paste part of one of her posts earlier in the week that explains what "the program" that we've been doing is:

• The program is 3 levels, with level one being first and toughest. It is one or both parents with the child at all times. And the child is never more than 3 feet away from you. It involves a strict schedule (eat every two hours, emotional/cognitive activities, physical activities, house work, bonding activities, and goals for each child).
  
• Everything has to be visual and verbal. Hence, there are huge posterboards and a white board taking over one wall of our house, with goals, mantras, the schedule, unacceptable behaviors, and unhealthy/healthy words to say.
  
• There are no electronics (and I do mean none). We don’t do anything besides answer phone calls until after the boys go to bed (which is why you won’t see a blog post before 9pm).
  
• The program is parents only. The boys cannot play with friends and really cannot interact with other adults. Thus we’ve said "see you later" to everyone we know for a time. It’s like we’re in Europe for the month (except not really; not at all).
  
• If the child will not participate in an activity, then you have them sit in "time in" with you. This is the opposite of the more well known "time out." Time outs are terrible for traumatized kids because it isolates them. Time in keeps them contained, safe, and in proximity to people.
  
• The suggested time frame for level one is 45-60 days. We are seeing what we can accomplish in 30. We’ll see.
  

"The key to good decision making is not knowledge. It is understanding. We are swimming in the former. We are desperately lacking in the latter."

-Malcolm Gladwell

Understand what variables need to be solved in the equation. Ignore all the rest and simply make the snap decision. Ideally the decision would be one that comes intuitively - likely because of time invested in similar situations - where the necessary variables have already been solved on a subconscious level.

Regardless, I'm really working on this thought. May I not fall prey to my OCD nature of trying to have every path of the maze accounted for. Instead, I want to trust my natural talents and the investment of life experiences that I've built up.

I know I do this well in a live production environment. I almost always seem to make the right call - either during set-up of a stage or mid-show leading the team through a last minute audible that.

I hope I can continue to get better about this in the rest of my life.

Scanning an old journal, I came across this bit of encouragement to be who I’m uniquely created to be. My value-add is that, "I bring an unseen potential of ideation to the creative process and I have a unique ability to maximize the product by manipulating resources in a strategic manner."