heated shrug for the modern office #crazyideas

Time to read: 2 minutes Ever find yourself freezing in the office? I do. Aircon is brutal. These days, I am sat right in the firing range of not one, but two aircon units, both aimed at my right arm. The one behind me is lethal: when it goes polar, I shiver, wrap myself in my scarf, put my coat […] continue reading »

The ethics of web design: do we have any?

Time to read: 3 minutes What makes someone an expert? A wise woman once told me that you are an expert “when others come to you for answers”. Well. It does take a little bit more: such as the ability to answer questions, repeatedly, correctly, memorably. There is a requirement to educate, surprise and spread knowledge and skills. Do that […] continue reading »

can languages help you think and design better?

Time to read: 4 minutes Today is UNESCO International Mother Language Day. This year, we celebrate Turkish. My mother language is Greek, and oddly my mother and grandmother both spoke turkish as well. We’re not your typical Greeks. Consider most Europeans, for instance. As a vast majority, most of us are born and raised in a single country. Our education […] continue reading »

my ideal todo list would have 4 dimensions

Time to read: 2 minutes I wrote recently about time-boxing, and that got me to thinking that productivity isn’t just about shoving things into a calendar. It’s also about making the most of the time you’ve got, limiting context-switching, and remembering what needs to get done. After quite a bit of pondering, I concluded that my ideal todo list would […] continue reading »

Sunshine and despair: Greece is bleeding

Time to read: 4 minutes The sun is shining, the sky is the blue of postcards, and yet despair shrouds the country. People starving, begging, stealing. One retired gentleman immolated himself in April 2012, as he did not want to leave debts for his children. He saw no future for himself, his family. He was 77. My father’s age. I […] continue reading »

timeboxing tomatoes – or what is timeboxing and why is it good?

Time to read: 3 minutes timeboxing tomatoes The pomodoro “italian for tomato” technique had me giggling for a bit, before I read on – thank you wikipedia :Pomodoro technique – and found out it was a desperate student cramming for exams who decided to focus his attention using a tomato-shaped kitchen timer. “Let the first stone be cast…”. So we’ve […] continue reading »