A lot happened since my last post in November 23. I am now a British citizen, with the ceremony and all the shebang. Found a job in Spain and a new flat in Valencia. Now that everything is settled, I am doing my best to find balance. Life, work, family. New city, new job and a new language to learn. Onward.
"Wherever you go, go with all your heart” – Confucius
Good things permalink
Hola Valencia! permalink
It's my second month living in Valencia next Monday. Moving out of London after eight years was not an easy decision. I miss my friends there, the design community and the art. But Valencia it's growing in my heart in a way I was not expecting. Besides the Kafkaesque experience of obtaining my working visa. I feel confident about this decision, particularly after the recent riots in the UK.
Living near the beach was always something I dreamed of. I am not dipping in the Mediterranean Sea with the frequency I need. But just the possibility of riding my bike to Malvarrosa whenever I want makes me smile. Another quality-of-life improvement is having friends who care for you living within walking distance. We are so lucky to have Lady Cabanyal and Don Bumface (not using their real names to protect their privacy) to hang out frequently. Their help navigating the Spanish bureaucracy and learning about the local culture made all the difference. Learning Spanish, a language that I never had any curiosity before, has been good. It has many similarities with old Brazilian Portuguese. It is poetic, rich and sometimes fun. I am impressed with the locals, they are usually warm and receptive. Even when I torture them with my portuñol.
Working in healthcare permalink
This week I am completing six months working for Docplanner. It has been a joy to work in a scale-up again.
I was assigned to lead a strategic initiative as soon as I joined. I worked so hard — like I hadn’t for long. Since it was a greenfield opportunity, there was little internal knowledge about the people we were designing for. I was responsible for the research strategy, conducted all interviews and user testing with dynamic prototypes. Using Indi Young’s Listening Sessions method was so helpful. I listened to a group of inspiring women in Brazil and learned so much about what/how/why healthcare is still so hard for so many.
We sprinted. We tested. We argued. I feel people are excited about the learnings and the challenges. I am quite optimistic.
More recently, I have been focusing my time on my small but mighty design team. They are spread over 3 countries: Poland, Spain and Germany. All of them are lovely, talented and unique.
I already have people I can call friends at work. A good start.
Learned things permalink
Doing great work matters permalink
This year, I am trying to balance resting, healing and creating good stuff. Doing great stuff in my free time feels awesome. Creative work warms my heart. Writing, teaching, consulting, mentoring, hacking.
The first time I thought about this I started to teach professionally. I joined the Experience Haus team to teach Service Design. I recently finished my fourth cohort teaching online, which was rewarding. I am teaching the same course in November, and there are a few spots available and the full information in the Experience Haus website. I am also have been invited to create a voice interface training this summer. I have done something similar before in portuguese, with the mentorship of my friend Ben Sauer.
But the creative endeavour I am more excited about now is Secret Flavours. I am an assistant photographer, marketer, salesperson, UX intern, and commis. This week we had two sessions where people tested our menu. The three course menu, inspired by Bahia, was crowned by a Moqueca Baiana. Moqueca is a fish stew with a brazilian twist. Some say it's similar to a light curry. Reviews are positive, but there is some work to do. Marketing and selling experiences is not an easy task.
Leili is the owner and head chef. Her creativity and culinary talent and creativity are a gift to the world that needs to be shared. She is also the love of my life, my muse, and everything for me.
Things that bring me joy permalink
Souza's are winning around the world permalink
Bia Souza smashed Brazil’s first gold medal this week. It was her first time competing in the Olympic games. While that might seem insignificant to many, it struck a chord with me, and I cried joyfully. When I was a kid, I trained judo for 6 months, and I loved.
Bia’s father, Poseidonio, is a former judo athlete. Inspired by him, Bia has practised judo since she was seven years old. When she was a kid, she was uncomfortable with her body, and Judo helped her to build confidence.
She won many medals before but not in the Olympic Games. In Tokyo, Maria Suelen Altheman, now her coach, beat her, and she was not selected for the games. And now she got there and rocked our world.
Bia is the perfect example of Brazilian grit and resilience.
Like 80% of the Brazilian athletes in Paris, Bia is supported by a government grant created by President Lula in 2004.
I can’t stop thinking about how these fantastic black women are. The role models the new generations need.
Healthcheck permalink
Diabetes is under control. Mental Health is ok.
Weight: 93 kg
Food: The quality of the food in Spain is astounding. The tomatoes, fruits, cheeses. I am eating healthy as I can.
Drinks: Had a few non-alcoholic beers and some wine this month.
Top 3 links permalink
Occupational health and safety management — Psychological health and safety at work — Guidelines for managing psychosocial risks There is an ISO Standard for psychological safety and I find that fascinating. It talks about wellbeing at work, psychosocial risks and how to identify hazards and minimize the risks associated with them. It's a shame it's under a paywall, but that is why we have Anna's Archive.
How to go on an information Diet
"Information is a drug. From an evolutionary perspective, it makes sense: the more information our ancestors had, the more likely they were to survive. But this is the first time in history that humans have been exposed to such a constant flow of information. And in the same way the superabundance of high-calorie foods has led to obesity, this new information overload encourages overconsumption".
Anne-Laure is so smart!
Content Operations: The Invisible Scaffold You Can’t Live Without This article it's an interesting introduction to the topic. It's focused on Marketing, so it doesn't cover the complexities of global product teams. On this topic, the book Content Operations at Scale is more helpful. If you are into podcasts, listen this episode Defining Content Operations with my dear Content Empress, Rahel Bailie, who wrote the first chapter.