BR#11: Planning, Concept Design, Resilience

Productivity

Somewhere in between the planner who plans for every possible and impossible scenario, and the risk junkie who dives into anything and everything without a thought, there is a sweet spot. The best outcomes tend to live in that sweet spot.

Planning too much is a trap. You just can’t account for everything. And even if you do, you’ll probably still determine that the plan you had 6 months ago was good enough as it was then.

Likewise, as I’ve learned the hard way, jumping into something without any plan can backfire quite badly too.

Neither of those two options is good. But how do you find that sweet spot? Well, you can start with this question:

What are the critical things that you need to know before you start?

Critical = vital to the success or very costly if done wrong.

Beyond critical lie the nice-to-have’s.

You can have some of those too when the resources and time allow, but you’re not doing yourself any favors by seeking them excessively.

Figure out what’s critical. The rest, you can learn as you go.

Creativity

I just realised that this is the 11th newsletter in which I write about creativity and I’ve never mentioned anything that I personally have done creatively.

Part of the reason behind that is the fact that my creative projects are never quite “finished”. 

I do them really for myself, to unwind, and I can always spot things that I could improve or do better, so I seldom share anything I do. But here’s a temple concept I designed in Blender (still unfinished):

I wanted it to feel instantly recognisable as a temple, but not one that you could associate with a real-world religion.

Traveling Europe, I’ve visited lots of catholic and Muslim heritage sites and monuments. I’ve always been fascinated by Greek mythology as well, so I’ve studied that too for my reference points. Key questions I thought about were:

What are the defining traits of those monuments? How do their shapes, materials, colours and decorations speak to their builders’ belief system, circumstances and way of life?

Those things are interconnected. It’s incredibly easy to distinguish between a catholic church, a Greek temple, an Aztec temple, a Buddhist temple, and so on.

They are all strikingly recognisable because of the defining traits that their followers across time and borders have adhered to, like a perfectly crafted brand book.

And it’s no surprise. We are all heavily influenced by our circumstances and surroundings. And what we create is often a product of those influences.

Mindset

On hedging against the worst-case scenario:

In an unpredictable world, this is important. It’s not an instinct that I personally grew up with. I’ve not been particularly risk-averse in my 20’s. But, as the world becomes increasingly unpredictable, I’ve realised that that needs to change. I realised this a little while ago, particularly around the time the pandemic started.

Whether in times of crisis or not, I’ve learned that it’s quite healthy to build up resilience and hedge against negative unforeseen events, especially as that relates to financial matters.

And it’s not earning making more. It’s about being disciplined and properly managing your funds.

For me, speaking with a financial consultant helped a lot. They can help you get clarity around your financial priorities and show you how to build better spending habits.

P.S. Do you have feedback about this newsletter or how I could make it better? I’d love to hear it! Feel free to message me on LinkedIn or email to tell me more.

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Kind regards,

Cata