The Urban Sparrow

31/07/2020

This really is the cruelest year.

17/07/2020

https://doist.com/blog/meeting-vs-email

Oftentimes, the most productive meeting is the one that never happened. Use this flowchart to decide whether to have that meeting or just send an email.

23/12/2019

"The things you need to do to be popular (the only metric the platforms share) aren’t the things you’d be doing if you were trying to be effective, or grounded, or proud of the work you’re doing. When there’s a single metric (likes/followers), we end up looking in the rear-view mirror when we should be driving instead."
– Seth Godin

18/09/2019

It’s tempting to claim the role of artist. Once you’re an artist, you’re free. Free to work your own hours, free to make what you want to make, free to express yourself. Except no…

09/06/2018

04/06/2018

03/01/2018

23/05/2016

29/03/2016

Wise words from the best.

In his letters and other sources, C. S. Lewis left various bits of advice on the craft of writing. Here are 15 of the things he said.

30/09/2015

So simple. So hard. So effective.

(This post isn’t a prompt response, but a reflection on doing the work). Many things in life that we say are difficult, aren’t. They just require practice and attention to learn one step at a time. Learning to draw isn’t difficult, and neither is learning to write computer programs, or to play the p…

28/05/2015

Hilariously bad flags & some great design advice. Also, this: "Good design and democracy simply don't go together." (So maybe NZ should leave well enough alone ...)

Roman Mars is obsessed with flags -- and after you watch this talk, you might be, too. These ubiquitous symbols of civic pride are often designed, well, pretty terribly. But they don't have to be. In this surprising and hilarious talk about vexillology -- the study of flags -- Mars reveals the five…