Educated Guess

To wrap up the week, we have our lecture series dedicated to sharing best practices, industry insights, anecdotes, interviews, and perspectives. Each lecture exists for the purpose of boosting confidence and cross-industry awareness. So, this week, we’re joined by Bryan McElderry—a holistic life and health coach who just so happens to be the brother of the host. For about an hour, they discuss the the following topics and share some great laughs along the way: Understanding the art of resilience Adding structure to the way you deliver content Finding fault in your stars Planning your business correctly Articulating value over the course of time Coaching yourself as a best practice Serving, connecting, inviting, and offering You can keep up with Bryan’s work at any of the links below. linktr.ee/drmcelderry bryanmcelderry.com instagram.com/drmcelderry twitter.com/drmcelderry --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/educated-guess/support

This is the inaugural episode of our "Work Study" segment. Tactics, How-To's, templates, and Methods are the ingredients of this dish. Typically our episodes are more abstract in nature. However, we've found a need to start offering more actionable pieces of advice.  So, we've reserved the middle of our week for just this very thing. Today, we are talking about a very specific frame for communicating with stakeholders. Whether you're a freelancer, studio owner, or corporate person, you will inevitably have to start talking strategy. And, no one likes the unenviable task of giving answers to simple questions like: "What's the status of deliverable XYZ?" and "How are we looking with ABC?".  Some topics we cover on this episode include:  How to get the best out of teammates How slow down the bullets when clients are asking for updates How to identify the audience you're speaking to and understand what they want Tune in.  Newsletter Social Media --- Support this podcast: https://ancho

In this segment of Incomplete Thoughts, we discuss the art of making good decisions in high-risk situations.  This episode is for you if you've been wrestling with the idea of taking a big leap. Whether you've thought of asking for someone's hand in marriage, switching career paths, or learning a new skill, all leaps feel scary because they play on our biggest insecurities.   In hopes of easing some of those fears today, we offer 3 clear steps that should help you give you an extra boost of confidence as you navigate what is surely one of the more stressful parts of your life.   Tune in.  If you enjoy what you hear, then you might love our writing even more.  Jump over to our email newsletter. What you can expect from our newsletter:   ~2 Emails per month to your inbox each month A deeper dive into the ideas shared on the podcast  Access to frameworks, concepts, and templates that will help you execute Instagram --- Support this podcast: https://ancho

On this episode, we are joined by D’Ondre Swails. D’Ondre is finishing up his PhD. at Brown University in Africana Studies. And, in true multidisciplinary fashion we discuss (for ~90 minutes) how liberal arts fit into a modern capitalist economy. Some of the topics we cover in addition talking about this placement, include: Comprehending the modern definition of “culture” and what people get wrong about it Understanding “culture” in terms of a knowledge base Consuming art and design as a means to resolving racial tensions Describing the generational link between Huey P. Newton and Tupac Shakur Discovering why there is no substitute for the zeitgeist Critiquing the nuances between “the culture” and “culture itself Tune in. www.instagram.com/educated__guess website --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/educated-guess/support

This segment of "Incomplete Thoughts" is dedicated to Kobe Bryant. Our hero--forever and always.  “Everyting negative - pressure, challenges - is all an opportunity for me to rise.” ― Kobe Bryant --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/educated-guess/support

If you're a self-taught designer, the chances are very high that your path began with a torrented copy of Illustrator or Photoshop. And, even if you received formal training at an art school, graphic design is a frequent choice for it's relative practicality and market demand. However, as most people jump into the wonderful world of advertising and art direction, they mind find a different reality than they once imagined as a teenager.  In order to demystify the grey area between the way projects are handled as an independent illustrator as opposed to a graphic designer, we bring in Jocelyn Tsaih to offer a first-person account of what she's experienced in both worlds. As a Taiwan-born, Shanghai-raised visual artist currently based out of Oakland, California, Jocelyn spent the early days of her career in New York as a graduate of SVA's graphic design program. Now practicing illustration full-time, Jocelyn has secured work, commissions, jobs, and more from clients including: NYT, Airbnb, Facebook, Stanfor

On this segment of Incomplete thoughts, Justin shares extemporaneous thoughts on the ever blurring lines between design and art. In an effort to root the thoughts of this episode in some historical context, Justin provides a passage from Bruno Munari's 1966 publication of Design as Art.  With the rise of UX Design, particularly in American cities, reconsidering the delicate balance between form and function has never been more apparent than right now. Specifically, we all must ask the question of "what role does aesthetic play in actually lifting the human experience in 2020?"  -  Bruno Munari - Design as Art Educated Guess - Instagram Educated Guess - Website --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/educated-guess/support

"If the content is there, then you don't need to hide behind the language." -- Jeannette Kuo For roughly 60 minutes, guest lecturer Jeannette Kuo and host Justin McElderry talk about why it's important for designers to move beyond using esoteric, architectural lingo. Specifically, we discuss how reversing this perception begins with clear, and direct explanations of work.  Some of the topics we cover include: Understanding the loose fit between form and program Brainstorming the future of privacy Responding to the obsolescence of type, use, and lifestyle Jeannette is co-founding partner of Zurich-based Karamuk Kuo Architects and Assistant Professor-in-Practice of Architecture at Harvard Graduate School of Design. Her research and work focus on the intersection of structures, space, and culture.  From multi-unit housing to cultural infrastructures like the Augusta Raurica Archaeological Center, the work of the office spans across scales and typologies, each time looking for spati

"Hoping for a good future without investing in today is like a farmer waiting for a crop without ever planting any seed." -- John Maxwell Have you ever started checking items off a list in hopes that things will change one day? Yet, as more and more tomorrow's pass you by, you realize the moment you're waiting for is never coming at all.  To make matters worse, living your wildest dreams can often come with a new burden of reality. Imagine the emptiness of getting everything you ever dreamed of--only to realize how small your dream was in the first place.  For roughly 15 minutes, Justin McElderry reflects on a few personal meditations on this exact subject.  Tune in. instagram.com/educated__guess educated--guess.com --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/educated-guess/support

Erez Nevi Pana is an explorer who uses design as a significant tool to investigate phenomena through material experimentation. Nevi Pana earned his BA in design from the Holon Institute of Technology and a MA from the Design Academy Eindhoven where his thesis focused on the recrystallization of salt. He now practices research and design around the world as a doctoral student investigating the topic of vegan design. For roughly an hour, we discuss a method of creating a purpose-driven design system. Some of the questions we address include:  What it means to take stance on waste How to find an integrated value system Understanding the quantifiable benefit to purpose-driven work What the average person should understand about veganism as a practice Tune in.  instagram.com/educated__guess educated--guess.com --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/educated-guess/support

This episode begins a new Educated Guess segment called "Incomplete Thoughts". Occurring only on Mondays, these episodes--in conjunction with lecture hall episodes--aim to provide both tactical and aspirational advice directly from Justin McElderry. For this episode, we provide you with an excerpt from an interview Justin recently did with his brother, Bryan. For about an hour, they discuss 3 different ideas to consider that might just help you reclaim the childlike feeling toward you dreams again.  Some of these ideas include:  Dealing with one of the most disrespectful things someone can say about your dreams Understanding the role data plays in your life story Reimagining form as the headline of anthropology Tune in.  instagram.com/educated__guess educated--guess.com --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/educated-guess/support

Every artist dreads answering one single question, “What do you do?”. So, in an attempt to understand new ways of dealing with this angst, we lean on Dave + Mark, founders of Dark Igloo. And, in this episode, we explore how they’ve found a unique sweet spot to describe what they do and why. Some topics we cover include:  Why it's important to choose studio principles wisely A goal that humanity is not focused enough on achieving A job that could be done for just one week What could be learned from hosting a demolition derby You can keep up with the whereabouts of Dark Igloo here:  https://www.instagram.com/darkigloo/ http://www.darkigloo.com/ --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/educated-guess/support

For just a moment, let's think back to the days of yelling at our peers--and maybe even our parents--this very statement, "You're Not the Boss of Me!". We were so convinced that we were the sole proprietors of our future. We were in control. We held the keys to our happiness inside of us. And, we were courageous enough to let everyone know the same.  Now, logically, there is only one question that follows: "What changed over the years?" So, on today's episode, we are explaining this question in detail. Some topics covered include:  Scientific evidence of why we are biased towards what is easy The truth about the thoughts that hold us back What it looks like to hold fast to our dreams -- And, as always, you can support, contribute, and become a patron at any of the following links educated--guess.com instagram.com/educated__guess --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/educated-guess/support

Melancholy is often considered cool in the art world. Yet, plenty of examples show the extreme consequence of living in a consistent state of sadness and reserved joy. Often, artists and designers think that keeping joy within is the only way to remain happy. The internal satisfaction of living a reserved lifestyle is often the fuel for the some of the greatest work ever.  But, as Newton said, energy cannot be created on destroyed--only transferred. So, where is your energy going? Today, we unpack new ways of looking at the current moment. We imagine new ways of using sad moments as fuel for our work without becoming a slave to our desires. Tune in. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/educated-guess/support

Rachel is a Tokyo-based, multidisciplinary designer and art director originally from England. Her work is multidisciplinary and echoes her interest in music nature and contemporary culture. She has worked for independent record labels XL Recordings and Young Turks, as well as freelance projects for clients such as Adidas, Puma, Sony Music and Universal Music. Some of the topics we cover in this episode include:  Advancing your ideas of luxury Taking unwieldy risks in your work Consuming a better diet of inspiration Crossing the chasm between graphic design and art direction Choosing optimism in the face of despair If you're interested in keeping up with future happenings related to Educated Guess or Rachel Bungey, you can follow along using the links below. https://rachelbungey.com/ https://www.instagram.com/rachelbungey/ https://educated--guess.com/ https://www.instagram.com/educated__guess/ --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/educated-guess/support

Hobbies are often a sore spot for many artists. Having someone refer to your very craft as a "hobby" is almost the ultimate diss to some. Yet, today, we make an attempt to make peace with hobbies once and for all. ]Some questions explored on this show include:  Did you quit on a past time if you call it a hobby?  Can you seek mastery in more than one area?  Do hobbies have a purpose in a capitalist society?  Tune in.  --- To access more content from the brand, find us at the following links:  instagram.com/educated__guess educated--guess.com --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/educated-guess/support

Dewey Saunders is a Florida-born visual artist residing in Los Angeles. Some central themes in his work include hip hop and psychedelia. And, most recently, he’s garnered a lot attention for his work with both Future and Anderson.Paak on album art.  For about an hour, we talk about the trials of practicing art full-time as well as being disciplined in your design aesthetic. Tune in.  --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/educated-guess/support

Ben Fry is principal of Fathom, a design and software consultancy located in Boston. He received his doctoral degree from the Aesthetics + Computation Group at the MIT Media Laboratory, where his research focused on combining fields such as computer science, statistics, graphic design, and data visualization as a means for understanding information. Fathom’s projects span from arenas of social justice like an affordability calculator for Farmers to the computer graphics built inside of Minority Report. Independent of his work with Fathom, he’s garnered degrees + accolades from MIT, Carnegie Mellon, Cooper Hewitt, + the MOMA.  For roughly an hour, we talk about the many applications of cross-disciplinary visual art + we work hard to try and identify a reasonable answer to the question “can visual art help save the world?”  Tune in.  --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/educated-guess/support

This week on our radio show, we are joined by Natalie Nixon. Natalie holds a PhD. and is the founder of Figure 8 Thinking, LLC. She advises leaders on change management at publicly traded and privately held corporations and non-profits. She helps them find ways to leverage creativity, sustain innovation and achieve systemic change -- at scale. We spend roughly 1 hour talking through real methods of changing the way you work and implementing change into your daily life. Some of the topics / questions we cover include: What is a good framework we can use to improve on the art of anticipation? What systems can someone put in place to make themselves a better collaborator? How can we ensure that we are on the right side of the future of work? And, how might we bring someone else along? What are your daily / weekly creative habits? --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/educated-guess/support

For this episode, we are joined by Matt May -- Head of Inclusive Design @Adobe. We spend ~1 hour talking about the necessity of building products / experiences that are both accommodating and delightful for all skin tones and ages. Some of the topics / questions we cover include:  What qualifies someone to be head of inclusive design?  What should we do once we recognize a subconscious bias?  Is there a testable method of reducing the amount of design decisions which exclude specific racial or social groups? How do you measure whether the mission of inclusive design is being achieved or not? To become part of the rapidly growing EDU community, you can visit us at educated--guess.com and register for our bi-weekly newsletter. Tune in. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/educated-guess/support