Around the block and back.
Design is in my DNA, but there’s a lot of other stuff that gets me out of bed in the morning. From teaching, to furniture building, to script writing. Scroll down to learn a bit more about me.
The Craftsman
In my later teens I developed a penchant for furniture building, by which I mean a full blown obsession with making overly complex tables.
Working mainly with hardwoods like oak, cherry and American walnut, I spent months at a time possessed by the smallest details to bring my visions to life. It was through this that I learnt the essence of craftsmanship and ergonomics-driven product design.
The Baker
I’ll admit it. I have a small addiction to chocolate, which has developed into a fairly large preoccupation with chocolate making (teach a man to fish right?).
Recently I’ve begun branching out from nuts and other fillings to full on flavoured bars and am always looking for volunteers, if you’re feeling brave.
The Osaka Enamoured
At the end of 2014, I moved to Osaka, Japan as an English teacher at a local Middle School.
As a local resident, I fell in love with the city’s vibrant atmosphere, incredible food and heart-warming hospitality. As a teacher, I built a strong reputation for interactive, empathy-centred teaching, bolstered by technology and a strong sense of camaraderie.
I also took a deeply centred involvement in my local community, tutoring families and helping out at orphanages in the precinct. My Japanese is now pretty rusty, but my incredible memories are as vibrant as ever.
The Teacher
A huge part of me has always relished the opportunity to connect through sharing knowledge. Whether it was teaching Greek to infants in my teenage years, teaching English Communication in Osaka, Japan, or volunteering at local STEAM charities, I think we all have something valuable we can pass on, and who knows the result this could have?
The Environmentalist
I have vivid memories writing panicked essays on the threat of climate catastrophe in my younger years; desperately trying to reconcile the looming existential trepidation for our species.
In 2019 this concern, passion, general sense of hope was given legs by the climate action movement, encapsulated by global protests and by IBM’s Think Climate summit, a London-based event we built around Al Gore’s Climate Reality Project.
Today I am using my skills as a UX & Service Designer and certified Climate Reality Leader to give life to even more climate-centric projects, both within IBM and without.
The Music Lover
Step 1: Fill your house with Stevie Wonder, Donny Hathaway, Alicia Keys, Nora Jones, Aretha Franklin, Dave Brubeck.
Step 2: Guilt your five year old into taking on his late grandfather’s piano.
Step 3: Actively encourage the loud clangs of a would-be musician.
Step 4: Introduce a saxophone six years later for good measure.
Ultimately it went something like this.
The Orator
The ancient Greeks believed we were all steeped in paradox. My love for writing sentimental, wordy diatribes, contrasted with my childhood fear of any sort of public speech inclined me to believe them.
Luckily, I had supportive companions who nudged me to bring my work to life (in front of crows of hundreds, whelp). This is how I took up performative poetry, and eventually, amateur videography.
The Nomad
TBC
The Gym Goer
As a kid I dreamed of being a gymnast, an adventurer or a wall-scaling vigilante. None of these worked out, but I still love being active, and in equal measure, warm and safe indoors. Today, any combination of these is for me an excellent way to stay sane and healthy (and unapproached by bears) in an otherwise fast-paced world.
The Design Thinker
Design Thinking continues to be very much a part of my DNA. Whether taking stakeholders through a rewarding journey of discovery and ideation or helping students and young professionals to bring their ideas to life, I love the way it combines true empathy-driven design with classroom-style collaboration.
The Gamer
TBC