Paul Gillen – Medium

Mar 24

The Atomic Approach Isn’t Just for Essays, it’s a Design for Life for Anyone Who Feels Overwhelmed

“How do you eat an elephant?” “One bite at a time.” In my early career, this phrase stumped me. Why would you want to eat an elephant anyways I would [jokingly] think!? But soon it dawned on me. At work or in life we often take on big projects. Buying…

2 min read

Mar 23

How I Discovered What’s Truly Within my Control and You Can Too with this Framework

“There’s no such thing as bad weather, just the wrong clothing!” A hilarious take by the great Billy Connolly. It’s funny because it’s true — well, at least if you live in the West of Ireland. But he provides an interesting perspective on life. It makes you think. What can…

2 min read

Mar 22

Storytelling Isn’t Just for Pixar. It’s For Your Business Too and It Will Set You Apart

On 19th November 1995, animated movies changed forever. Pixar premiered Toy Story in California on this day. It was the first full length feature film fully created using computer generated graphics. The realisation of a lifelong dream for Ed Catmull, President of Pixar and Disney Animation. What made Toy Story…

2 min read

Mar 22

I Worked as a Brand Designer for many Years. Here are 9 key Steps to Creating a Great Logo for Anyone Starting out in Design

I studied design and worked as a designer for many years. Based on my experience, I share 9 steps to take when creating a logo. This is for anyone considering starting out in brand design, or anyone interested in improving their game! [1] Do your Research Research first, always! Speak with the client and…

2 min read

Mar 21

Things Don’t Always go to Plan and That’s OK

“PIVOT!” “PIVOT!” “PIVOT!” If you are a fan or have ever watched the US sitcom, Friends, you are no doubt recalling the hilarious scene where Ross, Chandler and Rachel attempt to carry a large sofa up a tight stairwell. As with many things in life, things do not go to…

Mindset

2 min read

Mar 18

Letting go of Perfect: by a Perfectionist.

I’m a perfectionist. It’s also something I’ve had to learn to let go of. The thing is, perfection is usually subjective. As a designer I understand the feeling of a design never being finished. In much the same way a task or project is never perfect. And that’s ok. The…

2 min read

Mar 17

The Power of Lists to Free Your Mind

Early in my career I prided myself on remembering pretty much all the things I had to get done in my head. I had notebooks, but notes were unstructured and scatty. …

2 min read

Mar 16

How Filling Your Calendar with Blocks of Time Can Actually Give You More Time to do the Things That Matter

How often have you sat down to watch Netflix only to spend the time browsing through the seemingly endless catalogue of options? Unless you have a pre-conceived idea of what you want to watch beforehand, you’ve likely encountered this scenario. Time is no different. When we have lots of free…

2 min read

Mar 15

The Importance of Belonging and WHY it Matters More than the Result

Last night I went to see my local football team, Sligo Rovers, play. I’ve followed Sligo Rovers from afar over the years but had little chance to attend a game. The occasional one perhaps. As a kid and teenager I would go with my Dad most Saturdays to the Showgrounds…

2 min read

Mar 13

One tip from a Design Sprint to make meetings more productive, inclusive and meaningful.

How Might We make meetings more productive, inclusive and meaningful all while leaving judgements at the door? How often have you attended a meeting where the conversation seems does around in circles without any sense of progress? How often has an individual taken over the meeting? …

2 min read