What is Life Design?

Life like design is full of restraints for example finances, age, location, time etc. In this article you will learn how applying design thinking principles to deal with these constraints in a trauma-informed manner so that you cab create and implement the changes you desire in your life personally or professionally.

Having previously worked as a Project Manager in design and construction for many years it was my responsibility to make a client's dreams come true.

It was a career I loved for quite some time however, over the years my passion for the work waned and I found myself asking, what was the solution to the problem I was facing? While to the outside world everything in life looked picture perfect, internally I was miserable and one day I gave into the voice inside of me that kept telling me, the career path I had chosen was no longer fulfilling me in a way that felt good.

I decided to step away from a career I had invested much of myself in and decided to reimagine and redesign how my life looked both personally and professionally. It was one of the best things I ever did and I now help people do the same with their lives.

In this article you will learn what it means to design a life you love.

From conception to reality

In my previous career when a project was first initiated, all ideas were brought to the table until the best option was decided upon. It would then be over to the Project team to turn what was on paper into a reality from 2D conception to 3D reality.

Here is where the fun and games began as the project now needed to be managed within a number of constraints such time, budget, age of structures, location and general circumstances.

Being mentally and physically agile to deal with these constraints on a daily basis involved creative and divergent thinking. This meant being able to come up with creative and innovative solutions to the perceived problems in a timely manner.

What is design?

Great design actualizes ideas and makes life better, bringing more simplicity and ease to a complicated situation. It is a process of working within the confines of known restraints, delivering a new and improved solution for the end user.

To be able to do this, good designers follow design thinking principles.

Design thinking principles

Design thinking is a non-linear process that designers use to better understand the end user, question assumptions and challenge problems with the main aim of reimagining a creative and innovative solution that they can then prototyping and testing in the real world.

Design thinking has five stages, namely – Empathise, Define, Ideate, Prototype and Test.

Damien Newman, who created the Design Squiggle illustrates this process perfectly in the following sketch which was prepared to convince clients of the value the design process brings to any situation.

Credit: The Process of Design Squiggle by Damien Newman, thedesignsquiggle.com

Applying this process to your life, personally and professionally

Whatever you are seeking in life as the solution to your problems be that being a better leader for your team, a present parent, improved finances, a stay-at-home parent while also pursuing a career, a better manager, business owner, friend, partner, sibling etc. you will be dealing with constraints.

For example, you may think you do not have enough time, or are too old to make significant life changes, lack financial resources or are in the wrong location or position in work to name but a few restrictive circumstances.

Being able to reimagine your problems and potential solutions requires compassionate inquiry into who you are as a person and what has brought you to this point in time (the Empathy phase). Getting clear on what problems and constraints you perceive are in your life right now, both personally and professionally (the Define phase), being able to ideate and think outside the box for potential solutions and alternative life paths (the Ideate phase), exploring and testing these solutions in your life (the Prototype phase) and deciding on the final solution you are going to action, get started and adjust as you go (the Test phase).

Applying this approach to your life personally and professionally, requires creative and divergent thinking which asks you to think differently about your life and circumstances up to this point.

Your ability to think this way, particularly if you are feeling restricted by your constraints such as age, finances, location, professional position, parental status etc. may not be as flexible or divergent as you would like it to be. Sometimes your perception of the constraints can result in your only seeing problems rather than solutions when you think about creating change in your life.

How scarcity affects your design thinking abilities

The effect on your brain of the constraints listed above is that they put you into a state of scarcity. In other words, you feel like you are in short supply of money, time, resources, support, friendships etc. all of the time. 

Scarcity like trauma causes your brain's cognitive capacity to reduce, leaving you feeling hopeless, not in control of the situation and in some cases being a victim to your circumstances. These feelings can in turn lead to burnout, stress, anxiety and feeling generally frustrated with life.

Your ability to problem solve and engage in the design thinking process is not possible when you are in a state of scarcity. For many people the impact that scarcity has on their lives, can have a significant impact on their ability to think, feel and act from a place of regulation within their brains and nervous systems.

Is Life Designing the solution?

Life Designing is a process that brings together designing thinking principles in a trauma-informed container to create the desired results in your life. As part of the process, you will develop a deep awareness of your own relationship with scarcity and how this is impacting their brain and nervous system. You will learn how to retrain your brain and nervous system for success so that you can embark on the design thinking process from the most regulated and aligned state possible.

Through compassionate inquiry you are able to take the problem apart in a non-reactive way, establish new and creative perspectives, design, build and create a new solution for your all while becoming adaptable and resilient to changes in circumstances as you move forward with your new personal and professional lives.

When you are able to access a state of regulation, your ability to think creatively and innovatively are greatly enhanced. You are able to reimagine and define how your life personally and professionally could look and you are able to determine what steps and actions are needed to take to realise those new realities.

Where can Life Designing be applied?

Life designing can be applied to all situations, whether you are seeking a change in your personal life or professional life. The process of learning to retrain your brain and nervous system for success while creating a new life design can be a very transformative process.

If you are an individual who is feeling frustrated, burnout or stuck in life due to your circumstances, the life design process might be what you are looking for to help you move forward so that you can create meaningful change in your life.

Alternatively, if you are a business owner, CEO, team lead or manager who is feeling burnt out and exhausted by the way you have been doing business up to now life designing will help you with solving that very problem. Life designing will help you come up with a creative and innovative way of doing business that yields more sustainable results, increases employee and customer retention rates and gives you back more of what might seem scarce in your life right now for example time with your family and friends or revenue.

The most successful person in any situation is the person who is able to regulate their thoughts, emotions and nervous system regardless of what is happening around them. They have greater capacity for thinking creatively and innovatively meaning their problem-solving skills are greatly enhanced. Regulated people are able to manage their work and the people in their lives better and possess a high level of emotional intelligence. They are aware of their own judgments and privileges and know how this impacts their decision-making capabilities and they possess an overall sense of peace and wellbeing.

If Life Designing sounds like something you are interested in pursuing and you would like to learn more about how it can help you create meaningful change in your life you can learn more here about working with me.