Start from Empathy is one of the company values at Typeform and it's a value I tend to prioritize whenever I can. Here's a comment from my recent performance review process:

"It is clear that Dan is really motivated by this value. His interactions with VideoAsk customers, about VideoAsk customers, and with colleagues oozes with empathy and his aim to appreciate what the other person is experiencing and how he can help facilitate a solution or understanding." -peer review comment

After seeing comments like this I wanted to unpack what Starting from Empathy looks like to me.
Here's a breakdown of how I start from empathy:

Share your thoughts with me in the videoask above and share this post with someone you know who also Starts from Empathy!

Sometimes that comment is about something specific, sometimes general appreciation, and other times they might comment about how they wish their own background was better.
I thought I might share a little about the way I think about my space and how you may be able to make a few small decisions to improve the background in your videos.

Depth / Texture / Pop:

The concept of wabi-sabi plays a big part in bringing me confidence in the work I do everyday at VideoAsk.

Here I outline what that means for me and how you can implement wabi-sabi for yourself, in VideoAsk or any other aspect of your life. Have a look:

Contentment is often touted as the goal of life - To live without wanting for more than you have; to not covet... ignore the Jones’s.

When we see the Jones’s, When what they have or how they’re living feels like exactly what we’ve always wanted we can’t help but compare ourselves to them. Other times what we see is almost the opposite of what we want or how we’d like to live and we can feel holier-than-thou.

Either way:

The comparison we give attention to raises flags. One party is better than the other party.

But let’s unpack that a minute. Specifically one word - “better”.
Better implies that the goals are the same and one side is achieving those goals sooner/to a greater extent/with more style/etc. than the other side.

Now, what if we replace the word “better” with the word “Different”

Comparison raises flags; one party is different than the other party.

Different implies that the goals and/or the circumstances are not the same and, consequently, the journey and process for each party will not be the same.
This is a critical perspective shift on comparison.

This new perspective leaves room for self awareness and allows comparison to inform/empower us rather than discourage ourselves or our opinions of others.

When we are aware of who we are, what we’re doing, and most importantly why we’re doing it any comparison will be powerless over us. We understand that with different goals and different circumstances come different journeys and different processes.

If a comparison pops up, look at your own life and consider for yourself why you are doing it differently; what lead you here, where you are going, and how are you going to get there. That should clarify why your life is different and it should feel good/right.

If it doesn't, let that sit, lean into the comparison.
Identify what you feel is not only different, but better. If you want to and can justify the sacrifices, adjust your life in order to achieve that instead.

You are the architect of your life. You can do anything. Just be sure you consider seriously all the consequences when you make a change.

Feel free to print it out and give it a try.
I find the process incredibly helpful during those times I'm feeling very overwhelmed.

I'm considering trying to 'dump' on a regular basis (daily/weekly) to see if I gain some perspective and am able to stay ahead of the overwhelm.

Carve out 10-30 minutes.¹
Let your mind run.²
Try to keep up with your pen.³
Don't stop, don't slow down, don't expound, just dump.⁴

That's it.
Well, sometimes.
Other times this is when you can go through your lists and prioritize, cross off, and make actionable next steps.
But really, sometimes all it takes is processing all the thoughts onto paper.

If you want the PDF version of this or the Pages file to customize it send me an email.

1. How much time you'll need is dependant on you. I'm also trying a version of this where I keep a copy on my desk and 'dump' throughout the day as thoughts pop up.
2. If you get stuck I added some light categories at the top of the lists. Feel free to adjust and/or ignore these.
3. It's really important that you physically write these on paper. Relief will come by knowing you don't have to keep juggling these in your mind. Now that everything is on paper you can relax a little and focus more. Afterall, you can't forget what's written down.
4. You're not here to think about these things, simply to dump them. One-two words is almost always enough to trigger the full thought/task/concern when you come back to it. Its more important to get EVERYTHING out, even sloppily than to get some of it out neatly our thoroghly.

Oof... email. We love it and we love to hate it, right?

As with anything that can get out of hand, it seems best to wrangle your relationship with email into something that remains productive for you.

I mention in my about page that I check my work email at least once per weekday (usually around noon). This strategy allows me to stay on task but not slip behind on daily communication.

But what about when a task I was working on required me to send an email to move forward. Inevitably, I would get sucked into the inbox and either not get that original email sent or, more often, after sending the email I would lose twenty minutes or more catching up with unread emails.
That's when I found a tiny feature of Gmail that solves this for me in an incredibly simple way.

Enter my Compose Email shortcut.

By saving the below link as a bookmark/favorite I'm able to open a new email message without ever seeing the inbox.

https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/?view=cm&fs=1&tf=1&fs=1&tf=1

It works just like any compose window would work from gmail.com; with access to Contacts, Attachments, and Schedule Send features.

After I hit send there I sit, staring at a blank page, which is exactly what I need to get back to my task.

Try it out.

1. The "To:" field pulls from your Gmail contacts and recents; simply start typing and it will autofill.
2. Attach with the paperclip icon or drag and drop.
3. One of my favorite features of Gmail is the Schedule Send feature, you can find this from the down arrow on the right side of the Send button.
4. Save the bookmark where it will serve you best; favorites, bookmark bar, or maybe even your desktop.
5. Before you send check your title/tab bar to ensure you're signed into the correct account. It should say "Compose Mail - [your account here]" If it doesnt, see #6.
6. If you don't see the correct email account at #5 its likely because you're signed into multiple gmail accounts on this device.
   See that "0" after "mail.google.com/u/" That "0" defines which account this link invokes. Typically the first gmail account you sign into on this device is "0" the second becomes "1" and so on. This is great to know when using this tool for multiple accounts. Change the "0" to a "1" and re-save the bookmark to access your second account.
   Be aware this may change if you "sign out of all google accounts" and then sign back in to your accounts in a different order.
   Always check note #5 before sending.

The reports we generate from our RoofDNA inspections are compiled as PDFs from our roofing software and are very easy to email to our clients. However, as easy as it is, I’ve known from the beginning that the printed form is how these reports could bring the most value long-term.

I’ve been trying different techniques with the printed versions from standard staples to comb binding to recommending the clients print them on their end. As I try each method I put myself in the clients shoes and ask myself “Would I use this?” and “How?”

My answers to these two questions led me to my current strategy:
I email the reports as soon as they’ve been reviewed and are ready to go (the sooner I can get this information in my clients hands the better for them) but I don’t stop there.

I then print out a double-sided¹, color copy² and take it to our in-house comb binding machine and prep the pages³. I bind it with a red binding⁴, a frosted cover⁵, and a red back cover⁵. Then it slides into an addressed envelope⁶, is sealed with a sticker⁷ and is sent out the next day⁸.

The information in a RoofDNA inspection report is very valuable not only today, but for months and years to come. By creating an artifact, something to hold onto and file away, we are adding value to the client in easily returning to the information when needed, but also adding value to Slatile at a future date when roof work is inevitably needed and the RoofDNA report is the client’s primary reference document.

Take the time, put in the extra effort, create an artifact.

1. Double-sided: because who likes flipping through a bound booklet and see a blank white page 50% of the time; on top of that I save a little paper in the process which will save space in my clients files and hopefully prevent any negative backlash from eco-conscious clients.
2. Color: because when looking at inspection photos, sometimes a subtle shift in color can tell the entire story of the deficiency we’ve photographed.
3. Prep the pages: subtle alignment variations can become magnified when creating a 30+ page bound report; take your time, this is going to be around for a while.
4. Red Binding: After filing a few reports I realized that the actual comb binding is often the only thing visible in a filing cabinet or a stack of several documents. Anything I could do to differentiate that small piece of plastic would be the only chance I had at a visual reminder weeks or years down the road. What better color than red; it’s harkens importance, especially in times of crisis such as a leaking ceiling, and it’s on-brand with RoofDNA.
5. Frosted front cover/Red back cover: I tried binding without covers but the reports lacked a sense of importance and substance. But when I used a solid black cover/back cover you would have to open the first page to confirm which report this is. With just a back cover the front didn’t feel protected or complete. Only slightly better were the glossy clear covers because they were lightweight and felt ‘barely there.’ Frosted covers have been perfect. To continue the purpose of the ‘red’ in the binding I use a red plastic back cover.
   One other thing I'd like to try would be to use a laser cutter to cut out windows on the front cover, probably red plastic, to reveal the important info but maintaining a bright red overall look and feel.
6. Addressed Envelope: this is a standard 8.5x11 full page envelope due to the binding and it is often hand-addressed to add a sense of personalization and humanness when received.
   I wonder if an 11” cardboard tube might take this to the next level?
7. Sticker: We have few different types a stickers we use, one idicates our membership in the National Roofing Contractors Association, another touts our nearly 100 years in business. The purpose here is to add context to an otherwise nondescript envelope and subtly reinforce our reputation.
8. The next day: Rarely do I print and prepare these before the mail comes so they are set in the outbox and picked up the next day. These aren’t urgent because the PDF was already sent/received but I do want to ensure they arrive while still relevant and to be filed appropriately. It may, on some occasions, prove to be worthwhile to ship these via a carrier with more urgency, what do you think?

I know... a dumb phone in 2020, that’s not realistic.
For me it’s more than realistic, it’s imperative.

To be fair, I warmed up to the concept for months/years prior to making the switch so it wasn’t too dramatic for me. But it has been quite a blessing.

The Punkt MP02 is not a cheap burner phone, nor should you give it to your grandma who doesn’t want a smartphone. The MP02 is a beautifully designed object with some surprisingly buggy software.
At $350 (when it’s in stock) this isn’t an impulse buy, but if you’re committed to it you can justify the savings over the latest iPhone.
I got mine for around $150 used on eBay, and when I say used I mean cracked screen+housing and dirty, but it’s a minimalist phone so how much will I really be using it?

At the end of the day I see the MP02 as a trophy I’ve earned for sculpting a life that doesn’t revolve around my phone. And its a trophy I’m proud to use.

Try the iPhone SE.

You’re on your phone too much, right? So you’re looking to swap it out for a simpler, more minimal phone without all the bells, whistles, and distractions.

Before you call me crazy for suggesting a modern smartphone as a minimalist phone, let me explain; and yes, I know there’s the Light phone and the Punkt phone and I really like these options, but…

The problem is, there’s always that one app or that one feature that you can’t live without. Group/photo messaging, a camera, email. Whatever it is for you, it’s the reason you still have your smartphone.

That is exactly where I was for a long time until I started to reframe the problem. Instead of the problem being that my iPhone could have all these apps I realized the problem is that I installed all these apps, that I use all these apps. And if I created the problem, could I fix the problem?

Yes. Sort of.

I took it one step further… I disabled the App Store.

It’s easy to delete apps (we’ve all tried a detox, right?) but it’s also easy to install them again. So I danced with deleting the distractions until I needed them a few days later, then they’d be back.
So I took it one step further… I disabled the App Store. Now it’s easy to delete apps and less easy to reinstall them.

The distractions didn’t stop there.
I stepped back and asked what am I still doing on my phone? Browsing the web, checking email, shopping, playing a game, more scrolling.

So I deleted the apps I didn’t realize you could delete. Apps like Maps and Weather, Notes and Voice Memos. I even dug into the Screen Time settings and turned off Safari and Mail.

This may feel a bit extreme, but you were the one who wanted a minimalist phone, right? This gets you there with the iPhone you have now, or let’s you upgrade to the new iPhone SE or 12 mini but keep your usage in check.

The key here is that you control what you turn off/leave enabled so you get to keep that one app you need, or you get to stay connected with iMessage/WhatsApp/Mail.

Perhaps next time we’ll talk about how to keep these settings set up the way you want, even when you think you need to change them. Or how you can limit how much your phone interrupts you. In the meantime, check out this post from Light about “Going Light”

I appreciate you reading and would love to hear what makes it difficult for you to stop using your smartphone. Or, if you’ve tried switching to a minimalist phone, what that has been like for you.

Climbing to the top of a playground is a RISK. You could fall and get hurt or you could make it to the top and earn a great view and more confidence.

Running barefoot over broken glass is a HAZARD. You will get hurt and you’ll gain nothing except fear.

Keep a vigilant eye out for hazards that will, unnecessarily, trip up your team. Remove them from their path every time you can.

However, when you see a risk, let them carry on. They will have the opportunity to grow whether they succeed or fail.

How have you seen your team (or your kids) take risks lately? I'd love to hear about it: Dan@DNALewis.com

This was originally published to my LinkedIn Articles in 2016.