Jon Kabat Zinn defines mindfulness as the awareness that arises out of intentionally paying attention in an open, kind and non-judgmental way. As designers we tend to find and focus on errors and fix them to make life better, we learn to criticize, to judge, and we tend to have high expectations.
In these fast-paced times, to be able to slow down and re-humanize design, we need to cultivate new habits and patterns of thought. As designers we need to be present and to be able to give attention to our sensations. We need a new set of guidelines.
In this workshop I intend to unite designers who are curious about or already practicing mindfulness and meditation. Designers with third eyes open are also welcome. As we gather and connect as a group, we will start experimenting with some basic meditation and breath-work exercises. We will then try to define mindfulness and why we need it as designers. Afterwards we will focus on creating a set of guidelines to be used by every designer, in other words, statements by which we determine a new course of action. This set of guidelines may even turn into A Guidebook for the Mindful Designer, who knows?
