💎 Friday Gems (Makeshift Alliance, Book of Beliefs, Elements of Good Craft, New Food Section and much more!)
The only way to make good things is to make many things!
Low Fidelity is a free weekly newsletter that provides fresh insights on mindset, mindfulness, and personal growth. Empowering you to show up, thrive, and achieve your full creative potential.
Hi everybody!
Life happens to us all, so how do we get back on track each and every time?
I couldn’t send out last week’s Friday Gems because I was sick and spent a day in the ER. Thankfully, I am feeling much better now and getting back on track. Starting again is not easy, but it must be done.
We need to remain flexible, adaptable, and committed to regaining our momentum and moving toward our goals.
It’s time to begin again!
In this edition of Friday Gems:
✌🏽 A Makeshift Alliance
📚 Writing Your Book of Beliefs
🛠️ The Elements of Good Craft
🥗 New Recipe Section: The Simple Trick for Ultra-Creamy Oatmeal
🌟 Gem of Wisdom: Trust The Knowledge Within You!
🎵 Gem of a Tune: Sound of Mind by Macan Moreira
💎 A Makeshift Alliance
To think from the standpoint of others, and to take their perspectives into consideration, of course does not mean simply to submit to those perspectives, to deny one’s own experiences and standpoint, or to suspend one’s own critical faculties or value commitments. It means to understand, and by doing so to expand one’s own perspective. For thinking is a process, and it is possible to seriously consider a range of possibilities before deciding, often provisionally, on one of them.
Real dialogue requires a mutual understanding and respect for the fundamental human rights of both sides to exist peacefully, and to make this happen, there needs to be an alliance between those who want to defend freedom.
We see freedom of speech being attacked on college campuses around the US, the one place I assumed was immune to the politics of our country, but the recent events have laid the censorship, discrimination, and hate bare for all to see.
In this heartfelt letter from Jeffrey C. Isaac, a Political Science professor at Indiana University, Jefferey Isaac calls for a serious dialogue based on openness to communication and listening.
And if we do talk further, are we not, in fact, demonstrating through our dialogue a value more powerful, and more precious, than any signs and slogans can convey: the mutual understanding without which no enduring freedom or justice is possible?
In these dark times for humanity, dehumanization, racism, anti-human rights, anti-Palestinian rhetoric, and anti-semitism, "pro-Palestinians” and Jewish voices who want peace and freedom need to come together, to build a makeshift alliance to fight for the just cause of peace and freedom for all and to think from each other’s standpoint for real communication, understanding, and peace to take place.
✌🏽
Read the full post on Dissent Magazine.
💎 Writing Your Book of Beliefs
I believe that we need to get ideas out of our heads because doing so helps us examine our ideas closely, critique and check them, validate them, and change them if needed.
As I came across Buster Benson’s Book of Beliefs, I also realized the value of documenting our beliefs.
We all have beliefs that we have formed that guide us and help us make sense of our world. We can keep these beliefs in our heads and try to remember them when we need to, perhaps even forgetting why we held them in the first place, or worse, letting false, outdated beliefs guide our actions. One way to make sure we keep track of our beliefs to be able to check them is to write them down.
Although Buster has been documenting his beliefs since 2012, and his book of beliefs has evolved since then, his very first entry provides an easy way to get started.
For example, here is the entry for one of his categories, On the Self:
or On Biases:
or my favorite category:
You may already be thinking of your beliefs for these categories, so guess what? This is the perfect time to start documenting them.
This is where a note-taking app that you can easily access on your phone is helpful. You never know when you will become aware of a belief, so take your time with it, write down your beliefs as you remember, and keep building your own book of beliefs so you can come back and course-correct when needed.
Make your book public as Buster has done, or make it private, whatever feels right for you.
May this exercise help bring more awareness and understanding about yourself. ✊🏽
Read Buster Benson’s Book of Beliefs
💎 The Elements of Good Craft
The number one distinction among designers who need a lot of direction and designers who do not is their attention to detail.
What is craft?
I believe it’s where skill, creativity, and attention to detail come together as a commitment to continually learn, grow, and produce high-quality work at any point in the design process.
In his latest post, Christopher Butler, a design leader with an amazing professional chronology, shares his thoughts on the elements that elevate the craft for designers, which include:
Attention to detail - Having a preference for order and consistency within your design.
Focus - Keep your designs focused on achieving a specific outcome without introducing distractions or extraneous elements.
Time - Mastery takes repetition, and repetition takes time.
Taste - Your preferences, personality, and perceived novelty are expressed as your point of view in your design.
Observation - Observing helps us hone in on specific details, which helps us understand a design at a deeper level.
Outside feedback - Getting feedback from others helps us better understand what we ourselves are unaware of.
Facility - Making things ourselves is important to evaluate what others make.
A good designer works for mastery over and over again across their career as new ideas, new techniques, and new technologies reset their need to practice.
Craft - shaping materials with masterful skill toward a benchmark of quality, driven by a dedication to refining the details so the result is worthy of personal pride and popular appreciation.
- Uday Gajendar
Read the full post on ChristopherButler.com.
✨ Announcing a new gem of a recipe section! ✨
Why include a recipe in the Low Fidelity newsletter? There are two reasons.
First, I love to cook and want to share the recipes I try out with you!
Second, as the ancient Roman satirist Juvenal said, “Anima Sana In Corpore Sano,” which means "A Sound Mind in a Sound Body."
We must feed ourselves good, wholesome food to help our minds and bodies perform at their best. I hope you enjoy these recipes!
Do you have a go-to recipe? Share it in the comments!
💎 The Simple Trick for Ultra-Creamy Oatmeal
I remember a few years ago, I was on my way to a conference in San Francisco, and I had some time to spare in the morning, so I stopped at a restaurant for breakfast. By chance, I decided to try out the oatmeal and let me tell you, I have never been the same ever since. That bowl of creamy steel-cut oatmeal was heavenly! As I added the brown sugar, maple syrup, and cranberries into the oatmeal, it took the oatmeal to another level of breakfast delight I had never experienced before.
Ever since that fateful day, I have been in love with oatmeal; whether overnight oats or ultra-creamy oatmeal, I am all in.
This recipe by Serious Eats is easy and adds a depth of flavor through a few simple additional steps:
Toast the oats to deepen their flavor
Soak the oats overnight to speed up the cooking in the morning
Stirring the oatmeal gently but frequently to release the starch which thickens the oatmeal
Add salt for a depth of flavor. (I had never tried this before, but trust me, it makes a big difference, especially adding a few sprinkles of salt flakes at the end to top it off)
I used milk, which made the oatmeal even creamier
Excuse me while go make another yummy batch. :)
Read the full recipe on Serious Eats.
💎 Gem of Wisdom: Trust The Knowledge Within You!
Trust your wisdom, knowledge, intuition, and instincts when making decisions. Your self-awareness is a powerful source of guidance you can tap into for a meaningful and rewarding life.
Image text “The knowledge is within you - use it wisely in your life path.” - Aboriginal Proverb.
💎 A Gem of a Tune: Sound of Mind
Sound of Mind by Macan Moreira is a nice tune that helps you relax and reset. It’s a good song to play in the background as you focus on your craft. Plus, I love the beautiful painting of waves in the ocean on the cover, which reminds me that we are all part of the same ocean, showing up as waves.
As Thich Nhat Hanh said,
"Enlightenment, for a wave in the ocean,
is the moment the wave realises it is water."
Feel free to send any recommendations for songs to include in the Low Fidelity playlist.
Enjoy!
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That’s it for this week’s gems. Do you have a gem you would like to share? Hit reply and share, or DM me.
I’m thankful that you read this far.
Have a fantastic weekend!
I hope you’re feeling better, Rizwan, take care of yourself!
ER?!? Oh my goodness, I’m glad you’re okay!