Welcome to Design Disciplin. I'm honored to have you as my guest. I made this document for new guests, based on experiences so far. Hope you enjoy it!
About Design Disciplin
Design Disciplin is a resource and community for design and innovation. We publish Concepts and Conversations on "design" from diverse perspectives including business, technology, art, craft, research, and personal growth.
Most of our guests – like you – are world-class creatives, leaders, and/or scholars. We like to talk about the arc of your career, nerdy details of how you think and work, your stories and experiences, and the things you find exciting.
Contact Info
Please contact me (Mehmet Aydın Baytaş – founder, producer, host of Design Disciplin) if you have any questions, requests, or updates. You can reach me as follows:
- E-mail: baytas@weatherlight.com
- @doctorbaytas on Twitter and Instagram
- +46 70 022 78 03 for calls, iMessage, WhatsApp, Signal
Scheduling an Online Recording
Please use the Calendly link below to schedule your online recording session:
The recording session should be at least 90 minutes. Calendly will create a 90-minute event for you, but it is better if you are able to stay longer. I actually allocate 3 hours on my calendar (see below).
We use Riverside. You will receive the Riverside studio link when you schedule.
Scheduling and Coordinating On-location Shoots
Our production team will be in touch with you to schedule and coordinate if we are shooting the conversation at your location.
Before Recording
- I typically prepare by studying your work and media appearances. You do NOT have to do the same.
- If there are any current topics you’re excited about (e.g. a new book or project), please let me know and I’ll make sure we cover them.
- If there is anything you'd like to avoid talking about, or tired of talking about, please let me know and I'll make sure we avoid it.
- If you have any "greatest hits" stories (important, powerful, funny, etc.), which your audiences have really enjoyed in the past, please let me know. I'll make sure we cover them.
- Before we record, I'll send you a "script" with questions I will ask. Often, the conversation leads to interesting places and we don't stick to the script, but having it means we never get stuck.
Great stories and ideas can come up as we talk before recording. Then, when we record, we're naturally inclined to avoid repeating these, to try and come up with new topics. I encourage you to resist this. Things that are old news for you and me could be very interesting to our audience.
During Recording
Time
- I recommend you allocate at least 90 minutes.
- I actually block 3h on my calendar for the recording, unless specified otherwise. I typically have nothing scheduled after our session. Sometimes we just enjoy talking very much, sometimes we have technical issues – I can accommodate all of those.
- I am in Sweden, in the Central European Standard Time zone.
Content and Style
- It will hopefully sound like a friendly conversation rather than a formal interview.
- You are allowed to say whatever you want, including swearing, etc.
- Please tell stories! We do talk about abstract ideas, but I will often ask for stories to exemplify them.
- If you realize you said something that shouldn't be on record (e.g. client IP, trade secret...), let me know and I will remove it during editing.
- If you need to take a break, we can always pause.
Tech and Format
- This is a video podcast, published as a podcast and a YouTube Channel. We also publish (edited) transcripts on our website.
- We either record on location, or via Riverside. The Riverside studio link is shared with to you when you schedule on Calendly.
- Avoid wireless microphones, especially AirPods etc. We recommend using a good quality external microphone.
- If you can record additional, good quality audio and/or video on your side, and send me the files afterwards, it may improve quality. Most of the time, Riverside audio and video is satisfactory.
After Recording
- I like to keep episodes as short as possible. I edit extensively to remove e.g. “filler” sounds and repetitive talk, while still maintaining natural conversation.
- You will receive links to the final cut, ahead of publication, for your approval.
Common Questions
Basics
- How do you define what you do for work?
- How did your definition of your work evolve and change over time?
- What's your personal story? How did your life, education, and work transpire to end up here?
- The word "design" means different things to different people. What does it mean to you?
- Who do you look up to?
- What is one thing about design that is obvious to you but not to other people?
Carreer/Advice
- What actions or investments yielded a disproportionate benefit in terms of setting you up for success? And have you had any actions or investments fail very badly?
- Consider a student who's doing a design-related degree today. They have one or two more years in school. What are some classes, skills, topics they should invest their one or two years into?
- Is there a failure you experienced in the past, which turned out to be setting you up for success? Do you have a “favorite failure” in your history?
- Recommendations: books, movies, YouTube, podcasts, articles...
Hands-on
- What places and tools do you spend most of your time with? (Tools includes software.)
Closing
- What are you excited about these days? What is next for you?
- Where can we find you on the internet?
- Is there a question I should have asked but haven't, perhaps a question about design that only you can answer?
