Superpowers for introverts, pillows, pools, and portfolios
Plan Your Next Letter No. 22
Hello, and happy Sunday!
Alie and I are in Ojai, CA this weekend celebrating our 3rd anniversary. We don’t have many traditions—because it feels too easy to repeat the things you like—but this one is ours, until it’s not.
This week I took off a few days to read and write, leading up to our weekend getaway. After ordering my fourth mask this week, I couldn’t help but think about how masks are perfect for an introvert like me.
I hope you enjoy my next article, Face Masks: A Superpower for Introverts.
Now, onto the show.
🛌 Your next pillow
Imagine the perfect night preparing for sleep. You get to bed early, you leave your phone out of the bedroom (that never happens), you’re enjoying freshly folded sheets, and you end up with a solid 8 hours of sleep.
But your neck hurts. Your back might feel tight. All that for nothing.
The position you sleep in can ruin all of that groundwork. I’ve been sleeping with a Japanese buckwheat pillow for over 6 years and have to say it’s one of my favorite purchases.
I’ll be writing a little love letter about this pillow in my next essay, but for now, I’ll leave you with one tip: When you receive it, make sure to measure the position of your head as if you were standing straight up. The manufacturers overfill the pillow on purpose, and most people forget to remove enough of the hull to keep your head from propping up.
📹 Your next video
An underground swimming pool is built with a pair of hands
Watching an artist paint, or someone like Mr. Tufe build with his hands, is absolutely inspiring to watch. Leave this video on in the background and you’ll be amazed at what’s possible. With just a few tools and his hands, he builds out an entire oasis in 60 days. Hilariously, the music sounds like Mission Impossible, keeping you engaged throughout.
Watch the video below.
👨🎨 Your next report
If you’re in a position where people report to you, this tweet thread might resonate with you:
As a designer, I’ve never had a manager encourage me to build out my portfolio during my employment. Portfolios are generally thought of as a way to market yourself into a new job, and not to stay in the one you have.
To me, what makes this counterintuitive, is that you can use that this as a way to improve critical thinking about the work they just completed. An opportunity for you to help your reports think about the challenges they had to overcome.
“Updating your portfolio should be ongoing and a reflection tool and not only for prepping for departure.”—David Hoang, Director of Design at Webflow
Say it ain’t so
If you’re new to this newsletter, this is Plan Your Next. It’s a conversation about being ready for what’s next. Well, because there is always a next. I’m Nate, a designer, and inexperienced pilot of this group.
If you have something to share or add, please hit reply and expect a response!
As always, my calendar is always open to chat about your crazy ideas.
See you next Sunday!