No. 1

From the Mailchimp years. Sent from San Francisco, spring 2016.

Welcome to a very infrequent newsletter!

I know what you're saying: "What's this then?" Well, deep breaths, it's not much more than a simple and very infrequent email containing quick updates about work I've been getting up to, things I'm finding interesting, links to the great work friends are doing, and stuff like that.

I promise that these won't blow up your inbox. And I also promise to at least try to keep them informative, useful or at least a little interesting. Give it a chance. It'll be something to read on the train or over your coffee.

Still with me? Great! Let's just jump in and see how it feels:

It took a lot of Wordpress wrangling but I finally put a new portfolio website up.

Is it me or is putting your work together on a new site one of the worst/hardest exercises you can put yourself through? It's kinda ridiculous to try to reduce what was usually lots of hard work that included a lot of subtle (and brilliant!) decisions into one simple background paragraph and some mobile-optimized JPGs. But I did it.

Was I successful? Who knows. That's for people like you to judge.

I've had this idea rattling around in my brain for a while. What if I could work with a client to produce an internal culture magazine that would show off how smart, diverse and broadly skilled their employees are? That'd be fun! It would feature the stuff that doesn't show up in annual reviews: who people are beyond the scope of their jobs.

It has always seemed like something that bigger companies should be doing. Everything we read these days tells us how hard it is for companies to find and hold on to great people. In my opinion, today's kombucha bars and free lunches are just dumb dotcom crutches that are missing the point. What people want out of their work is actually simpler and yet more fundamental. People want "being themselves" at work to be an asset. They want to be visibly appreciated for their individual points of view, unique talents and experiences. If, say, their company celebrated them in a beautiful internal print magazine, maybe they'd feel more valued and they'd get more done.

I was kicking this idea around with a client and he was into it. We decided to take it to the prototype stage to see if he could get it funded. So, that's where we are. I've designed and produced the prototypes and we're working with the executives to see where we go next. Fingers crossed.

If you're like me and you're a regular listener of KCRW's Morning Becomes Eclectic then you know this song. But have you seen the video? It's pretty great. The song is catchy as hell and the video is fun. Go get a coffee, grab your headphones and check it out.

You made it this far and I feel like I owe you something. So how about a Spotify playlist I made that'll work nicely for your next social occasion: Dylan's Cocktail Jams.

That's it! See, that was easy.

If you read something here that inspired you in some way, or you came across something you think people should know about, shoot me a note: [email protected]

Thanks!

Dylan DiBona
Art & Creative Director