New Artisans - is it useful?
Day 4 of Alan Moore's 13 Design Questions
Useful is another of those words I think we use carelessly, worn down by a combination of frequent use with a lack of attention.
Might New Artisans be passively useful, like the Swiss Army Penknife I always have with me, there when I need it, or actively useful, like a friend we trust enough to point out something we’d probably rather not notice but need to?
I’d like New Artisans to be actively useful. Something that provokes, reassures and sustains, which reminds us, as we travel on our four thousand or so week journey, that our lives are not defined by OPG’s (Other People’s Goals), three-hundred-and-sixty degree appraisals, or the amount of money we “make” but by moments of insight, given and received generosity, and the all too frequent awareness of just what a privilege it is to be here at all.
I was listening to a podcast involving Luke Burgis (Wanted, Anti Mimetic, Ride and Drive) and Paul Millerd (the Pathless Path), which had one of those lines that are distinctly useful:
“We are mispricing the Human Spirit”
When we are so busy with myopic but insistent short-term goals, its easy to misprice our uniqueness and end up singing the “Sorrow Song” that Jane Jacobs talked about when observing the way we hollow out out cities - removing variety, texture and depth as we clear the way for the Canary Wharves of the world. The Sorrow Song is the one we sing whilst things are dying, as we convince ourselves we’re rescuing them, when they don’t need rescuing.
Like us, left alone, they’re just evolving.
I’d like New Artisans to be a useful space, one where we can go for a while to escape the noise, spend time with those we trust, have time to remind ourselves why we’re here and reconnect to it.
Potential is untapped power, not defined solely by past performance,
Potential is a latent ability, not useful until put to purposeful action,
Potential is a hidden capacity, not just a measure of immediate success,
Potential is unrealized aptitude, not limited by circumstances.
Potential is a dormant talent, not realized without effort,
Potential is undiscovered strength, not the previous achievement,
Potential is undeveloped skill, not solely determined by genetics,
Potential is the yet-to-be-harnessed reservoir, not useless, but remains so unless utilized.
Potential is a thirst for learning, not stagnant or unchanging,
Potential is the belief in progress, not bound by past limitations,
Potential is a mindset of improvement, not inhibited by fear of failure or self-doubt.
Potential is self-awareness and belief, not constrained by external opinions or societal expectations.
Potential is unexplored opportunity, not fully known until it is tested,
Potential is a seed of possibility, a gateway to greatness not yet fully explored,
Potential is getting out of your comfort zone, not only this but giving your best,
Potential is THE YOU that is YET TO BE SEEN, and so WHAT is it yet to be seen? WHEN?
Copyright © Denish Aloo
I feel New Artisans plays in the 'emergent adaptive systems' space where cause and effect are difficult discern - utility is a positive 'multi-order' consequential effect.