Being a dad has been, well, overwhelming to say the least.
Our beautiful baby boy arrived on 14 Jan this year. And life had a major iOS 6 - to - 7 kinda software update. Unlike our phones, we had to make sure we didn’t drop this one.
Night and day have been the same. We became okay with potty and pee getting sprayed over us. Once I used to dread them, but now I empathise with parents travelling on flights with a baby. Takes courage.
Even the worldview has changed. Societal issues such as class divide, access to quality healthcare and education have affected me earlier as well. However, knowing that these issues can affect my child’s future and upbringing, they have become all the more important. Take accessibility for example. I am a lot more aware and mindful of features like step-free access, ramps, and elevators while travelling or just getting around. I tend to think a lot about how can I make this world a better, more inclusive, and more accessible place for my child to thrive in.
The definition of success, priorities, and productivity have also changed. And these might just be the key areas where it hit me the most. Till now, success has been a culmination of all my professional achievements (and bank balance). Priorities were set around how can I, as an individual, up-level the quality of life, while seeking overall contentment. Productivity was defined by to-do apps, calendar invites, bookmarks, and starred places on Google Maps. Being a new dad has re-calibrated these definitions, and helped me open up to a life that is no longer governed by professional goals disguised as personal achievements.
Success is now about celebrating smaller milestones for us as a family. It has been humbling to see our little one reach these milestones, and it has let me reflect, look back, and see how far we as a family have come. Priorities are now about spending quality time with family, nuclear as well as extended, and personal health. Productivity is no longer JUST about to-do apps, watchlists, and bookmarks. Sure, these will continue to exist, but not in a way where I would be upset if I didn’t abide by them. I continue to learn to be more patient, resilient, and a lot more flexible to breaking routines and schedules.
Lots of links
I am on pat leave, and in all the chaos of raising a baby, I have managed to find some time to gather links.
Johnny Decimal is a system to organise your life and enables you to find things quicker, with less stress, and with more confidence.
Voice Map - Take self-guided audio tours in over 400 destinations
UI Density - Author Matthew Strom explores the importance of balancing information density in user interfaces to enhance usability and user experience.
Microcopy - A variety of examples and guidelines for effective microcopy in digital products.
Put a squirrel on it - Matt Choi explores decorating the city with unconventional inserts that don’t do much, but add delight to the urban fabric.
Jitter - Is a new web-based motion design tool. Much easier than after-effects.
Daylight - A 120Hz refresh rate e-ink tablet, without blue light. The landing page is as cool as the device itself. View it on desktop if you can.
That’ll be all for this one. Hope you enjoyed reading this. If you enjoyed reading this, please leave a Like, or share it with someone you think will like it.
Also, you can follow me at Instagram for Musings, Twitter for Ramblings, and Command Space for work.
So cute
Great read as always Jaynish !