NO1. 《Culture》 Key Takeaways

• Culture is definitely a high priority for successfully run design businesses.
• To create culture, leaders need to construct the container and fill it with the right people. The container is made of the vision and values of the organization.
• Healthy cultures can be thought of as learning cultures, which have a growth mentality and a desire to challenge themselves.
• You can’t create culture with ping-pong tables and beanbags.
• The people in your organization have the biggest influence on the culture.
• Even though you can’t control every aspect of the culture, don’t ignore it.
• Healthy culture appears to increase staff retention and loyalty.
• Team structures influence company culture. Select and combine teammates carefully.
• Teams with mature attitudes toward personal growth are more likely to create a healthy culture.
• Growing successful teams and people is the ultimate goal of the design leader.
• 文化绝对是成功经营设计企业的高优先级事项。
• 要创造文化，领导者需要搭建一个“容器”，并让合适的人进入其中。这个容器由组织的愿景和价值观构成。
• 健康的文化可以被视为学习型文化：它具备成长心态，也愿意不断挑战自己。
• 你无法靠乒乓球桌和懒人沙发创造文化。
• 组织中的人，对文化有最大的影响。
• 即使你无法控制文化的每一个方面，也不要忽视它。
• 健康的文化似乎能提高员工留存率和忠诚度。
• 团队结构会影响公司文化。要谨慎选择和组合团队成员。
• 对个人成长持成熟态度的团队，更有可能创造健康文化。
• 培养成功的团队和人才，是设计领导者的终极目标。

No.2 《Talent》Key Takeaways

• A talent pipeline is just like a sales pipeline — invest in it constantly.
• Hire people who are smarter than you.
• When possible, hire people with great soft skills and train the hard skills.
• Diversity adds to the creativity and wisdom of the team.
• Coachable people are often better than knowledgeable people.
• Hiring young or inexperienced people isn’t always a cost saving.
• Hire when capacity is consistently at its maximum, but not before.
• Consider freelancers to buffer for the ups and downs of your business cycles.
• Apprenticeships are invaluable and an alternative to expensive recruiting models.
• Apprentice programs can be great talent pipelines and profit centers.
• 人才管道就像销售管道一样，需要持续投入。
• 雇用比你更聪明的人。
• 在可能的情况下，优先雇用软技能出色的人，再培训硬技能。
• 多样性会增强团队的创造力和智慧。
• 可被教练辅导的人，往往比知识丰富的人更好。
• 雇用年轻或缺乏经验的人，并不总是意味着节省成本。
• 当团队产能持续达到上限时再招聘，不要太早。
• 可以考虑使用自由职业者，来缓冲业务周期的起伏。
• 学徒制非常有价值，也是昂贵招聘模式之外的一种替代方案。
• 学徒项目既可以成为优秀的人才管道，也可以成为利润中心。

No.3 《Office Space and Remote Working》Key Takeaways

• There are no black-and-white solutions to physical space — they are more like shades of gray.
• Successful office layouts tend to have healthy combinations of both open and closed, as well as casual and formal spaces.
• The company’s personality and brand should be allowed to shine through in the choice of location, space layout, and decor.
• When moving to a new location, consider how that will affect culture, and try to preserve the elements that work.
• Something as simple as providing extra seats for staff to engage in informal conversation around desks can increase communication between team members.
• Don’t be afraid to move people around the office from time to time. This allows new connections between team members to be created.
• Remote teams need frequent and routine communication to stay bonded and aligned.
• Hiring people that are already good self-managers makes remote working easier.
• 关于物理空间，没有非黑即白的答案，更多是不同程度的灰度选择。
• 成功的办公室布局通常会健康地结合开放与封闭空间，也会结合休闲与正式空间。
• 公司的个性和品牌，应该能通过选址、空间布局和装饰体现出来。
• 搬到新地点时，要考虑这会如何影响文化，并尽量保留那些已经有效的元素。
• 哪怕只是为员工在工位附近提供额外座位，让他们能进行非正式交流，也能增加团队成员之间的沟通。
• 不要害怕不时调整员工在办公室里的位置。这能创造团队成员之间新的连接。
• 远程团队需要频繁且固定的沟通，才能保持凝聚和对齐。
• 雇用本来就擅长自我管理的人，会让远程工作更容易。

NO.4 《Personal Growth and Finding Balance》Key Takeaways

• If you are the leader, then your primary customer is your team.
• Having personal and professional purpose gives your growth strategies focus and clarity.
• Leaders invest in people and processes to keep distractions at bay.
• Surround yourself with advisors and mentors that provide insight into areas of growth.
• Most leaders need to constantly be developing their soft skills, like negotiation, presentation, and conflict resolution.
• Protect your personal and family time by communicating to your team when you’ re unavailable. Use your calendar to book this time before it’s too late.
• Use design strategies to design an ideal life. Mapping out your days, weeks, months, and years gives you amazing amounts of control over your time.
• Exercise is the primary method for reducing stress and building reserves for a busy schedule. Walking, running, cycling, and yoga top the list of activities.
• Carving out time specifically to spend time with friends and family is considered by design leaders to be a critical part of a harmonious life.
• Work partnerships can be the source of harmony or stress. Find partners that complement your strengths and weaknesses so there’s balance among you.
• Life comes in waves. Use the ebbs to recharge for the times when things will be busy.
• 如果你是领导者，那么你的首要客户就是你的团队。
• 拥有个人和职业上的目标感，能让你的成长策略更聚焦、更清晰。
• 领导者会投资于人和流程，以减少干扰。
• 让自己身边围绕着顾问和导师，他们能在成长领域提供洞察。
• 大多数领导者都需要持续发展软技能，比如谈判、演讲和冲突解决。
• 通过清楚告诉团队你什么时候不可用，来保护你的个人和家庭时间。趁还来得及，先把这些时间写进日历。
• 用设计策略来设计理想生活。规划你的日、周、月、年，会让你对时间拥有惊人的掌控感。
• 运动是减压和为繁忙日程储备能量的主要方式。散步、跑步、骑行和瑜伽是最常见的选择。
• 专门留出时间陪伴朋友和家人，被设计领导者视为和谐生活的关键部分。
• 工作伙伴关系可能成为和谐的来源，也可能成为压力的来源。寻找能与你的强项和弱项互补的伙伴，让彼此之间形成平衡。
• 人生是有波峰波谷的。利用低潮期恢复能量，为忙碌时期做准备。

No.5 《Planning for the Future》Key Takeaways

• Great plans first require a clear vision, guiding principles, values, and action steps.
• Creating plans allows you to focus the business activities and avoid distractions.
• Planning is a team sport. Get help from partners, advisors, mentors, and team members.
• The future is ambiguous so plans never survive intact. Make plans that are flexible enough to adjust to an ever-changing future.
• Planning for the future is often about finding a way to keep a culture that works.
• Big goals are worth getting up for but can only be achieved when you have clear plans.
• Companies and teams don’t grow linearly. Plan for spurts of fast growth with slow periods in between.
• Long-term planning is not fashionable, but it’s still the best approach to return value to the company and the team.
• 伟大的计划首先需要清晰的愿景、指导原则、价值观和行动步骤。
• 制定计划能让你聚焦业务活动，避免分心。
• 规划是一项团队运动。要向合伙人、顾问、导师和团队成员寻求帮助。
• 未来充满模糊性，所以计划从不会原封不动地实现。要制定足够灵活的计划，以适应不断变化的未来。
• 为未来做规划，往往是在寻找一种方式，来保留有效的文化。
• 宏大的目标值得你为之起床奋斗，但只有在拥有清晰计划时才可能实现。
• 公司和团队并不是线性成长的。要为快速增长期与缓慢期交替出现做好计划。
• 长期规划并不时髦，但它仍然是为公司和团队创造回报的最佳方式。

No.6 《Leadership Style》Key Takeaways

• Create an environment where failures can lead to personal and professional growth.
• Being a teacher-style leader to your team can be a good way to become a student.
• Lead by example. Get your hands dirty, but don’t forget to also delegate.
• Nobody wants a micromanager. Find ways to return authority and create trust.
• One-on-one meetings are something you shouldn’t delegate. The feedback is too valuable.
• Regardless of your style, ultimately it needs to motivate and empower your team.
• Being a good communicator also means encouraging good communication.
• Leadership means being considered as a part of the team and still being able to maintain your status as the leader.
• 创造一种环境，让失败能够带来个人和职业成长。
• 以教师型领导者的方式带领团队，也可能帮助你成为学生。
• 以身作则。亲自动手，但也别忘了授权。
• 没人喜欢微观管理者。要找到把权力还给团队、创造信任的方法。
• 一对一会议是不应该委托给别人的事情。反馈太有价值了。
• 无论你的风格是什么，最终都需要激励并赋能团队。
• 成为优秀的沟通者，也意味着鼓励良好的沟通。
• 领导力意味着你既被视为团队的一部分，同时仍然能够保持作为领导者的地位。

No.7 《Sales and Marketing》Key Takeaways

• Sales and marketing can’t be seen as separate activities. They are linked. at every step.
• Successful design leaders think of themselves as their team’s primary marketing and sales representative.
• Transparency about process, skills, challenges, and insights is now considered the norm. No more black-box methodologies and processes.
• Developing sales skills is possible for almost anyone as long as you have the enthusiasm and passion for your business.
• Sales, done correctly, is nothing more than a series of conversations about a mutually beneficial relationship and set of outcomes.
• Relying on referrals and word of mouth isn’t enough. A structured lead-generation process is what drives a healthy pipeline.
• Developing a sales lens that speaks to your fir’s focus and strengths ensures that sales efforts are dedicated to the right opportunities, and avoids dead-end negotiations.
• Sales is never done. Even when things are good, it’s necessary to push work into the pipeline.
• Having said that, be prepared for ebbs and flows. Realize that in spite of consistent efforts, your results will vary month to month and season to season.
• 销售和营销不能被看作彼此分离的活动。它们在每一个环节上都是相互连接的。
• 成功的设计领导者会把自己视为团队最主要的营销和销售代表。
• 如今，对流程、技能、挑战和洞察保持透明，已经被视为常态。不再有黑箱式的方法论和流程。
• 只要你对自己的业务有热情和投入，几乎任何人都可以培养销售技能。
• 如果做得正确，销售不过是一系列关于互利关系和共同成果的对话。
• 依赖推荐和口碑是不够的。结构化的潜在客户开发流程，才是健康销售管道的驱动力。
• 发展一种符合公司聚焦方向和优势的销售视角，能确保销售努力投入到正确机会中，并避免陷入没有结果的谈判。
• 销售永远不会结束。即使情况很好，也有必要持续把工作推进管道中。
• 话虽如此，也要为起伏做好准备。要意识到，尽管你持续努力，结果仍会随着月份和季节变化而波动。

No.8 《Learning from Our Biggest Mistakes》Key Takeaways

• Communication problems tend to be at the root of all project problems. Getting on the same page prevents mistakes.
• Be empathetic and learn to speak your client’s business language. Don’t just use design jargon.
• Business is also a creative task. Approaching business like a design project can prevent mistakes and can feel more engaging for design leaders without business training.
• Mistakes can happen when decision-making powers are not clear. The buck has to stop somewhere.
• Letting go and delegating gives design leaders more freedom and time to deal with the bigger issues.
• Building trust with the team is the fastest way to delegating success.
• Don’t grow for growth’s sake. Being bigger for the purpose of being bigger isn’t a reasonable strategy.
• Avoid mistakes by developing contracts and documentation to make project expectations clear to everyone.
• Contracts are also a great fallback when things do go wrong.
• 沟通问题往往是一切项目问题的根源。让所有人达成共识，可以避免错误。
• 要有同理心，并学会说客户的商业语言。不要只使用设计术语。
• 商业本身也是一种创造性任务。像对待设计项目一样对待商业，可以避免错误，也会让没有商业训练背景的设计领导者更有参与感。
• 当决策权不清晰时，错误就可能发生。最终必须有人承担责任。
• 放手和授权，能给设计领导者更多自由和时间去处理更大的问题。
• 与团队建立信任，是成功授权最快的方式。
• 不要为了增长而增长。仅仅为了变大而变大，并不是合理的策略。
• 通过制定合同和文档，让每个人都清楚项目预期，可以避免错误。
• 当事情确实出错时，合同也是很好的后备依据。