“Craft, to me, is the skill developed, applied, and made manifest through practice and discipline in the fabrication of a work of art. Could be a chair, a lasagna, a painting, a symphony, or a monologue.”​
— Nick Offerman, woodworker and co-host of NBC’s Making It

Hold That Thought

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Hello Reader,

We did it! Lens Not Label is off to the publisher. Please come bask with us on LinkedIn and find out what's next.

It's been a big week so far, but through it all I've been thinking about craft. What it is and how it is part of my life. And yours.

Craft can be big and all-consuming, such as painting as a livelihood. Or it can be more leisurely hobby crafts, from beer-making to basket-weaving.

Craft can also be smaller and more fleeting, like writing a card or doing a Spirograph. The one featured above for for this newsletter took me less than ten minutes. It was time well spent as I used it to think about you, and the words I wanted to share with you today.

Here are three things on that theme to help you turn overthinking into craftivist thinking:

1. In her short reflection, Psychology of craft, Mandy Brown asks, “What does it mean to see our work as craft rather than as growth?”
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2. "We need to stop seeing protest as only being about shouting in a crowd and start having the kind of smaller conversations that actually connect to fellow human beings, and help to influence them gently. — Craftivism, p. 22, by Sarah P. Corbett​​
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   Here's one of her talks on YouTube about how we can gently protest, through craft and quieter activism
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3. Lastly, I'm back on the Check Your Thread podcast to talk about Neurodiversity and Craft, where we explore the role that craft might have in functioning well as a neurodivergent person. We also talk about language, trends, and we bust some myths too. Plus an invite at the end to share your experience of what craft does to your brain.

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This week's underthinking link is an online Spirograph generator. Thinking score: variable, depending on how you use the time – to not think or to facilitate deeper thinking, or somewhere in between.

Extra Thoughts…

Never underestimate the power of a small act of craft. It may be just the thing that's needed to start a conversation.

Make it well enough,
Kim

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If you have been enjoying this newsletter, here are three quick ways you might support me: share a thought, send me a pebble, or forward this email to a friend and encourage them to sign up:

Turn overthinking into expert thinking

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For many of us, craft is woven into the work we do. Even if that's only to treat our tasks with the care we would give to other creative pursuits.

Great conversations are both an art and a craft. That's why we wrote Lens Not Label — to enable you to have deeper, more skillful conversations with people. Especially with those who think differently.

Out this November, Lens Not Label is a conversational guide for managers, leaders and coaches who want to overcome their discomfort when working with neurodivergent people — without labels, jargon, or clunky models.

​Pre-order now to ensure it's in your hot hands this autumn.

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Hi! I'm Kim and there’s nothing that breaks my heart more than seeing a really smart, caring person overthink themselves to inaction. And I should know. I’ve spent nearly five decades overthinking absolutely everything. Here's how I made sense of it all.

If you are purpose-driven and want to do more than think about what matters, we should talk — especially if you think differently, aren't sure what actually matters, or don't know how to go about it.