A recent blog post by marketing expert and author Seth Godin discusses the tensions between senior and junior management. Godin argues that companies can lose pace with what’s new when senior management continues to make decisions. He stresses that it’s important to bring junior employees into the decision making process – not necessarily because they are younger, but because they will offer fresher ideas to the company. 

Executives that stay with one company for too long are more prone to missing trends because they tend to stick with decisions that are comfortable. 

Godin ends his post with this quote: "When...

A picture from my trip to the The Golden Nugget Flea Market in Lambertville, NJ.

NACI Architecture has recently designed two new Cathcart schools in Snohomish, Washington, which were designed to bring nature into the classroom. The school sits within a second-growth forest and the campus has the backdrop of mountains and trees. Practically every aspect of the Cathcart building design embraces nature and the natural landscape. The architects of the school say “Integration of the site's memory should hopefully raise students' and the community's awareness of the fragility and importance of our natural habitat."

The Major League Baseball season is winding down and our Philadelphia Phillies need to step up their game to clinch a playoff spot. As of now, we are the wild card seat, but as in any major league playoffs, anything could happen.

Last night's game lasted 16 innings and ended unfavorably for our Phils. Fans did, however, get to enjoy the second playing of "Take Me Out To The Ballgame" during the 14th inning stretch. Years ago, I went to one of the longest games ever in baseball history: Game 4 of the 1993 World Series clocked at 4 hours and...

Artist and musician Tristan Perich has created an electronic music album on a single microchip, that plays a composition in five parts. The album, 1-Bit Symphony, comes with the chip in a jewel case, also containing other components including a headphone jack. This lets you play the music through the case itself!  In his words, the chip isn't playing back recorded music, it is creating it live with the electrical signals produced when you activate it. The Village Voice described it as "technology and aesthetic rolled into one," which really sums it up.  Simple, creative, accessible and fun.

Design student Jeremy Innes-Hopkins has created a packaging kit for a new brand called Scratch. The brand provides one box per meal that holds all of the raw ingredients. Everything is washed, chopped and measured out locally by hand. The meal feeds one and cooks in about 20 minutes, using as little as one pan. 

The current meal offerings are vegetable red thai curry, a Moroccan chicken tagine, a Crayfish, tomato and feta pasta and Chicken and chorizo Jambalaya. The packaged meals are currently being sold in select stores in London.

In David Stark's new book – "David Stark Design" – he discusses processes and strategies for creating post-it art, among other projects. Stark uses his refrigerator as a canvas to create art with colorful post-its. He appreciates the ability to easily change the interior decoration of his home without damage and intensive clean-up.

"There is more to life than increasing its speed." - Gandhi

Thanks goodness it’s Friday and the weekend is just beginning! Hot days, long hours and crowded commutes make it hard to relax, but it is so important. Relaxation is crucial to maintaining your well-being and heath. Relaxation reduces blood pressure, decreases muscle tension and of course, lowers stress levels. The more relaxed you are, the more energy you will have, which makes you more effective at problem-solving and being efficient.