#1 — Learning in Public: Reflections from Launch Week

Tuesday afternoon saw my website launched to the world—well, LinkedIn.

No matter how many times I’ve done this, I’m always surprised by how quickly you learn once your ideas are in front of real people. It’s not always conscious feedback—it’s in the context of inbound call bookings or the questions those calls spark. And these questions are gold. They’ve already given me a deeper understanding of my target audience for each offering and the common themes and challenges they face.

Most validating of all has been the number of inbound requests that perfectly match the challenges, people, and organisations I’ve dreamed of working with. Whether or not these become long-term partnerships, I’m increasingly confident the audience and their challenges are real. And I’m genuinely excited about the prospect of working on them together.

Beyond the steady flow of calls and deep-dive sessions, the rest of my week was filled with writing—a craft I’ve grown to love. Not just for my initial Substack posts, but to explore the big topics that have been swirling in my head for months: leadership lessons from my time at Monzo, the impact of AI on leading design teams, and the evolving role of ‘design managers’ in today’s layoff-prone, profit-driven business climate.

Lastly, Monday mornings feel like the most natural time to write these notes. The weekend serves as a natural pause—a chance to reflect, shifting from practical tasks to broader reflection. Not because I spend weekends writing—quite the opposite. Time away from the laptop helps me refine my thinking.

And with that, I’m just happy to be here. I’m glad you are too.

Until next time!