Life Design: Using Design Thinking to Find Career Fulfillment
Bill Burnett and Dave Evans, two American designers and Stanford professors, have popularized 'life design,' a method applying design thinking to career planning. Their book 'Designing Your Life' (Knopf, 2016) advocates prototyping multiple career paths rather than seeking a single vocation. They founded the Stanford Life Design Lab, which has trained over 2,000 students. The approach challenges notions of passion-driven careers and equates success with personal fulfillment over salary. In Italy, the Brera Design Days, directed by Studio Labo (Paolo Casati and Cristian Confalonieri), explored this theme. The Situation Lab, founded by Stuart Candy and Jeff Watson, offers a more critical perspective with projects like NaturePod™, a VR headset simulating nature experiences. The article originally appeared in Artribune Magazine #46.
Key facts
- Bill Burnett and Dave Evans are American designers and Stanford professors.
- Their book 'Designing Your Life' was published by Knopf in 2016.
- They founded the Stanford Life Design Lab.
- The lab has trained over 2,000 students.
- Burnett worked on Apple's PowerBook.
- Evans has a degree in mechanical engineering and a diploma in Contemplative Spirituality.
- The method uses design thinking to prototype career paths.
- Brera Design Days in Milan addressed life design, directed by Studio Labo.
- Situation Lab, founded by Stuart Candy and Jeff Watson, created NaturePod™.
- The article was published in Artribune Magazine #46.
Entities
Artists
- Bill Burnett
- Dave Evans
- David Kelley
- Stuart Candy
- Jeff Watson
- Paolo Casati
- Cristian Confalonieri
Institutions
- Stanford University
- Stanford Life Design Lab
- IDEO
- Apple
- Knopf
- Situation Lab
- Brera Design Days
- Studio Labo
- Artribune
Locations
- Stanford
- California
- United States
- New York
- Milan
- Italy