Lovely animated holiday ad by Apple. Read more and see behind-the-scenes on Adweek.

This is an exceptional list of tips & techniques for productive design criticism by Frank Chimero. I learned some of these points in practice in design school, but it’s helpful to remind ourselves of smart ways to conduct and respond to critique, primarily when working in a team.

I suspect this is advice I’m going to keep coming back to. I also love this quote from Niemann: “This isn’t something you’re born good at, you get good at it,” says Niemann. “A top tennis player doesn’t just stop training once they win.”

Fascinating article on the people we don’t see who keep design agencies running behind-the-scenes. I also just finished reading AIGA Eye on Design’s first ever magazine issue, and it includes lots of articles related to this core theme of “invisible”.

Another fantastic video from this year’s AIGA conference.

Recently discovered this small Cleveland-based publisher of creative products, and I’m completely obsessed. Their products balance self-care, creativity, action, and playfulness. I pre-ordered their new to-do notebook on Kickstarter, and I am looking forward to using their Habit Calendar to kick-start my 2018 productivity. They also sell stickers, coloring books, and more!