Coming Up For Air

Howdy Stranger! Holy crap, it's been nearly two months since I've published a newsletter or substantive blog post. Which is a very unnatural thing for me. No sir, I don't like it.

I'm tired of saying I'm busy (it's unhealthy, not a badge of honor), but it continues to be the truth. Just how busy, you ask? Well, I had a fantastic conversation with Don Norman (one of my all-time heroes for whom I owe my career to) and literally haven't talked about it at all. Oof.

I've had to learn the hard way that there's a reason why people seclude themselves in cabins to create big projects. So while I'm still hunkered down with my big projects, my alarm clock went off so I need to come up for air, say hey, and share some big updates.

Exciting news: my website looks like crap!

If you visit bradfrost.com , you'll see that it looks like crap. Believe it or not, that's intentional.

My website has been my online home and primary means expression for literally my entire adult life. Which is why it's a big deal to say that after 19 YEARS (🤯) of bradfrost.com running on WordPress, I just migrated the website to the fantastic Eleventy. (Now's a perfect time to subscribe/update via RSS).

With the platform migration done, I'm now redesigning/rebuilding it using our Eddie design system as video lessons for our AI & Design Systems course. I'm putting my money where my mouth is: walking through the entire end-to-end process of the most important website in my life (and the lifeblood of my business), teaching how to use design systems & AI together to make a beautiful, effective, and successful website.

Chapter 3 of AI & Design Systems is done!

Speaking of our AI & Design Systems course, Chapter 3 is complete! It contains over FOUR HOURS of in-depth video detailing how to wield AI to improve your design system foundations. We're now entering the home stretch of the video production, running bi-weekly community jam sessions, and growing a helpful & supportive community. Join us!

My Atomic Design Certification Course is done!

Oh! Here's yet-another HUGE thing I haven't had even a second to share: my Atomic Design Certification Course is finally complete! AAAAHHH!!!!

The course contains over 10 hours of videos, sample architecture, and resources for how to master design systems: concepts, architecture, process. All backed up by a shitload of hard-earned first-hand experience. Right now, my team and I QA-ing the provided sample design system architecture in both Figma and code and putting a bow on things to get it ready for the actual launch. Consider this the last window to get the course for a comically-low price of $50 before the price increases to $150. You can also get ALL of our courses at a discount here.

SO many Wake Up Excited! episodes

I haven't been totally living under a rock; I've been having utterly amazing conversations on Wake Up Excited!

• Sacha Judd on building healthy online communities
• Dan Saffer on teaching the design of AI
• Abby Covert on community & being human at work
• Don Norman on ideas, design for good, & meta-communities
• Luke Murphy on creativity, ADHD, and ethics
• Luke Wroblewski on the evolution and pace of technology
• Afyia Smith on human resiliency and docs-first design systems
• Ridd on designers' shifting role

Whew! Keeping on theme with this update, my podcast just turned 1! One more thing I haven't talked about or celebrated. But for its birthday, I'd love it if you subscribe to the show on YouTube and audio!

And oh yeah, speaking of YouTube, I now have TWO YouTube channels:

• Brad Frost - my main channel where I share ideas, design, have conversations, and more
• Creative Exhaust - which widens my existing Cold Album Drumming project to include all of my musical and artistic shenanigans. Still very much WIP, but if you want to watch me playing music, I'd love it if you subscribed!

Is that it???

At the beginning of this year, I declared systems bankruptcy and I've spent the entire year blowing up, overhauling, building, and bolstering all of the infrastructure and systems in my life and work. It's been difficult-yet-necessary to do this work concurrently with getting our real projects out the door. It's been incredibly hard work, but it is starting to bear fruit and will hopefully result in a saner, more sustainable pace.

With all of that, I'm gearing up for our annual OBX trip next week, and my body, mind, and soul are looking forward to being a beach bum with my family.

I hope your summer has been going well. Go/going anywhere exciting? Getting into any fun projects? I'd love to hear about them.

Thanks so much, and see ya soon!

— Brad