Designing to (emotionally)
connect the world
I’ve noticed that when people feel disconnected from themselves, it shows up everywhere: in how we communicate, how we work, and how we treat each other.
I use design to make emotional connection more attainable—through experiences that help people recognize their strengths and products that build emotional literacy in everyday moments.
I’ve noticed that when people feel disconnected from themselves, it shows up everywhere: in how we communicate, how we work, and how we treat each other.
I use design to make emotional connection more attainable—through experiences that help people recognize their strengths and products that build emotional literacy in everyday moments.
Connection starts from within
Connection starts from within
An emotionally connected world is one where we’re in tune with ourselves and those around us. Where we have the courage to be ourselves and help others do the same. Where we’re able to pause, reflect, and respond with intention—instead of reacting automatically from fear or habit.
In my own life and work, I’ve seen that meaningful connection almost always starts with self-awareness: the ability to notice what we’re feeling, why it’s there, and how it shapes our behavior. I’ve experienced this myself—how naming an emotion can soften defensiveness, making a hard conversation more approachable. We can only know someone as deeply as we know ourselves.
When people have emotional language and inner clarity, it changes how they show up. Feedback feels more constructive. Conflict becomes something to work through rather than avoid. Vulnerable conversations emerge more naturally, and problems can be met with compassion and accountability.
An emotionally connected world is one where we’re in tune with ourselves and those around us. Where we have the courage to be ourselves and help others do the same. Where we’re able to pause, reflect, and respond with intention—instead of reacting automatically from fear or habit.
In my own life and work, I’ve seen that meaningful connection almost always starts with self-awareness: the ability to notice what we’re feeling, why it’s there, and how it shapes our behavior. I’ve experienced this myself—how naming an emotion can soften defensiveness, making a hard conversation more approachable. We can only know someone as deeply as we know ourselves.
When people have emotional language and inner clarity, it changes how they show up. Feedback feels more constructive. Conflict becomes something to work through rather than avoid. Vulnerable conversations emerge more naturally, and problems can be met with compassion and accountability.
The skills we weren’t taught
The skills we weren’t taught
Many of the challenges we face—polarization, burnout, loneliness—trace back to disconnection. Many of us were taught how to perform, achieve, and produce, but not how to recognize emotions, process stress, or communicate what we need. And when emotional fluency is missing from how we grow up, we tend to operate from fear and ego rather than from clarity and compassion.
What feels missing are tools, habits, and experiences that make self-understanding and emotional skill-building part of everyday life.
Think of it this way:
You don’t need a personal trainer to be physically healthy; we have gyms for consistent maintenance. We’ve built environments that make physical health a daily practice. Mental health, by contrast, often only shows up when something is already wrong. We lack environments and services that help us practice mental health consistently, across the many contexts of our lives.
Many of the challenges we face—polarization, burnout, loneliness—trace back to disconnection. Many of us were taught how to perform, achieve, and produce, but not how to recognize emotions, process stress, or communicate what we need. And when emotional fluency is missing from how we grow up, we tend to operate from fear and ego rather than from clarity and compassion.
What feels missing are tools, habits, and experiences that make self-understanding and emotional skill-building part of everyday life.
Think of it this way:
You don’t need a personal trainer to be physically healthy; we have gyms for consistent maintenance. We’ve built environments that make physical health a daily practice. Mental health, by contrast, often only shows up when something is already wrong. We lack environments and services that help us practice mental health consistently, across the many contexts of our lives.
Mental health doesn’t only live in therapy
Mental health doesn’t only live in therapy
Mental health organizations often approach societal well-being by doing the obvious: expanding access to therapy. That’s necessary and noble, and it helps. Therapy plays a critical role in healing and self-development. Still, I’ve become increasingly curious about what mental health could look like outside the therapy room.
What if therapeutic methods and outcomes became woven into more areas of life—education, entertainment, hobbies—so skill-building showed up in many formats and at many moments? Imagine early childhood programs that teach age-appropriate emotional skills, resources for new parents raising emotionally intelligent kids, or personalized tools for reflection and learning that adapt to individual needs.
I’m interested in what happens when mental health support shows up in more places—daily routines, creative practices, shared experiences—not just in moments of crisis. Not just treatment, but prevention. A more proactive, everyday approach. For me, the goal is to help create conditions where people can actually enjoy being human. So that instead of merely coping through life, we’re able to meet it fully, in all its complexity.
Mental health organizations often approach societal well-being by doing the obvious: expanding access to therapy. That’s necessary and noble, and it helps. Therapy plays a critical role in healing and self-development. Still, I’ve become increasingly curious about what mental health could look like outside the therapy room.
What if therapeutic methods and outcomes became woven into more areas of life—education, entertainment, hobbies—so skill-building showed up in many formats and at many moments? Imagine early childhood programs that teach age-appropriate emotional skills, resources for new parents raising emotionally intelligent kids, or personalized tools for reflection and learning that adapt to individual needs.
I’m interested in what happens when mental health support shows up in more places—daily routines, creative practices, shared experiences—not just in moments of crisis. Not just treatment, but prevention. A more proactive, everyday approach. For me, the goal is to help create conditions where people can actually enjoy being human. So that instead of merely coping through life, we’re able to meet it fully, in all its complexity.
What I’m designing toward
What I’m designing toward
I’ve come to the conclusion that life is beautiful because of the people we share it with. I design to help people build the clarity, awareness, and emotional language they need to show up differently—in conversations, in relationships, and in the systems they’re part of. In doing so, it builds the capacity to experience life fully, not just comfortably.
In designing for emotional connection, I’m not just trying to improve isolated moments but to positively transform the experience of being human. I don’t expect to solve this alone or see the full impact in my lifetime, but I believe deeply in contributing to a future where emotional understanding is something we grow up practicing, not a lesson we’re forced to learn later.
A future where being human, in all its difficulty and beauty, feels something we’re supported in being present for.
I’ve come to the conclusion that life is beautiful because of the people we share it with. I design to help people build the clarity, awareness, and emotional language they need to show up differently—in conversations, in relationships, and in the systems they’re part of. In doing so, it builds the capacity to experience life fully, not just comfortably.
In designing for emotional connection, I’m not just trying to improve isolated moments but to positively transform the experience of being human. I don’t expect to solve this alone or see the full impact in my lifetime, but I believe deeply in contributing to a future where emotional understanding is something we grow up practicing, not a lesson we’re forced to learn later.
A future where being human, in all its difficulty and beauty, feels something we’re supported in being present for.
Designing to (emotionally)
connect the world
Designing to (emotionally)
connect the world