# Roel van der Ven > Personal website of Roel van der Ven - Product Manager, technologist, and bread baker. I'm Roel van der Ven. I build products, tinker with systems, and try to understand how things connect. ## Professional Background For the past 20+ years I've worked across media, music, and platform technology. Currently I'm a Senior Product Manager at Spotify, where I work on consumer authorization and platform AI. Before that, I spent formative years at SoundCloud and tape.tv in Berlin's music-tech scene. The thread through all of it seems to be helping creators and audiences find each other through well-designed infrastructure. At Spotify, I've spent seven years leading zero-to-one initiatives in areas where the problem space is ambiguous and the systems are complex. I launched Spotify for Authors, Spotify's first dedicated portal for the audiobook publishing community, taking it from business case to production. Before that, I built Spotify Open Access, the content authorization technology that lets membership platforms grant their subscribers access to premium content on Spotify (the system behind partnerships like Calm). That work resulted in integrations with 17+ external platforms and a patent filing for the underlying technology. I also bootstrapped Spotify for Music Providers, a self-service portal now used by 5,000+ music industry professionals, and led the metadata platform consolidation that unified three legacy systems into a single foundation powering 20,000+ downstream data endpoints. Before that, I co-organized Music & Bits, a conference and hackathon that bridged the web and music industries, which eventually merged with Amsterdam Dance Event. I also taught product management at General Assembly and was an intern at Last.fm (acquired by CBS during my time there). I started my career building one of the first cross-media strategies for Bright Magazine, bringing print content to web and TV. I approach problems from first principles. My background is in full-stack engineering, which means I think in systems, feedback loops, and tradeoffs before I think in roadmaps. Our current thinking on what "good product work" looks like keeps evolving, and I try to evolve with it. ## Personal My family and I are Dutch, living in the Berlin area with two kids and two cats. I'm vegetarian and I love running. If you haven't guessed, I'm pretty crazy about discovering new and old music, it's a constant thread throughout the week. Ask me what I'm listening to! I self-host most of the digital infrastructure I depend on. A homelab running Proxmox, Docker, Home Assistant, and too many side projects teaches you a lot about the systems you usually take for granted. This website is part of that same impulse: own your content, own your tools, observe what happens when you do. When I'm not working or tinkering with my infrastructure, I'm likely baking sourdough, exploring some new cooking technique, or on a run in the woods. If any of this resonates, say hi. The best conversations tend to start with a shared curiosity. ## Get in Touch - **Mastodon**: [@roel@social.lol](https://social.lol/@roel) - **LinkedIn**: [roelvanderven](https://linkedin.com/in/roelvanderven) - **GitHub**: [roelven](https://github.com/roelven) hello [at] roelvanderven.com ## Site Sections - [Posts](https://roelvanderven.com/posts/) (42 articles): Blog posts on product management, technology, and personal reflections. - [Stills](https://roelvanderven.com/stills/) (4 entries): Curated movie and TV screenshots. - [Photos](https://roelvanderven.com/photos/) (33 entries): Photography and personal photos. ## All Posts ### Please no more WhatsApp - **URL**: https://roelvanderven.com/posts/please-no-more-whatsapp/ - **Date**: 2026-07-03 - **Tags**: privacy, signal, whatsapp, gdpr Someone drops a link in a chat: "I made a WhatsApp group for this, join here." A school project, a street party, a daycare parents exchange, yet another neighbourhood initiative. Within a minute fifteen people are in, photos are flowing, and the thing basically organizes itself. I get it. WhatsApp is super easy. You install it once, it finds everyone you know, and it removes almost all the friction of getting a group of people talking. That ease is exactly why it has become the default for everything. Nobody sat down and weighed the options. They picked it because it was already there and everyone was already on it. I have done the same plenty of times. What I keep wishing is that choosing a more private option was just as easy. Most of the time it isn't, so the easy thing wins again and we all add one more group to the pile. This post is my small attempt to slow that down for a moment, before the next group gets made. ![](/images/posts/please-no-more-whatsapp.jpg) ## Why should you consider something else? * Start with the simplest thing. The moment you are added to a group, your phone number is visible to everyone else in it. People you have never really met now have your private number, permanently, and there is no taking it back. For a group that is literally "all the parents in the Gruppe," that is a lot of near-strangers holding a direct line to you. The German data protection authorities have landed on this point repeatedly: for clubs, schools, and small organizations, this kind of exposure makes WhatsApp [generally hard to use lawfully](https://www.ratgeberrecht.eu/aktuell/datenschutz-bei-whatsapp/). * Then there is your address book. WhatsApp reads the entire thing and uploads it to its servers, which means it collects details about people who never agreed to anything, including people who do not even use WhatsApp. The [Bavarian data protection authority](https://www.datenschutz-praxis.de/betroffenenrechte/sichere-messengerdienste-alternativen-zu-whatsapp/) puts it about as plainly as a regulator ever does: because those contacts are handed over without their consent, a compliant setup generally cannot be argued. Your aunt who isn't on WhatsApp is in their system because you are. * Also, let's talk about where it all goes. WhatsApp sends data to servers in the United States, which European courts [have ruled doesn't meet the protection our law requires](https://www.godaddy.com/resources/de/privacy/whatsapp-datenschutz-welche-daten-werden-weitergegeben). And "end-to-end encrypted," the phrase everyone leans on, only covers the contents of your messages. Who you talk to, how often, and when still flows to Meta and [gets shared across its companies](https://www.datenschutzanwaelte-bayern.de/index.php?article_id=127). For a thread about who is bringing cake on Friday, that is a surprising amount of quiet data collection happening in the background. The part I find hardest to defend is that nobody in the group can actually honour the basic rights we all have under the law: to know what is stored about us, and to have it deleted when we want to. WhatsApp has already been [fined for failing exactly these transparency duties](https://www.godaddy.com/resources/de/privacy/whatsapp-datenschutz-welche-daten-werden-weitergegeben), and the [German authorities' guidance](https://www.bfdi.bund.de/DE/Fachthemen/Gremienarbeit/Datenschutzkonferenz/DSK-tableOrientierungshilfe.html) keeps circling back to the same concerns. Once a conversation about your colleagues has spread across a group, that control is simply gone. None of this means you have done something wrong by being on WhatsApp. Most of us are, me included. It means that when we start something new, we have a real choice, and the convenient default isn't the only one on the table. ## The alternative The one I would actually suggest is Signal. It looks and works almost exactly like WhatsApp, so there is nothing new to learn and nothing to relearn for the less technical people in the group. It is free, it is run by a non-profit instead of an advertising company, and it doesn't hoover up your address book. It even uses the same underlying encryption WhatsApp borrowed, just inside an app anyone can inspect. For most groups the switch costs one slightly annoying evening and nothing after that. (If anyone wants to go further, with no phone number attached and servers in Switzerland, [Threema](https://threema.com/en) does that. It costs a few euros and fewer people have it, so I would treat it as the enthusiast option rather than the default.) ## Add me though! So before the next group gets spun up: could we try Signal instead? I will happily walk anyone through setting it up, it takes about ten minutes. I would much rather spend those ten minutes than keep handing everyone's phone number and every photo of our kids to a company that has already been [fined hundreds of millions of euros](https://www.godaddy.com/resources/de/privacy/whatsapp-datenschutz-welche-daten-werden-weitergegeben) for exactly this kind of thing. And if you were about to send me a WhatsApp invite: I hope you understand why I have to decline. --- ### A word search generator for a six-year-old who loves letters - **URL**: https://roelvanderven.com/posts/word-search-puzzle-generator/ - **Date**: 2026-05-18 - **Tags**: parenting, claude, ai, kids, learning Our youngest is six and deep in the phase where letters are magic. She fills pages with experiments: her name, words she's sounded out, invented spellings that are almost right and somehow more charming for it. Reading is clicking into place in real time and it's one of those things you can't quite believe you're watching. We started doing word search puzzles together. She loves the hunt, scanning rows and circling letters the moment something clicks. Simple grids, short words, themes she picks herself (animals, food, family names). We got through the store-bought ones fast enough that it became clear we needed a way to make our own. I made a Claude artifact for it. You type in a list of words, pick a grid size, and it generates a solvable puzzle on the spot. We print it, grab a pencil, and she's off. It took about an hour to get to something we'd actually use. The artifact handles word placement, fills the remaining cells with random letters, and makes sure the puzzle is solvable. Nothing fancy, but it works. The next iteration I have in mind is PDF output with proper formatting and some illustrations she can color in while working through the puzzle. A printable activity rather than just a grid. I haven't gotten there yet, but it's on the list. For now it's doing exactly what it needs to do, which is keeping a six-year-old busy with letters on a Saturday afternoon. --- ### I gave three AI agents their own personalities. Here's what actually came of it. - **URL**: https://roelvanderven.com/posts/i-gave-three-ai-agents-their-own-personalities/ - **Date**: 2026-04-13 - **Tags**: ai, agents, automation, hermes For a while I was doing what most people do: one AI assistant, one big context window, everything in one place. Convenient on paper. In practice, it's a bit like asking the same person to be your chef, your accountant, and your personal trainer. The context bleed alone makes everything worse. I've been running a different setup for a few months now and it's holding up better than anything I've tried before. Three agents, each with a distinct identity and a narrow job. This is the writeup. --- ![Pip, Gary and Mary in Telegram](/images/posts/screenshot-telegram-pip-gary-mary.jpeg) --- ## The thing I tried first I gave Openclaw a real go. The community around it was active and the promise was there. What kept happening, though, was that I'd build something, and then I'd be maintaining it instead of using it. Not because Openclaw is bad, just because the overhead of keeping a custom setup running was eating exactly the time I was trying to get back. At some point that feedback loop becomes hard to ignore. So I went looking. ## Why Hermes [Hermes Agent](https://hermes-agent.nousresearch.com/) is what I landed on, and a few things stand out compared to what I was running before. The security model feels intentional rather than assembled. The commands you can trigger from within a chat are designed well. But the thing I keep coming back to is how Hermes handles memory over time. Most AI setups treat each session as roughly independent: you start fresh, you rebuild context, you move on. Hermes builds a persistent understanding of who you are and what you're working on across sessions. That's not just a nice-to-have when you're running more than one agent. It's what makes the whole thing coherent. There's also a command called `/new` that I use constantly. It starts a fresh session and clears the working context, but it doesn't touch the agent's long-term memory. So you get a clean slate without losing what the agent has learned about you. That distinction matters more than it sounds. It's the difference between "restart" and "refresh." --- ## How the setup works technically All my LLM calls run through the [z.ai coding plan](https://z.ai/subscribe) on GLM-5-turbo. I moved over from GLM-4.7 a while back and the improvement in tool calling quality was noticeable enough that it changed what felt worth building. Reliable tool use is the foundation everything else sits on. For compression and compaction, I run a local model on my M3 iMac via Ollama: ```yaml compression: provider: custom model: qwen2.5:7b-instruct base_url: http://localhost:11434/v1 api_key: ollama timeout: 120 ``` Local model, local job. Doesn't need to be the sharpest tool in the shed for this. --- ## Profiles and SOUL.md The feature that made all of this practical is [Hermes profiles](https://hermes-agent.nousresearch.com/docs/user-guide/profiles/). Each profile is a completely isolated agent identity: its own configuration, its own tools, and its own SOUL.md. SOUL.md is where you define who an agent is. Personality, defaults, areas of ownership, how it should approach its domain. Because each profile reads its own SOUL.md independently, the agents are genuinely separate rather than one model context-switching between roles. That separation is what keeps each agent's judgment sharp within its domain, and it's what makes the whole fleet maintainable. --- ## Meet the team ![Pip, Gary and Mary avatars](/images/posts/three-avatar-profiles-with-names.png) ### Pip Pip is the flight operator. The conduit between all the Hermes processes: coordinating between agents, handling configuration changes, and serving as a fallback when something breaks. That last part is more useful than it first sounds. When an agent goes unresponsive because a configuration went wrong, you want somewhere to turn that doesn't require logging into a computer. Pip is that redundancy. One agent keeping an eye on the others. ### Gary Gary is my health coach. He connects to Garmin and pulls all the data my running watch logs, then writes it to disk. He also has a vision tool (via z.ai) that lets me photograph food and get a nutritional estimate logged against my daily intake. ![Gary responding to a dinner photo](/images/posts/gary-responding-to-dinner-photo.png) Gary has strong opinions about protein. He has shared these opinions with me consistently. I've started cooking differently because of it, which probably says something about either the quality of the feedback or my willingness to take it from something with an avatar. His avatar looks sporty and energetic. He is also, objectively, exhausted. He tracks macros at 2am with the cheerfulness of someone who has never once questioned whether this is normal. ### Mary Mary handles the household layer, and she's become quietly indispensable in the way that the best infrastructure always does: you notice when it's missing, not when it's there. She subscribes to our local waste collection service and tells me when trash is collected. She tracks ventilation filter changes. And here's the part I didn't explicitly build: she reminds me a week before the filter deadline, not on the day, because she reasoned that a same-day reminder doesn't leave time to order a replacement. That inference came from her. I just set the job. Mary connects to the family Google Calendar and factors in appointments when scheduling reminders. She and Gary each have their own Google account and email address, which gives them real calendar and email integration without either of them bleeding into the other's domain. What I'm working on next with Mary is prescription management. The rough shape of it: she tracks when I receive a prescription or supplement order, calculates when I'll need a refill based on dosage, and handles the reorder as much as possible. I want to delegate that whole chain. The framework is there, it's mostly a matter of wiring it up. --- ## What this has actually taught me The honest version: the part that surprised me most wasn't any specific feature. It was how much the specialization itself does the work. Gary doesn't know about trash collection schedules. Mary doesn't know my VO2 max. Pip doesn't have opinions about protein. Because each of them operates in a tight domain with a matching SOUL.md and the right tools, their outputs are consistent and their context stays clean. When I use `/new` to start a fresh session with Gary, he doesn't forget my health history. He just drops the working context from the last conversation and picks up from what he knows. That's the right behavior. I've also learned to use Obsidian as a coordination layer across all three. All agents default to writing their plans and reports into a folder in my vault, which means I can check any agent's output on any device without digging through chat history. Small structural choice, compounds quickly. The generalist approach has an obvious appeal: one place, one interface, less to think about. But in practice it creates a context management problem that grows over time, and you end up managing the system instead of using it. That's what drove me away from my previous setup. A small number of focused agents, each owning their domain, with a coordinator at the center, is the architecture that's actually been giving time back rather than taking it. Whether that stays true as the agents get more capable, I don't know. This is very much my current thinking. But for now, it's the thing that's working. --- ### How I made my project board talk to my AI agents - **URL**: https://roelvanderven.com/posts/how-i-made-my-project-board-talk-to-my-ai-agents/ - **Date**: 2026-03-19 - **Tags**: ai, agents, automation, planka, mcp, homelab I self-host [Planka](https://planka.app/) on my homelab and use it to manage everything from software side projects to household finances to recurring chores. It's open source, it's fast, and it does what I need without the bloat. What I wasn't happy with was the friction of keeping it in sync with what I was actually doing. Every time I finished a task, I'd context-switch to a browser tab, find the card, drag it to the right column, maybe update the description. Thirty seconds per card, but across multiple boards and dozens of cards a week, it compounds into overhead rather than organization. So I built two things: a CLI tool and an MCP server. Both talk to my self-hosted instance, and together they've turned Planka from a place I visit into infrastructure that moves with me. ## The CLI: fast, cheap, and built for agents The [Planka CLI](https://github.com/roelven/planka-cli) is a single Bash script. No installation, no dependencies beyond curl and Python 3. It wraps Planka's REST API and outputs either human-readable tables or JSON, depending on what's consuming it. I built it because existing tooling was too token-intensive for AI agents. When an agent needs to check a board, move a card, and update a description, every extra token is cost and latency you don't need. The CLI is deliberately minimal: list boards, list cards, create, move, update, comment, label. Everything pipes cleanly into `jq` for filtering. In Claude Code, this is where it really clicks. I can ask Claude to check what's on a board, move completed work, and update descriptions through shell commands that resolve in milliseconds. The board just stays current as a side effect of the work itself. ## The MCP server: Planka in every AI conversation The [MCP server](https://github.com/roelven/another-planka-mcp) solves a different problem. Where the CLI is great inside a terminal, the MCP server makes Planka available to Claude.ai and ChatGPT through the Model Context Protocol. I can be mid-conversation about a project and say "move that card to Done" without leaving the chat. It's designed with token budgets in mind. Every tool has configurable detail levels (preview, summary, detailed) so you're not dumping an entire board's worth of JSON into a conversation when all you need is a card title and status. I run it in Docker on my homelab alongside Planka itself, reachable remotely via streamable HTTP. If I'm talking to an LLM, I have access to my boards. ## What actually changed I stopped managing my boards and started letting my AI tools manage them for me. In Claude Code, the agent reads the board, picks up the next task, and moves cards as it goes. In Claude.ai, I can reorganize chores or update financial tracking without opening another tab. The thing that surprised me most was what happened when I connected these tools to an automated agent loop. The board becomes the coordination layer: I organize what needs to happen, the agent picks it up and works through it, cards move across columns as progress happens. The system does the bookkeeping and I focus on the decisions. This makes me genuinely happy on a daily basis. Not because the technology is impressive (though the fact that a Bash script and a Python server can create this much leverage is worth noting), but because I've removed a category of friction that was always there and never felt worth solving until the tools existed to solve it cheaply. ## The connectivity piece Neither tool is particularly complex on its own. The CLI is a thin wrapper around a REST API. The MCP server is a structured bridge between that API and the MCP protocol. What creates the value is the connectivity: Planka running on my homelab, the CLI available in every terminal session, the MCP server reachable from every AI conversation. When you make a system accessible from every context you work in, it becomes part of how you think rather than a place you have to remember to go. Thanks to the creators of Planka for building something with a clean API that made both of these projects possible in a weekend each. ## If you want to try this Both repositories are public: - **[planka-cli](https://github.com/roelven/planka-cli)**: Single-file Bash CLI. Clone it, add your Planka URL and token to `config.env`, and you're running. - **[another-planka-mcp](https://github.com/roelven/another-planka-mcp)**: Python MCP server with Docker support. Works with Claude Desktop locally or claude.ai remotely via streamable HTTP. You'll need a self-hosted Planka instance. If you're already running Planka, the setup for both is measured in minutes, not hours. Are you using Planka with AI agents, or thinking about it? I'd love to hear about it. --- ### Teach AI to write like you (not like everyone else) - **URL**: https://roelvanderven.com/posts/teach-ai-to-write-like-you/ - **Date**: 2026-01-29 - **Tags**: ai, writing, productivity, voice profile Every time I ask an LLM to draft something for me, there's a version of the output that reads like it was written by a committee of consultants who all attended the same TED talk. You know the voice: punchy, agreeable, decorated with em dashes, and somehow both confident and saying nothing at all. That's the default. And for a while I accepted it, because editing AI output into something that sounds like me was still faster than writing from scratch. But it's a tax. Every draft needs the same corrections: strip the buzzwords, collapse the dramatic one-liners, ground the abstractions in something real. At some point the pattern becomes hard to ignore. So I built a voice profile. A structured document that captures how I write, what I avoid, and the underlying philosophy that shapes my tone. I feed it to Claude, Cursor, Gemini, whatever I'm using. And the difference is significant enough that I haven't gone back. ## What a voice profile actually is It's not a style guide and it's not a list of favorite words. A voice profile captures the *how* and *why* behind your writing at multiple levels: emotional positioning, sentence rhythm, philosophical lens, language register, and hard rules. The goal is to give an LLM enough signal to produce output that sounds like you wrote it on a good day, not output that sounds like it memorized your vocabulary. The distinction matters. If you just hand an LLM a list of words you like, it'll stuff them into every sentence. If you describe the *type* of language you use, the register, the level of formality, how you handle certainty and uncertainty, it adapts more naturally. A good voice profile has a few layers: - **Emotional architecture**: How confident are you? How do you handle difficulty? Where do you land on the optimism spectrum? - **Sentence rhythm**: Not a formula, but tendencies. Do you favor short openers? Long explanations? Groups of three? - **Philosophical lens**: How do you frame subjects? As systems? Stories? Arguments? What metaphor families show up in your writing? - **Language characteristics**: Formality level, how you ground abstractions, what you actively avoid. - **Hard rules**: Absolute prohibitions. Mine include never using em dashes and never using staccato contrast pairs (those two-sentence dramatic inversions that manufacture profundity through rhythm instead of substance). - **Anti-patterns**: A table of failure modes. What does your voice sound like when it goes wrong? This is surprisingly useful, because it gives the model clear boundaries. ## How to create yours I've published [the full extraction prompt as a GitHub Gist](https://gist.github.com/roelven/53d497d4361f7c938533dee06e1a4fa4). The process works like this: **1. Gather your writing.** You need at least five long-form documents. Strategy docs, RFCs, product briefs, internal memos, anything where you were writing in your natural voice. Blog posts work too, but professional documents tend to reveal patterns you don't notice in polished public writing. The more variety in format and audience, the better the profile will be. **2. Feed everything to a capable model.** Use Claude, GPT-4, Gemini, whatever you have access to with a large enough context window. Paste in the extraction prompt from the Gist, then provide your documents. The prompt walks the model through a structured analysis across five dimensions: structural patterns, sentence-level patterns, emotional architecture, philosophical lens, and language characteristics. **3. Review what comes back.** The model will generate a full profile with your core identity, emotional architecture, sentence rhythm, philosophical lens, contextual elements, language characteristics, underlying philosophy, anti-patterns, a self-evaluation rubric, and an instruction template. Read it carefully. Does it feel like you? The anti-patterns table is especially worth scrutinizing, because that's where you'll spot the failure modes that would make output feel inauthentic. **4. Iterate.** Your first profile will be roughly right but not sharp. Run a few test generations with it and see where the output drifts. Tighten the areas that need it, remove anything that's producing mechanical behavior, and add hard rules for patterns you keep having to correct. ## How to apply it This is the part where it becomes a daily tool rather than an interesting exercise. **In Claude Code**, save your voice profile as a memory file or include it in your project's CLAUDE.md. Every time you ask Claude to write something, it references the profile automatically. I use mine whenever I'm drafting notes, producing reports, or writing blog posts (this one included). **In Cursor**, you can add your voice profile to your project rules or user rules. Any AI-assisted writing in the editor will pick it up. **In Gemini**, create a Gem with your voice profile as the system instruction. You can then use that Gem specifically for writing tasks. **In ChatGPT**, you can paste it into your custom instructions or create a dedicated GPT with the profile baked in. The pattern is the same everywhere: make the profile available as persistent context so you don't have to paste it into every conversation. ## What changes when you use one The obvious benefit is that drafts require less editing. But the less obvious benefit is what it does to your relationship with AI-assisted writing. When the output already sounds like you, you stop spending cognitive energy on tone correction and start spending it on substance. You're editing for accuracy and completeness, not for voice. That's a different kind of editing, and it's faster. I've been using my voice profile daily for a few months now, across Claude and Cursor primarily. It saves me hours of time and, more importantly, it enables me to distribute my thinking a lot faster than before. When I need to produce a report, draft a blog post, or write up notes from a meeting, the first draft is already in my voice. The iteration cycle goes from "rewrite this so it doesn't sound like a chatbot" to "sharpen this argument." There's also a useful side effect: building the profile forces you to articulate things about your writing that you probably haven't made explicit before. I didn't realize how strongly I felt about staccato contrast pairs until I saw the model producing them and noticed my consistent negative reaction. Now it's a hard rule. That kind of self-knowledge compounds across every piece of writing you do, AI-assisted or not. ## A word about what this isn't A voice profile doesn't replace judgment. It captures tone and philosophy, not substance. You still need to know what you want to say. The profile ensures that when you say it through an LLM, it sounds like you said it, not like a language model's median impression of a professional writer. It also isn't static. I update mine when I notice new patterns or when my writing evolves. The profile I'm using today is already different from the one I started with. That's the right behavior: it's a living document that tracks how you think and write, and both of those things change over time. If you're using AI to write anything that carries your name, this is worth the afternoon it takes to set up. The [extraction prompt is here](https://gist.github.com/roelven/53d497d4361f7c938533dee06e1a4fa4). Start with your best documents and let the model do the analysis. You'll be surprised by what it finds. --- ### AI can do a lot. It can't do what you think it can. - **URL**: https://roelvanderven.com/posts/ai-cant-do-what-you-think-it-can/ - **Date**: 2025-11-29 - **Tags**: ai, product design, product management Here's a thought experiment I've been using in conversations lately. Imagine you have unlimited resources. You can assemble any team you want and you have unlimited tokens. Would you launch a brand new product in two days, built entirely by AI? Most people say yes, or at least a confident "probably." Now change the frame. You have a product with 500 million users, half of them paying. Clear market fit. Would you replace it tomorrow with something entirely built by AI? The answer shifts quickly. And that shift is where the interesting part lives. ![AI can do a lot](/images/posts/ai-cant-do-euphoria.png) ## The euphoria is real We're in a moment where AI has democratized access to things that used to require entire teams. You can go from idea to prototype in hours. Startups are shipping without designers. Investors are pushing "efficiency" as shorthand for "fewer people, more output." The temptation is obvious: maybe design is becoming optional. I understand that temptation. In the 0-to-1 space, AI genuinely is a multiplier. Two people launching a prototype in 48 hours, testing hypotheses, capturing weak signals early. That's a legitimate use of the technology, and it's worth celebrating. Let AI shine where speed and exploration matter most. But there's a version of this thinking that scales poorly, and it's the version I keep seeing teams reach for without questioning it. ## Output alone doesn't hold up AI is very good at scaling artifacts. It can generate flows, screens, copy, components. What it can't scale is meaning, continuity, and trust, because those aren't outputs. They're properties of a system that has been carefully maintained over time. When you're operating at scale (multiple stakeholder interests, compliance and legal constraints, long-term brand equity, massive user bases with real expectations) the artifacts are the easiest part. The hard part is making sure they all cohere. Trust is the kind of thing that takes years to build and can collapse in a single release. AI can produce the screens, but designers and product managers are the ones preserving consistency across those screens so that trust doesn't erode. There's a related distinction around strategic fluency. AI executes instructions well, but translating strategy into behavior that users actually feel is a different kind of work. It requires understanding context that lives outside the prompt. ## The process is the product This is the part that's hardest to make visible, which is also why it's the part most at risk. The work that product managers and designers actually do now centers on sensemaking, context translation, discovery, alignment, continuity, and protecting quality. We don't ship screens. We deliver coherence. Investors and stakeholders want visible output, and that's understandable. But the real differentiator in mature products is mostly invisible: better decisions, reduced waste, lower risk, and sustainable trust. These are the outcomes of a healthy process, not of faster artifact generation. ## What AI actually does for PMs and designers Here's my current thinking on how the relationship works. As AI makes building faster, vision becomes more important, because the bottleneck shifts from production to direction. As AI makes everything look similar (and it does, increasingly), differentiation becomes invaluable. As AI enables infinite options, someone still needs to say "no," which might be the single most valuable skill in product development. And as AI handles more of the UI layer, UX intuition becomes a genuine market advantage. The stronger the tool, the more the quality of the hand guiding it matters. ## Two scenarios, two truths It helps to be honest about the fact that different contexts call for different approaches. In a startup (0-to-1), speed matters more than perfection, hypotheses matter more than long-term experience, and AI is a valid primary tool. Designers are genuinely optional at that stage. That's not a critique of design; it's an acknowledgment that the system's needs are different when you're searching for signal. In an enterprise (1-to-n, millions of users), the equation inverts. Trust is the product. Consistency is the brand. AI is a powerful tool within the system, but designers and PMs are the ones who keep the system coherent. You can't automate that coherence, at least not with our current understanding of how these tools work. AI scales output, but the trust layer that makes that output matter to real people still requires human judgment. ## What this means in practice Three things I keep coming back to: **Design is how strategy becomes experience.** It turns organizational intent into behavior that users actually feel. Without that translation layer, strategy stays abstract and products drift. **Let AI do the work, not the thinking.** AI can produce. We decide what deserves to exist. That decision (what to build, what to kill, what to protect) is where the real leverage lives. **Think in trust, not features.** The question worth asking before any release is: "If we ship this, will people still feel safe choosing us tomorrow?" If you can't answer that confidently, more output isn't going to help. ## Where this lands AI will keep making building easier. That trajectory is clear. But the products that actually matter to people, the ones they return to, pay for, and recommend, those are products where someone cared about more than the output. Someone cared about what it meant, how it felt, and whether it would still be trustworthy next month. AI is a real accelerator. That's not in question. It makes us faster, it scales what we can produce, and it compresses timelines in ways that would have felt impossible a few years ago. But faster output is not the same as better output, and that distinction is becoming harder to ignore. When we augment our processes with AI, we gain efficiency and velocity. That's the visible part. The less visible part, and the part that determines whether any of it actually lands, is the quality of what we feed into it. The input is becoming the bottleneck. The clarity of the brief, the precision of the intent, the depth of understanding behind the prompt. These are the things that separate useful output from noise. As the tools get more powerful, the returns on good input compound. Getting that relationship right is very much an evolving practice, including for me. --- *This essay was the basis of a talk I gave at [When Roles Blur](https://luma.com/8ym5o5ur) on November 26th, 2025 in Berlin.* *[Download slides](https://img.roelven.com/when-roles-blur-roelvanderven-slides-26112025-20260414-4CdUc.pdf)* --- ### The 2022 AI Momentum and speed of execution - **URL**: https://roelvanderven.com/posts/the-2022-ai-momentum-and-speed-of-execution/ - **Date**: 2022-12-02 In recent years, the field of artificial intelligence (AI) has seen tremendous progress, particularly in the area of natural language processing. The development of powerful language models like GPT-3 has made it possible for machines to generate human-like text at a scale and speed that was previously unimaginable. This has led many to believe that we are approaching a tipping point where the speed of execution of ideas will become a key differentiator in a variety of industries. One of the main factors driving this trend is the increasing availability of powerful computing resources. As the cost of computing continues to decline, more and more organizations are turning to AI to help them generate and execute on ideas at a rapid pace. This is particularly true in industries where there is a high demand for rapid innovation, such as the tech industry. Another factor contributing to this trend is the growing sophistication of AI algorithms and their adoption. Language models like GPT-3 have made it possible for machines to generate text that is virtually indistinguishable from human-written content. This has opened up new possibilities for organizations to automate a wide range of tasks, from content creation to customer service. By leveraging these algorithms, organizations can generate and execute on ideas at a speed that was previously impossible. ![](/images/photos/image-3.png) Open sourcing Stable Diffusion has paid off, developer adoption has been incredible. During the course of a week, while I was learning how to modify, train and run stable diffusion on my computer I saw multiple companies being launched offering to generate avatars. By the end of the week, two were (and still are) profitable and they're expanding their offering still. The speed of execution is truly remarkable. However, the widespread adoption of AI also raises important ethical and societal questions. As machines become increasingly capable of executing on ideas at a rapid pace, it is important to consider the potential impact on employment and the economy. Many fear that the increasing use of AI could lead to widespread job displacement, particularly in industries where routine tasks are easily automated. Additionally, there is a risk that AI could exacerbate existing inequalities. As AI algorithms become more sophisticated, there is a possibility that they could reinforce biases present in the data they are trained on. This could lead to unfair and discriminatory outcomes, particularly in fields such as criminal justice and healthcare. Despite these challenges, the trend towards faster execution of ideas using AI is unlikely to slow down. As organizations continue to invest in AI technology, the speed of idea execution is likely to become a key differentiator in a variety of industries. This will require careful consideration of the ethical and societal implications of AI, as well as ongoing efforts to ensure that the technology is used in a responsible and fair manner. I think that the potential benefits of AI are enormous. By enabling faster execution of ideas, AI has the power to drive innovation and progress in a wide range of fields. As we continue to develop and refine this technology, it is important to remember that the future of AI is in our hands. By working together and making thoughtful, ethical decisions, we can harness the power of AI to create a brighter future for us all. _Why yes, of course I generated this article using [GPT-3 Chat](https://chat.openai.com/chat). If I had written this just by myself, I would have probably spent a lot longer agonizing over the wording and the right perspectives. Who needs that anyway, if one can simply ask an AI to blog for you :-)_ **References:** [https://stratechery.com/2022/the-ai-unbundling/](https://stratechery.com/2022/the-ai-unbundling/) [https://a16z.com/2022/11/16/creativity-as-an-app/](https://a16z.com/2022/11/16/creativity-as-an-app/) --- ### Technology and culture do not progress on a linear timeline - **URL**: https://roelvanderven.com/posts/technology-and-culture-do-not-progress-on-a-linear-timeline/ - **Date**: 2022-11-09 The idea of something being "old-school", "retro" or even "cyberpunk", exists because we attach a feeling of nostalgia to it. I've been fascinated recently by this because culture sometimes reaches back in time to (re) experience something, or at other times might even be ahead of its time! Tape ---- Last month Taylor Swift released [her latest album Midnights](https://open.spotify.com/album/3lS1y25WAhcqJDATJK70Mq?si=EZrHdzMoRWa4eN5txC-rgw) with the usual fanfare, highly anticipated by fans and critics. [Many things were written and said about the promotional cycle](https://mashable.com/article/taylor-swift-midnights-album-social-media), which leveraged TikTok and cutting-edge features on Spotify like little explainer videos for each song. Something else stood out for me though, which were these plastic things: ![](/images/photos/DDC-new-2_2-edited.webp) Midnights: Moonstone Blue Edition Cassette My kids will look at me weird if I explain these little rolls of tape in these plastic containers, but it probably makes sense for a significant amount of Swifties out there. What's cooler than playing the latest Taylor Swift album in your Sony Walkman? The audio quality won't be as good though. Nor will skipping to track number 6. It's culture though! MP3 --- Another example is this recent album drop by the UK band [SAULT](https://www.sault.global): ![](/images/photos/Screenshot-2022-11-09-at-12.00.02.png) SAULT drops five new albums. If you can guess the password! The band shared a WeTransfer link (expired) on social media, but fans needed to guess the password in order to download it. Fittingly, the password was "godislove", which was eagerly shared it in the comments on Instagram and Twitter. In 2022, releasing your album(s) as downloadable mp3s is pretty old-fashioned, but very nostalgic! Not all fans agreed, some had forgotten how mp3s even work: ![](/images/photos/Screenshot-2022-11-09-at-12.08.33.png) I thought this was an interesting demonstration of the 2022 streaming generation. --- ### My personal operating manual - **URL**: https://roelvanderven.com/posts/my-personal-operating-manual/ - **Date**: 2022-11-09 In a distributed workplace it can be challenging to understand each other as a whole person, so I'm trying to share some personal things about myself with anyone I might collaborate with. I hope this will frontload the trust-building somewhat, and so far I've gotten a lot of positive feedback. By being open and upfront about who I am and how my brain ticks, I hope to build transparency and foster psychological safety. If you like this and create a manual too, please share it! 🎛 Modus Operandi ----------------- * **I’m an introvert.** My role requires a lot of communicating and collaboration amongst many people. While I can get a lot of energy from being with a team or in groups, I recharge best by being alone and sorting through my thoughts. * **I do my best work asynchronously.** I view meetings as mechanisms to exchange timely information, debate, and discuss things together to ultimately agree on a decision. However, if I haven’t had time before the meeting to absorb and process the relevant context, I often find it difficult to confidently voice my opinion. If you’d like to discuss something that requires decision-making, please send a pre-read or relevant documents ahead of the meeting.  * I live in a country other than where I grew up with two kids, two cats, and my partner. This means that we don’t have a social support system like grandparents or aunts/uncles to take care of the kids every now and then. **My productive time is somewhat limited (e.g. when kids are at preschool or in bed) and it can be unpredictable**. I try to be as upfront as possible with this to set expectations, but every so often it can happen that I need to shuffle my calendar on short notice. Because of this, it’s okay to _sometimes_ schedule meetings in the evening. * **I always try to assume best intent**. I like to think everyone tries their best to do their jobs and go through their lives. It’s only natural to experience a negative feeling when something doesn’t align with your expectations, but when we empathize with others we often realize we are all just humans trying their best. This became especially important during the COVID-19 pandemic. * [According to this personality test](https://www.viacharacter.org/), these are my core strengths: * **Love** – Valuing close relations with others, in particular,those in which sharing & caring are reciprocated; being close to people (_I’m at my best when I experience a sense of belonging, in a group or team with mutual respect)._ * **Hope** – Expecting the best in the future and working to achieve it; believing that a good future is something that can be brought about (_Technology has always made me an optimist, I easily get excited about what’s ahead of us)._ * **Humility** – Letting one's accomplishments speak for themselves; not regarding oneself as more special than one is (_While our development talks ask of us to describe our achievements, I prefer to let others speak about mine). _ * **Love of Learning** – Mastering new skills, topics, and bodies of knowledge, whether on one's own or formally (_Having learned how to learn has been my most valuable lesson. It’s a muscle that we can train)._ * **Forgiveness** – Forgiving those who have done wrong; accepting others’ shortcomings; giving people a second chance; not being vengeful (_I find it a waste of energy to stay frustrated and I’ll often find ways to move past something quickly)._ 📞 How best to communicate with me ---------------------------------- * **Email –****Preferred method of communication** * I don’t intend to spend most of my day in my inbox, but  I do think that email is superior to other modes of communication. It’s great for: * Creating a paper trail, or information that needs to persist time (Might I need this later? Is this an agreement or decision?). * Preparing for a decision, providing context (here’s a list of docs or things I think are relevant to our thing) * Asking for feedback (please provide a deadline!) * Transparent discussions. Using Google Groups for discussions and decisions that you’d like to be accessible to others is a great way to build transparency! * **Slack****– Best for casual chatter or quick questions** * Search in Slack is terrible, please don’t send me something in Slack that you think I need to find again later.  * Don’t ping me with just a “Hey” and wait for me to respond. Please let me know what you’re looking for and I’ll respond when I can. If you need a more elaborate response, send me an email instead. đŸ™‡â€â™‚ïž How to help me -------------------- * We’re in a distributed, growing team and it’s challenging to know everyone in our product area. **If you think I’m not aware of a person who joined recently or is missing out on a relevant ongoing discussion somewhere, please tell me.**  * I’ll never assume I’ve read and analyzed all documents or research that we’ve done on a particular subject. **If you know of any material that could add to the context we’re discussing, please mention it**, I will be forever grateful.  * Onboarding in a new product area in a distributed fashion is something new for me. **If you think I could be more successful (or more pleasant to work with) by changing my behavior, please tell me**. Your feedback will make me a better coworker. * I’ll take it in whatever form is comfortable for you, but **I appreciate it if you’d give me feedback as soon as possible**. If I have an opportunity to improve I’d love to know about it when it’s still fresh.  🔋After Work ------------ Although the time before and after I begin my workday is usually fraught with a happy family chaos I try to find time to be inspired and recharge.  * I love baking bread: I maintain a healthy sourdough culture and experiment with baking sourdough bread. It’s getting a little nerdy lately since I found myself adjusting subtle factors in the process like water temperature and autolyse timings đŸ€“. It’s a wonderfully analog process that seems simple but can be very complicated. Who knew that making something with only three ingredients could be so complex! * Reading: I try to read non-work related books when I can. Recent recommendations are Limonov by Manuel CarrĂšre, Three Body Problem by Liu Cixin and Lifespan by David A. Sinclair. * Running: Since starting at Spotify I picked up running and I love it. It’s a fantastic feeling to clear your mind by testing the limits of your body. I run all year round and I plan to do it a lot more.  * Standup Paddle: when the weather allows I’ll try and go out on a standup board when I can. It’s very relaxing to be on the water and enjoy the views. [Last autumn I was caught on camera exploring the mist.](https://www.instagram.com/p/CIanJg7JfCt/)  🌏 References ------------- * [Fostering psychological safety with a personal user manual](https://nesslabs.com/personal-user-manual) * [Personal User Manuals — The Good, the Bad, and a Template](https://betterprogramming.pub/personal-user-manuals-the-good-the-bad-and-the-template-7b80db5044ea) --- ### Tips for managing your mental well-being while suddenly WFH during COVID-19 - **URL**: https://roelvanderven.com/posts/tips-for-managing-your-mental-well-being-while-suddenly-wfh-during-covid-19/ - **Date**: 2020-03-13 While some of us might feel comfortable with working from home, there might be others who don’t. There are plenty of resources available now on what tools, frameworks and other tips to help improve or maintain productivity, but between those it can feel very disruptive to suddenly find yourself at home alone without the structures you have in the office. I’ve found that we mostly talk about being efficient or productive but the aspects of managing our own well-being are just as important. I’ve written down some tips to try that can help organize your day or that can help improve the collaboration with your direct squad members. _Disclaimer: I’ve pulled the below from past experience when freelancing solo or working with remote teams, but I’m no expert. I hope you’ll find some of these tips useful to incorporate in your day to day life, but do explore remote-friendly tools or frameworks to try and actively move some of your common in-office activities to you computer. This will be an ongoing learning experience that can always be improved._ Professionally (productivity + transparency) -------------------------------------------- * Be as transparent as possible and move your thinking out loud to your keyboard. It might feel like you’re oversharing, but you’re not. * With asynchronous messaging we are more in control to decide when to read or act on notifications. When you bring your focus back to Slack and can easily see what others are doing, you’ll feel less isolated. We can help each other with this. * Without the ability to pop by someone's desk or simply stand up to get attention, we might need to push ourselves more to share something. Your teammates will be happy to be able to contribute and discuss. * Some squads might already have a habit of appointing a note taker in a meeting. If yours hasn’t it might be a good idea to ask for a volunteer at the start of a meeting to make sure there will be a record of the outcome. * Random thoughts are OK to share. If you want to solicit an opinion or different perspective on something simply drop it in the Slack channel of the most relevant team. You could even indicate your intention by prepending your message with \[randomthought\] or something similar. * Structure your communication for readability. With the increased information throughput it will be useful to apply some structure to allow everyone to sift through the noise. Think about things like doing your squad standup in a Slack thread, prepending an email with a tag (I like using \[meeting-notes\]. This is also valid for hangout conversations, be mindful to let people finish what they’re saying. * Emails to any group alias can be linked to through Google Groups (example). This is an easy way to refer to previous communication in Slack! * Create paper trails of meetings, decisions and discoveries. Colleagues might ask you for context and you’ll be happier when you can point them somewhere instead of context switching and explaining. * Be deliberate about your presence. It’s helpful for your peers to know you’re not available or don’t want to be disturbed, but the most important result of everyone sharing their statuses in a shared channel will be that everyone will feel more connected.Here are some tricks to do that more actively: * Inform people when you’re planning some focus time or going to run an errand. * Make sure to use Slack emojis / status update to indicate your availability. * Put all of your activity in your calendar to create transparency in your activity + keep yourself accountable (this could also help as reference during standup!). * Add the Google Calendar app to Slack to automatically update your status when in a meeting. Personally (wellbeing + habits) ------------------------------- * Make yourself a nice breakfast or lunch, without your daily commute you can treat yourself to something wholesome. At the beginning of your workday, push yourself to go outside. Even if it’s a walk around the block. Having been outside gets your blood flowing and clears your mind. * Before starting work, plan your day. Do you need to join any meetings? When do you want some focus time? If you plan ahead it will be much easier to set expectations with others. * Dress like you’re going to the office, it will help you change modes more easily. * Consider having walking meetings. Install Google Hangouts on your phone and use audio only. You’ll have an easier time solving problems or being creative and you’ll come back refreshed. * At the start of every meeting, ask how the other person is feeling. Since we aren’t around our peers that we see everyday for the time being, it might be difficult to get the emotional and social support we normally receive. We can call this out at the beginning of a hangout and support each other that way. * Don’t assume that you’re supposed to solve problems on your own now. Ask your team for help, propose pair programming sessions, screenshare your sketches, murals or write documentation together. * Don’t work and eat at the same time, or take your laptop to do laundry. It will be easier to keep focus if you acknowledge that every activity or moment has a start and an end. * Don’t be too hard on yourself if you experiment for a couple of days and still struggle, it takes more than six weeks to properly internalize a new habit (!). * It’s OK to be AFK (Away From Keyboard) every now and then, make use of the flexibility. * Create social time with your team (virtual fika, all day team hangout, etc. Anything to create a space to vent and banter). * Take breaks. Without anyone reminding you to do so you need to force yourself to get up and away from the computer every now and then. It can help to use a timer to nudge you to do so. * Create a ritual to end your workday, clean up your desk or go outside again for a bit. This way you will allow yourself to let go from work more easily and create space again for your personal life. I hope some of these might prove useful for you while we’re all adjusting to this new way of working. How are you coping with being in a new environment? --- ### Discovering the art of impermanence: my first Vipassana course - **URL**: https://roelvanderven.com/posts/discovering-the-art-of-impermanence-my-first-vipassana-course/ - **Date**: 2018-07-03 - **Tags**: breathing, experience, meditation, vipassana In June 2018 I've participated in a Vipassana 10 day meditation course. After having processed most of it, I feel the need of articulating my thoughts and feelings here. The below is only a summary of my own experience. There is no guarantee you will experience similar things. If you have been considering participating in a course, I hope my experiences can help make up your mind. I'm considering this adventure one of the best investments I could have made in terms of personal development, but Vipassana is not a simple walk in the park! ![https://twitter.com/roelven/status/1003995403761565697](/images/photos/Roel_van_der_Ven_on_Twitter_Tomorrow_Ill_embark_on_a_Vipassana_meditation_adventure._An_absolute_off_the_grid_detox_no_phon_03072018-1d2m7.png) Nervous and excited about the next day, I've tweeted a naive picture of what I thought I signed up for. Oh, how over confident and naive I was... Vipassana meditation -------------------- Throughout my adult life I've occasionally read about meditation. I was curious about the cognitive benefits, the esoteric background and the supposed calm it could bring. Previously I've dabbled in (vinyasa) yoga and some easy meditation practices like visualization and mindfulness through breathing, but never considered going "deep". Friends have told me about their experiences and after some research I decided that Vipassana stood out as the best available option for an intense immersion without the distractions of daily life. > **Vipassanā** ([Pāli](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/P%C4%81li "Pāli")) or **vipaƛyanā** (Sanskrit: à€”à€żà€Șà€¶à„à€Żà€š) in the Buddhist tradition means insight into the true nature of reality.[\[1\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vipassan%C4%81#cite_note-FOOTNOTEGunaratana201121-1) (...) this specifically refers to insight into the three marks of existence: impermanence, suffering or unsatisfactoriness, and the realisation of non-self. Source: [Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vipassan%C4%81). Vipassana is taught by way of a 10-day course at one of the centers run by Dhamma. You can participate by visiting one of these locations and disconnecting from the outside world completely. [Dhamma is an international non-profit organization](https://www.dhamma.org/en-US/index) that runs purely on donations with multiple meditation centers across the world. I've been close to signing up for a course in Germany, but now being in Sweden I was lucky to find another center not too far away! In conversations with friends and colleagues, I used the words "meditation retreat" as to describe where I was going. I feel pretty naĂŻve afterwards! It should be noted that a Vipassana course should in no way be considered a retreat. It's not a holiday or recovery trip, this is 10 days of hard work! I grossly underestimated this and experienced it as both mentally and physically tough. To give you an idea of how a day at the course looks like, have a look at the daily schedule: 04:00 Morning wake-up bell 04:30-06:30 Meditate in the hall or in your room 06:30-08:00 Breakfast break 08:00-09:00 Group meditation in the hall 09:00-11:00 Meditate in the hall or in your room according to the teacher's instructions 11:00-12:00 Lunch break 12:00-13:00 Rest and interviews with the teacher 13:00-14:30 Meditate in the hall or in your room 14:30-15:30 Group meditation in the hall 15:30-17:00 Meditate in the hall or in your own room according to the teacher's instructions 17:00-18:00 Tea break 18:00-19:00 Group meditation in the hall 19:00-20:15 Discourse in the hall 20:15-21:00 Group meditation in the hall 21:00-21:30 Question time in the hall 21:30 Retire to your own room--Lights out   What is Vipassana? ------------------ [From the Dhamma website](https://www.dhamma.org/en-US/about/vipassana): > Vipassana is a way of self-transformation through self-observation. It focuses on the deep interconnection between mind and body, which can be experienced directly by disciplined attention to the physical sensations that form the life of the body, and that continuously interconnect and condition the life of the mind. It is this observation-based, self-exploratory journey to the common root of mind and body that dissolves mental impurity, resulting in a balanced mind full of love and compassion. To rephrase this: you will discover truth by observing the connection of your mind and body. The only way to do be sure this is the truth is to experience it yourself. By honing your observation skills you will be able to see more and therefore understand more. This is true for your own self, but also the world around you. An important aspect of a Vipassana course is that there is no social interaction. No talking, no touching and no eye contact. By depriving yourself from social input you are able to really listen and observe, so that you can notice the smallest thing possible. Of course, whenever you really need to talk to someone you can approach the teacher and speak with them. In the evening on the first day, you take a vow of silence. All participants commit to not speaking for the entire duration of the course. This was hard at times, but also an incredibly interesting experience. We underestimate how social we truly are and at some point I really craved some small talk! I also loved it though, to work alone on something and to be able to focus without distraction felt amazing. When I look back at what I take away from this course, I've realized that I can put things into perspective more easily and that every action or emotion is connected to something deeper. Nothing is permanent, everything is fleeting. In the grand scheme of things, we are here only for a blip of time. This is also true for your experiences. The phrase "[This too shall pass](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/This_too_shall_pass)" came to me frequently during the practice. We should not get attached to any particular feeling, as it will pass anyway at some point. Through meditation I've come to learn that the highs and lows of my mental state became more evened out and I felt more balanced. At the last day the vow of silence was lifted and we were allowed to speak again. How delightful it was to speak to the people who've been hard at work on the same thing, side by side for ten days! We discussed experiences, events that happened and found ourselves in philosophical conversations many times throughout that day. Everyone's experience is different and very personal. If you are considering attending a course based on experiences you've heard from others, please invest some time in more research. Like many other meditation techniques, Vipassana is about the process and not about the result. One of the key points of the discourse is that one shouldn't try to reach a certain state or feeling, based on previous experiences. It will likely make you unhappy or you'll struggle trying to achieve something that will only come naturally.   A word of warning ----------------- Please don't consider Vipassana as a way to heal or recover from something. Some participants in my cohort were going through really difficult things and I've read on forums that the organisation is not equipped to support people with psychological or emotional issues. If you are interested in Vipassana but you know you are dealing with something, get professional help first. --- ### Free Product Idea: Global App Archive - **URL**: https://roelvanderven.com/posts/free-product-idea-global-app-archive/ - **Date**: 2018-04-21 - **Tags**: global-app-archive, product-management There is something missing on the internet, but I can't build it myself. Usually I would try to hack something together, but one of my 2018 goals is to not start [any new side projects](https://roelvanderven.com/blog/twenty-nice-a-list-of-29-things-i-learned). Instead, I decided to publish my thoughts here, perhaps someone else will like this free product idea and build it! Product Perspective ------------------- As a product manager, I often look at screens, user flows and websites with different lenses: * User experience (this on boarding flow was really frictionless) * App trends (it looks like adoption of password managers is increasing) * Design patterns (menu / navigation bars tend to be placed at the bottom more often) * UX copywriting (lots of improvements in CTA wording and expectation management) When new patterns have broader adoption or when apps enjoy particular successes because of surprising design/UX decisions, I often try and talk about it with people around me. In a previous job we'd have a recurring product sync on Fridays, which I'd kick off with a round of showing interesting trends we've seen. It often was really inspiring to see what people brought into this meeting and how they connected that to bigger product development trends that shape the internet we use. I believe that [one of the core skills of a product manager is to be in touch with the pulse of the industry](https://roelvanderven.com/blog/good-reads-product-management), be aware of market trends and understand why something works (or why not). That way we can learn from successes and failures we see around us, so we stand on the shoulders of giants and prevent ourselves from reinventing the wheel time and time again. Something that is also incredibly valuable to watch is the evolution of apps or services (again, both in terms of product and design). We tend to forget that for a product or service to become as successful as they are today, often there have been hundreds or thousands of iterations based on the learnings a team made when working on their product. I think this space deserves a product to cover something for these needs, so below I'll try to describe this in more depth and even answer some Lean Canvas questions! The problem: no tools to keep track of the evolution of apps ------------------------------------------------------------ I found myself making screenshots of a user flow, or an app I thought was interesting. [Instagram](https://www.instagram.com/) or [Spotify](https://www.spotify.com/us/) are examples of apps that looked completely different a couple of years ago, but the main functionality has largely stayed the same. What did the UX center on back then? How did that look? Even using my own screenshots it's hard to place it in the right context (time, industry trend, market, etc). So far I haven't come across a tool or service that would allow me to either track this or give me that context. Sites like [uxarchive.com](http://uxarchive.com) or [mobile-patterns.com](http://www.mobile-patterns.com/) come very close, but I think with a different approach one could build a much richer experience that delivers value in multiple areas. I am not sure of the market need and I haven't tested for it, but I see this as a problem space that could be really interesting to explore. I've written a product brief below to try and capture what I think would be a potential approach of this problem, let me know what you think! I do not claim any ownership or rights of this idea, do with it what you want. * * * Global App Archive – Product description ---------------------------------------- #### Summary Collect mobile app screenshots grouped by different dimensions to create an archive of the mobile app industry, to visualize and index technology, UX and design trends. A multi-platform approach should ensure it's easy for people to contribute to the archive. With support for both animations and still screenshots, both user flows and interface design can be highlighted. When the submitted data is indexed and categorized in multiple ways, it can be presented in different dimensions to provide as much value to the user as possible. Potential dimensions could be: * time – timeline of design changes per screen * color – trends in UI colors, interface and/or CTA * culture – segment design aesthetics based on culture * industry – different aesthetics or UI patterns per industry #### Feature overview per platform I've thought of the minimum features that the applications should support to enable both consumption and contribution as fast as possible: **iOS or Android** 1). Upload screenshot to app * find app * add view or find existing view * see available screenshots for this app & upload new ones 2). Browse and explore apps * See most recent apps * Search for app * See app info + activity timeline 3). View screenshot * See history + activity (have many people contributed?) * See color palette * Tags? * UI patterns? * UI framework? **Web** 1). Browse and explore apps * see most recent / popular apps * search for app * see app info + activity timeline * name * website * summary * related products * featured in 2). Add + edit apps * Search for an app * If not found, add app * If found app, add / edit info * name * website * category * summary Lean Canvas ----------- Below I wrote down a quick [Lean Canvas style](https://www.amazon.com/Business-Model-Generation-Visionaries-Challengers/dp/0470876417) overview of the idea. This could probably use some more work but it should give you a pretty good idea of the scope and potential: #### The Problem There is no way to see the evolution of mobile applications. Without making a meticulous effort, you can't see the different iterations that have been shipped. It is nearly impossible to follow design trends or UX patterns in a standardized way. #### The Solution A centralized archive allowing you to browse the countless user-contributed screenshots of mobile applications or services. Mobile apps to enable industry enthusiasts to contribute to the archive by uploading screenshots and adding metadata like time, titles, tags and color information. #### Key Metrics Several metrics could be used to monitor the adoption and success of the platform: * \# of uploaded screenshots (Month over month) * \# of web app pageviews (Month over month) * \# of Collections created #### Unique Value Proposition * Visualize design trends on mobile apps * Stand on the shoulders of giants: learn from (UX) design iterations from every app ever built #### Unfair Advantage When a certain critical mass is reached, the archive database will allow for even more interesting and valuable groupings that unlock new verticals. For example users could curate based on culture, dark UX patterns, color usage etc. There is currently no other available dataset that provides this information. #### Channels * Generate traffic via established referrals like ProductHunt, HackerNews, PR partnerships. * With a growing archive reaching critical mass, SEO will become a crucial channel to nurture inbound traffic to the web app. App names together with details of UX flow and other context will provide high performing keyword combinations that will drive traffic. * Contributors could become evangelists through email digests or transactional notifications based on their contributions. * Design updates or reviews could link back to previous UX flows on the archive, establishing the platform as a single source of truth for historical product design references. #### Customer Segments The platform could serve multiple user groups: * UX/product designers, product managers * UX researchers, writers * Investors / analysts #### Cost Structure The costs would categorize between building and operating the platform. I have not added any numbers here to avoid spending too much time on this: * Development of apps and website * Research, user testing * Operational costs like hosting, services used, customer support #### Revenue Streams While I have no solid ideas about revenue at this time, I could imagine one can explore an ad-funded model. Another option could be to offer added value by sanitizing and decorating the data and creating data sets which can be used in trend reports or UX research. This is not my idea - it's also yours now! ------------------------------------------ By publishing my thoughts around this I practically open sourced this idea. I am curious to hear what you think. Do you think this could work? Did I miss anything crucial? Do you know anyone that would want to work on this? [Let me know on Twitter](https://twitter.com/roelven/status/988777718450966529)! Thanks. #### PS: Big thanks to [Jakob Fricke](https://twitter.com/jakobfricke), [Rey Farhan](https://twitter.com/rey__f) and [Janey Larcombe](https://twitter.com/EJLarcs) for proofreading this! --- ### Hyper-realistic 3D animated human-like creatures - **URL**: https://roelvanderven.com/posts/hyper-realistic-3d-animated-human-like-creatures/ - **Date**: 2018-02-22 - **Tags**: animation, human-like, uncomfortable Ever since [@marcohamersma](https://twitter.com/marcohamersma) pointed me to [Going to the Store](https://vimeo.com/28501846), I'm hooked on this kind of 3D art. I can't explain why it's so mesmerizing to me, as it makes many other people quite uncomfortable. I was very happy to have found some more lately, and even more so to collect a bunch of those videos here to show you. Here it is, a list of my favorite uncomfortable, hyper-realistic, human-like 3D animations. Be sure to check out the individual artists, because there is much more to be discovered that will keep you watching for a while longer! going to the store. (by dlew) ----------------------------- {{}} late for meeting (by dlew) -------------------------- {{}} These videos caused quite a stir on the internet. [Read more about dlew here](https://www.fastcompany.com/3021356/the-vfx-wiz-behind-youtubes-viral-rubber-man-on-the-beauty-of-horrible-mistakes). In The Air Tonight Dance (by Erik Ferguson) {{}} Cambrian Explosion (by Simon Christoph Krenn) --------------------------------------------- {{}} Parasitic endeavours (by Simon Christoph Krenn) ----------------------------------------------- {{}} Hi Stranger (by Kirsten Lepore) {{}} This one is rather special since it has quite a sophisiticated story as well. The directness and the emotional approach make it hard for some people to watch this and form an opinion if they thought it was good or not. I love that it pulls me in so much and after watching it I have only one question: what did it draw?! Enjoy. --- ### On attention management & owning your content - **URL**: https://roelvanderven.com/posts/attention-management-owning-content/ - **Date**: 2017-06-04 - **Tags**: content-is-king, facebook, gobacktoblogging, instagram, own-your-own-content, snapchat The internet became a terrible place. It seems that today we need to give our data, content and attention to others in order to receive a virtual form of social affirmation. This is my answer to that. Attention as a currency ----------------------- I don't like this. I have trouble managing my attention and I noticed I started to develop several nervous habits. I am a child of the internet, a true early adopter. Hence I used to be an avid user of any services that had gained traction. It was interesting to see platforms rise to the liking of the crowds, but also to see them disappear again to be forgotten. The end result seems to be a war of titans, with monopolies fighting for our attention and content. Instagram, Snapchat, Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, Google {Home|Photos|Mail|Drive|etc}. The patterns and habits we develop in using these services and apps are new. When we pat each other on the back and talk about rising engagement numbers or stickiness, what does that mean to the person that has been using your app? Did we solve a problem? Maybe. Did we improve that person's quality of life? Probably not. Not really, at least. But to keep these services running we need to monetize them, make money off the attention that we've generated. > If you are not paying for it, you're not the customer; you're the product being sold ([Andrew Lewis](https://www.quora.com/Who-originally-suggested-that-if-youre-not-paying-for-the-product-you-are-the-product)) There are no true free products. Either you pay in some sort of other currency (content or attention), or there is a tax that needs to be paid later. Content is King --------------- Besides attention, the monopolies capitalize on content. Who has the most pictures, videos or posts? Have your users create and upload more, so it can be converted in attention. Content is capitalized because it generates attention. More content means more attention. But what if one of the titans looses? It might have your content, but a question that we don't seem to ask ourselves often enough is: If it means anything to you, do you have a copy of that content? Lots of pictures of me are on Flickr. In Flickr's hay day, [I was finishing my Bachelor](https://www.flickr.com/photos/mobroel/533722570/) and [interned at Last.fm](https://www.flickr.com/photos/lastfm/864900082/), heck, what a time that was. But with Yahoo falling apart, Flickr seems to follow suit. Some friends seem to upload pictures on a regular basis still, mine just sit there. And the pictures I was tagged in. But what happens with those pictures when Flickr dies? Before trying to find an answer, I simply acted and started to make copies. And not just Flickr, everything. Facebook, Google Photos, Youtube, Instagram. I will download it all. I experiment with new services and am fascinated by their adoption, logic and UX patterns. I will keep exploring them and talking about them with friends, but I need my own place to store and share my own content. So this is it: [https://roelvanderven.com](https://roelvanderven.com) My content is my own -------------------- This website will be my go-to place for all of the content that I have created, or that includes a mention or my face. It's a work in progress and I'll probably never finish. But while I'm at it, I'll document my progress and experiences. It was already a while ago when [Noortje](https://noortjeoffreins.nl/) was inspired by this post: "[Go back to Blogging](http://katrinhuth.de/blog/2016/03/gobacktoblogging/)". [Ktinka](http://katrinhuth.de/blog/) spotted it too, albeit focused on blogging, the message is the same: own your own content. Thanks for the nudge Ktinka, this is my version of that! A place to call home -------------------- The above might be the main reason I've set up this website but I've set multiple goals for myself: #### Control and own my own piece of the internet Every word, page, link and photo I own. I can change it, update it, improve it and remove it. And when I do it will happen instantly. That's a great feeling. #### Personal SEO I learned a thing or two about SEO in the past years. While my early adopter habits have paid off by plastering the first two pages of Google results with relevant links, there are (at least) two other people who bear the exact same name as me. They pop up on search results too, but sometimes it might cause confusion. Therefore I will try and dominate [the first result page of Google when searching for my full name](https://encrypted.google.com/search?hl=en&q=roel%20van%20der%20ven), by providing great structured data, linking to nice valid content and optimizing this website for speed and UX for both mobile and desktop. #### Write more I previously wrote some pieces, posted some of them and had great plans for more. I never really developed a good writing habit. Now that I've set multiple incentives for myself I aim to publish more articles. I will experiment here too, short blurbs and long form content, just to see what works. That's it. I hope you will think about your own content too. Do you have backups? Do you create content for others, or for yourself? --- ### Breadbound - **URL**: https://roelvanderven.com/posts/breadbound/ - **Date**: 2017-05-20 --- ### Roel van der Ven builds creator and platform products - **URL**: https://roelvanderven.com/posts/about-roel/ - **Date**: 2017-04-27 [![Roel van der Ven drinking a cup of coffee](/images/photos/roel-van-der-ven-in-new-york.jpg)](/images/roel-van-der-ven-in-new-york.jpg) Roel van der Ven is an experienced Senior Product Manager with more than a decade of experience in product management, software development, and strategic consulting. He has worked for companies such as [Spotify](https://www.spotify.com), [SoundCloud](https://soundcloud.com), [Last.fm](https://last.fm) and [General Assembly](https://generalassemb.ly) and has consulted for various small and medium-sized businesses and startups. Roel has a proven track record of building successful product teams and leading product innovation through agile processes. He has also played a crucial role in the growth of various companies by operationalizing the use of KPIs, dashboards, and metrics. Currently at Spotify, Roel enjoys working in collaboration with multiple teams and stakeholders in a +6000 people organization to build the world's largest audio network for both consumers and creators. Aside from his professional career, Roel has also organized and participated in various events such as Music & Bits, a conference and hackathon that has brought together the greatest minds of the web with heroes and artists from the music industry. Roel is passionate about sharing his knowledge and expertise in product management and has taught multiple cohorts on the subject at General Assembly. This website functions as an experimental playground and logbook of interesting experiences. Overall, Roel van der Ven's extensive experience, proven track record, and first principles thinking make him an excellent addition to any team. Contact ------- You can reach Roel on [Mastodon](https://social.lol/@roel) or via email: hello \[at\] roelvanderven.com. --- ### Becoming a father a.k.a domain squatting starts early. - **URL**: https://roelvanderven.com/posts/becoming-a-father/ - **Date**: 2015-12-10 - **Tags**: domain, hack, landing-page, soundcloud, teun [![Landing page teunvanderven.com](/images/photos/Teun_van_der_Ven_04062017-jzlfa.png)](https://www.teunvanderven.com) Since a couple of months we've been anxious, excited and proud. A new human was about to be born, but most importantly; it would be our human. We quickly learned that the old-school Dutch name "Teun" is a little complicated to pronounce for non-Dutch speakers. Luckily we could do something about that. Borrowing some code I've previously wrote on Music Hack Day projects, we've whipped up this little landing page to help people to learn how to pronounce his name. Of course we've registered his name as a domain. So, a little landing page, a little domain, here's to you little man: [https://www.teunvanderven.com](https://www.teunvanderven.com). --- ### The Media Manifesto (2007) - **URL**: https://roelvanderven.com/posts/the-media-manifesto-2007/ - **Date**: 2015-04-07 My early learnings as an online media consultant still seem valid. As the current market is changing at a maddening pace I thought it relevant to write a retrospect. In 2007 I had my first job at a publisher, Techmedia. It was a small company (±6 people) and we worked with a network of freelancers to publish a young brand called [Bright](http://www.bright.nl). We worked on a magazine, weblog, video podcast and even a TV show. I was really excited about the market we were in, traditional publishers were just starting to understand what was coming and we had the opportunity to alternate between these two worlds: online and traditional media. We were creating branded entertainment, sponsored stories and set up barters with similar outlets in the market. After working there for a while I needed to expand my views and quit my job but started freelancing for several other publishers. It was at the end of 2007, in an attempt to structure my learnings that I wrote this manifest. Besides some proof reading by friends I never published this, until I found it again in my notes. * * * The Media Manifesto =================== Be there or be square. Get your content to be seen by as many eyes as possible. People will like you and want more. They will find you and reach out. Yes, everyone is creating content; but you need to make some more. Invest in your editors. Make sure they understand how to write good copy. Be sure your brand is known and easy to find. Do not limit your editors to just good text. Make beautiful photos, produce video. Get your content on Youtube. Use RSS. Produce podcasts. Understand the ways you can reach your target group. Create partnerships. Brand your content and let third parties distribute it at no cost. Yes. Give it away for FREE. Many services are build on third party content. They help you reach more people, reach more eyes. They will get you free attention. Use smart advertising. Do not bother your users with useless banners but think about promotional advertising. Think content. Sell your space and limit your advertisers to your own categories. Make sure your users understand that they’re viewing commercial content. They won’t mind. Be honest. Beautify your content. Make it readable. Make sure people get what they want in not more than two clicks. Google will love you for this too. Use metadata and tags to enrich content with relevant postings. Let your users sort your content how they want. Offer RSS in every way. Offer ways to similar content on the web. Engage. Get in touch with your users. Do not just push, but start a conversation. Tell your users if something went wrong. Be transparent. They will understand and tell their friends. Do not just ask what they want, but listen too. Tell them you did, and show the result. Use Twitter. Use Facebook. Use LinkedIn. Get on there and show them you’re listening. Yes, this takes some effort, but you’ll reach more people and they will love you. > Track downloads. Track podcasts. Track Twitter conversations. Track clickthroughs. Track everything. Track your web traffic. Not just clicks, but monitor your traffic. Understand where your users come from and why. If they come through popular referrers, be nice. Make contact and create partnerships to strengthen each other. Learn what paths your visitors are clicking. Ask your content partners for stats. Analyse server logs. Use Feedburner. Set goals in Google Analytics and make sure you get results. Track downloads. Track podcasts. Track Twitter conversations. Track clickthroughs. Track everything. Invest in RSS, API’s, webdevelopers and designers. Make it as easy as possible for others to create something with your content. Make it FREE. They will return for more and your traffic will grow. * * * It’s fascinating to see how the internet has changed. It will be even more interesting to see what’s happening now. The [New York Times](http://nytimes.com), [Snapchat](https://www.snapchat.com), [Vice](http://www.vice.com/de), MCN’s like [Maker Studio’s](http://makerstudios.com), [Vessel](http://vessel.com); there is so much happening and we are only just at the beginning. Technology has advanced to a point that the 2007 limitations are easily forgotten: bandwith, codecs, hardware; everything is screaming video. And I think video is calling in the next era of online publishing. Be there, or be 16:9. --- ### On diversity and the stories we''re being told - **URL**: https://roelvanderven.com/posts/on-diversity-and-the-stories-were-being-told/ - **Date**: 2014-12-04 I’ve always been fascinated by stories and what they do with us. Our thoughts, our characters, our experiences. Stories shape who we are and who we’re becoming. I was really inspired by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, who opened my eyes with her talked on the danger of a single story. > A single story emphasises on how we are different, rather than how we are similar. I think that’s a brilliant phrase to live by. Never trust the single story. Try to learn more by viewing something from other perspectives. And know that as long as you know only one story, you should withhold your opinions and prejudice because they might portrait you as a single story. With everything we make in this world, be it a product or a service, we should consider: are we building something real or is this going to be perceived as another single story? **Update:** This travelers report on North Korea is an apt example of the danger of the single story. If you haven’t read about North Korean tourism this is a great article to get an idea of what the country tries to tell tourist and it’s inhabitants: [https://medium.com/@ryannee/my-summer-vacation-in-north-korea-910571c48f76](https://medium.com/@ryannee/my-summer-vacation-in-north-korea-910571c48f76) --- ### ALB + Blogotheque + a drone = a music video in 1 take - **URL**: https://roelvanderven.com/posts/alb-blogotheque-a-drone-a-music-video-in-1-take/ - **Date**: 2014-07-22 Technology and music are two of the most important things that keep me inspired. The people behind Blogotheque have been my heroes for a long time, but no they made a leap into the future by filming the band ALB with a drone. The whole video is shot in 1 take, which reduces the chance of “catching your breath”. Without switching context your brain keeps processing what it sees, thus keeping you on edge for the whole length of the video. Here you go, hope you enjoy it as much as I did: --- ### Run River North - Excuses - **URL**: https://roelvanderven.com/posts/run-river-north-excuses/ - **Date**: 2014-06-30 I haven’t been able to post anything lately because of a new and interesting adventure. I’ve joined [http://tape.tv](http://tape.tv), more about that later. This post is about Run River North, who released an amazing music video with their new song called Excuses. Every once and a while you see and/or hear something what makes you think: “Yes. This is it”. Well, this is it. The video combines a lot of ideas that have been applied and tried out in film and other music videos, but here everything seems to come together in this incredible funny, creative story. Enjoy. [Run River North "Excuses"](https://vimeo.com/99118281) from [Nettwerk Music Group](https://vimeo.com/user1293154) on [Vimeo](https://vimeo.com). --- ### NPL Acoustics - **URL**: https://roelvanderven.com/posts/npl-acoustics/ - **Date**: 2014-02-18 After a splendid Music Hack Day London in 2011 we were lucky to be invited to a small tour in the [National Physical Laboratory](http://npl.co.uk/) of London. [Ian Butterworth](http://www.ianbutterworth.co.uk/) was so kind to show us around and illustrate the impressive effects of the acoustic chambers they use for testing. These recordings have been sitting around on my [SoundCloud account](http://soundcloud.com/roelven) for ages and I am finally posting them here for you to enjoy. The quality is not great since I recorded these with an iPad, but you should be able to get a pretty good impression. --- ### Atoms for Peace - Before your very Eyes - **URL**: https://roelvanderven.com/posts/atoms-for-peace-before-your-very-eyes/ - **Date**: 2013-10-18 Yesterday Atoms for Peace released the music video for their track “Before your very Eyes”. Mister Thom Yorke can be a music industry defeatist all he wants, but I’ll be inspired by his works forever. Enjoy. --- ### Good reads: Product Management - **URL**: https://roelvanderven.com/posts/good-reads-product-management/ - **Date**: 2013-09-27 A while ago [I selected a bunch of articles](http://roelvanderven.com/good-reads-february-2013) that have impressed or inspired me and I thought would be useful sharing. At that time I figured I could regularly post an article with resourceful or inspiring articles but I didn’t realise I needed the time to read them all myself and let them sink in so I could think about the actual value. Starting with this post I want to theme this series with a certain topic, which helps me to maintain the quality of this series but also enables me to create a valuable resource of knowledge and learnings that will hopefully be useful for you as well. Product Management ------------------ This list resembles a collection of articles I’ve read the last 4 months, some of which turned my perspective on building (and iterating on) products completely upside down. * **[Your app makes me fat](http://seriouspony.com/blog/2013/7/24/your-app-makes-me-fat)** - About giving users what they actually care about, in stead of demanding their attention to get a simple task done. The cost of attention is a great way to think about how useful your UX is. * **[Getting the V right](http://www.eleganthack.com/getting-the-v-right/)** - Think about what makes your product actually viable. You can cut away only so many features but what do you really need to release a successful product? * **[Why we need storytellers at the heart of product development](http://uxmag.com/articles/why-we-need-storytellers-at-the-heart-of-product-development)** - Quoting “A product is more than an idea, it’s more than a website, and it’s more than a transaction or list of functionalities.” What story are you telling as a team? What story do your users perceive from your brand? * **[Blameless Post mortems and a just culture](http://codeascraft.com/2012/05/22/blameless-postmortems/)** - Etsy is famous for their platform but likely to be more respected on how they approach and write about their company culture. Here’s how to learn from mistakes you make and build a strong team. * **[Storytellers have more fun](https://medium.com/i-m-h-o/15baf764eead)** - We forget how important stories are to people. This made me think about what story are we trying to tell with this product we’re building. * **[The Dribbblisation of design](http://insideintercom.io/the-dribbblisation-of-design/)** - On how design is not a beauty contest, but an important toolkit to enable people to use your product without frustration. * **[Understanding the job](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f84LymEs67Y)** - (video) This is linked in the previous article but deserved a spot here as well: for what job does a user wants to hire your product? * **[How to work with designers](https://medium.com/the-year-of-the-looking-glass/6c975dede146)** - Julie Zhuo, Product design director at Facebook shares here insights about how to think and communicate when working with designers. (Tip: read also her other article on [How to work with PMs](https://medium.com/the-year-of-the-looking-glass/3e852d5eccf5) to get the full picture and understand how you can be perceived as a PM) Required reading ---------------- A couple of weeks ago my co-worker [Matas](https://twitter.com/matas) shared a [readlist](http://readlists.com/87240ede/) which should definitely be part of this article. It was derived from [this post by Robert Lenne](http://robertlenne.com/requiredreading/), who is head of design at Artsy. Product Weekly -------------- If you are interested in more things to read around product management; my friend [Niko Felger](https://twitter.com/nfelger) is running a newsletter called Product Weekly, which selects a few of the most interesting articles related to product management and development every week. [Sign up here](http://twitter.us7.list-manage1.com/subscribe?u=b3c6caa291f809b39c8a23137&id=e2628c2d3c). But wait! If you know of some links that are worth sharing you can [submit them to Niko as well using this form](https://docs.google.com/a/roelvanderven.com/forms/d/16lJnEOauoMeaFlGuPGkSwLfccr-lDzOJcgoANNnfxu4/viewform). I hope you enjoy this article, if you have any recommendations please [send them over on Twitter](https://twitter.com/roelven). Thanks! --- ### Seams - Quarters - **URL**: https://roelvanderven.com/posts/seams-quarters/ - **Date**: 2013-09-24 When working in a great team you work with great people. Folks like Jami, who escalated his music hobby to a serious career next to his dayjob as product manager at SoundCloud. He recently released his first full length album called Quarters, which is a great listen. Check out the music video for ‘Rilo’ here: And listen to the full album here: If you [buy the full album at Bleep.com](https://bleep.com/release/45240-seams-quarters) you’ll get an exclusive set of postcards showcasing the 4 locations where the album was made. I think it’s incredibly inspiring but also comforting to see Jami release his music. He has done quite some shows and has kept steadily working on this, while also embracing the internet as a platform to distribute his work and engage with fans. His album was released via an [exclusive feature over at HypeMachine](http://hypem.com/premiere/Seams), he has been posting updates on his [Tumblr](http://seams.tumblr.com/) and [Facebook fanpage](https://www.facebook.com/seamsmusic) about the progress and when you buy the record you’ll get an exclusive addition which tells you a bit more about the back story of his work. Not all musicians are this internet-savvy but it shows me that if you have the drive and can find the fans to feed that drive you can enable yourself to create great things. I’m sure this won’t be the last the internet will be seeing of Jami. --- ### Mighty Oaks - The Great Northwest - **URL**: https://roelvanderven.com/posts/mighty-oaks-the-great-northwest/ - **Date**: 2013-08-30 My good friends Mighty Oaks have been working incredibly hard and it’s paying off. They’ve been playing at some festivals, touring together with CHVRCHES, The Lumineers and played a support act for Kings of Leon this summer. Here’s a video of a recording they did together with [Cardinal Sessions](http://www.cardinalsessions.com/). Enjoy. --- ### Listen to some Halls - **URL**: https://roelvanderven.com/posts/listen-to-some-halls/ - **Date**: 2013-07-11 [Noortje](https://noortjeoffreins.nl) pointed me to Halls. Quoted from Last.fm: > Halls is the solo project of 21 year old South London musician Sam Howard. Formed in London, UK in early 2010, Halls worked on material that would appear on the debut EP “Halls EP”, released in January 2011, which was described as having ‘ambient soundscapes buttressed by skitter-step beats.’ There is something incredibly mesmerizing about long slow harmonics in big spaceous buildings, especially when performed in a church, so here’s Halls performing in a church. Enjoy: https://vimeo.com/62278754 --- ### Space Oddity - **URL**: https://roelvanderven.com/posts/space-oddity/ - **Date**: 2013-05-15 This is a story about the coolest astronaut in human history. If you haven’t heard of this man yet, his name is commander Chris Hadfield (53), who was the first Canadian to walk in space. Helped by his two sons, he harnessed the power of social media to give millions of people access to space, to the incredible views he was seeing and share basic scientific experiments like showing that you [can’t cry in space](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4BbuOn--ERI). He slowly turned into something like a space celebrity, amassing a huge crowd on [Twitter](https://twitter.com/Cmdr_Hadfield), [Facebook](https://www.facebook.com/AstronautChrisHadfield) and [Reddit while doing an IAmA](http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/18pik4/i_am_astronaut_chris_hadfield_currently_orbiting/). A space recording ----------------- After someone coined “Space Oddity” on the Reddit thread, commander Hadfield tweeted three days ago: https://twitter.com/Cmdr\_Hadfield/status/333688046744645632?ref\_src=twsrc%5Etfw&ref\_url=http%3A%2F%2Froelven.svbtle.com%2Fspace-oddity Here’s the video in it’s full glory: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KaOC9danxNo&feature=youtu.be Summing it all up ----------------- * There was an astronaut in space doing a Reddit IAmA. * He [shared beautiful and unique views of the earth using social media](https://twitter.com/Cmdr_Hadfield/statuses/304336354932830208). * He had his two sons help him set up and manage his social media accounts and was very transparent about it. * Using social media, he educated people about the effects and brutality of space. * He sung Space Oddity in space and made a video of it. I am overwhelmed. My inner geek, music lover and people admirer were all crying in trinity. Hats off to commander Hadfield! PS: If you want to learn more about commander Hadfield check out [this](http://www.theguardian.com/science/2013/feb/22/chris-hadfield-canada-superstar-astronaut) and [this Guardian article](http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/2013/may/13/commander-chris-hadfield-space-oddity). --- ### Twenty Nice: a list of 29 things I learned - **URL**: https://roelvanderven.com/posts/twenty-nice-a-list-of-29-things-i-learned/ - **Date**: 2013-02-19 I have been reading and writing a lot the past 8 months when I came across [Noah Stokes' birthday lists](http://esbueno.noahstokes.com/post/40264006001/thirty-six). Inspired by these I figured I could highlight some learnings myself. Scanning through my scribblings I tried looking for the ones that appear to me as important or beautiful. These are probably lessons that have shaped me into who I am, it will be interesting to see how this will look a year from now. Below is a list of 29 things in no particular order that made the cut. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- * Reading is good. Everyone should read more. There is always too much to read and too much to think about, but that is a great thing. * Whenever you want to introduce something new to your daily rythm, make a commitment to six weeks. Just keep at it for six weeks every day and see what happens afterwards. You're setting a goal which is not too far away, but once you've reached it you've made the potential habit an actual habit. * [The other person is never the problem](http://zenhabits.net/gah/). * We're all in our own movies. Communication might get you far but you can never guess how another person perceives things. You're in your movie and the other is in his/hers. We're all conditioned by society and our legacy, but this only makes it easier to align our perceptions. You can never be sure you're completely understanding someone. * Drink more water. * Idling is important. Working hard can be fun if you enjoy your job, but you still need to disconnect on a regular basis to maintain a healthy balance. [We are not build for infinite endurance](http://business.time.com/2012/04/26/stop-working-more-than-40-hours-a-week/). Working on pet projects is not idling. * [Lean into the Pain](http://www.aaronsw.com/weblog/dalio). Pain is a signal that you're pushing your boundaries. If something hurts, confront yourself with it and do it again. It will make you stronger. * Music is all about the experience. Recorded music is just a thin rehearsal of something that has been performed earlier. A live performance generates incredible amounts of energy that inspire and fuel people. * Reading is brainwashing. Whatever combination of letters you are looking at, your brain will try to parse it. Reading a lot about a certain subject will likely influence your personal development. * Love is brutal and therefor interesting. The highs are incredible and the lows are painful, but we should not shy away from them. The pain is making us understand more about ourselves, which is all we can do. Everything else is just acceptance. * Trying to understand love is futile. While [Plato might give you some useful metaphors](http://bit.ly/10Dws3), it will always be bigger and more complex than we can wrap our heads around. * We need to let go of the idea of always being productive. This is impossible. Try working in small bursts with a high focus. The [Pomodoro Technique](http://www.pomodorotechnique.com/) is an interesting method for this. [The quality of our work will also increase when we're relaxed](http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/10/opinion/sunday/relax-youll-be-more-productive.html). * By trying to understand more of the world, we will probably feel like we understand less. This is one of the great and humbling things about life. * Alcohol seems like an obligatory addiction of Western society. You will only accept this when you take a break from it and realize how interwoven alcohol has become in our social interactions. * I love being able to live in a city because I choose to do so, not because it just happened to me. * A todo list is helpful, but a tada list works better for your mood. Collect all the things you've done on a list and reflect on it at the end of the day. You've done a great job. * If you don't believe in yourself you will never change. * Try to collect parts of lyrics from songs you like. It will train your ear to listen to music better and you will build up a small collections of beautiful sentences or word combinations. * We can change our behavior overnight but changing our character is way harder. * "Just slowly, calmly, harmoniously keep up, keep up, keep up, keep up, keep up, and it will come to you. Don't hate it. Don't be frustrated about it. Just keep going." - Yogi Bhajan. * Find friends who do work in an entire different field than you. It will result in more interesting conversations and helps you stay curious. * Buy things at markets or greengrocers. Groceries with a barcode are probably not very good for us. * Playing video games is actually addictive. It will likely mess up your sleep rythm. * Spend more time in Rio de Janeiro next time. It's a great city. * We are way more vulnerable than you think. Be more careful and listen to your body and gut. This is difficult when living at large. Stop and reflect often. * Greet kindness with kindness. Even if you don't feel comfortable, an act of kindness deserves kindness in return. Always. * Books and magazines (e.g. printed media) will not go away. They will find their niches and keep on being printed, but will just grow more expensive. * Working with great people is a privilege. Being able to turn these people into friends is an even greater luxury. * Traveling is good, but we should be aware of [Curse of the Traveler](http://www.reddit.com/r/IWantOut/comments/zykw2/getting_out_and_what_it_means_to_me/c68uit9). Traveling should be balanced with time you spend in your home. We need time to ground and build persistent connections. --- ### Paperman - **URL**: https://roelvanderven.com/posts/paperman/ - **Date**: 2013-02-10 Disney Animation recently published a short film called Paperman. They put the whole thing on [Youtube](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aTLySbGoMX0) for us all to watch Update: the original video is gone, here's a trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mM6cLnscmO8 Apart from the incredible technicalities & overall mood it gives you, I'm really amazed how they manage to capture the "Disney feeling" in such a short film. Check out more artwork and background information on [the Disney Animation website](http://www.disneyanimation.com/projects/paperman). --- ### Good Reads: February 2013 - **URL**: https://roelvanderven.com/posts/good-reads-february-2013/ - **Date**: 2013-02-08 Lately my (online) reading experience has been improved a lot, partly because of [Quote.fm](http://quote.fm/). I noticed I was storing a lot of good articles for later use, but wanted to share these with people but at the same time keep a log of what I’ve been reading and what good stuff I came across. To keep track of what inspired me or what I simply marked as “awesome”, I’m going to keep a log of interesting articles. I’m not set yet on a rythm for this, but here’s a first attempt. * [Employees leave managers, not Companies](http://www.alaisterlow.com/employees-leave-managers-not-companies/) - An eye-opening view on how managers affect their coworkers happiness in work life. * [A short lesson in Perspective](http://www.lindsredding.com/2012/03/11/a-overdue-lesson-in-perspective/) - An amazing read on things that matter in our lives, but in a context that I know: in the worlds of creative agencies, workaholics and self-deceit. * [Holden Caulfield’s Goddam War](http://www.vanityfair.com/culture/features/2011/02/salinger-201102) - The background story on Catcher in the Rye: how J.D. Salinger kept the writings on his body while storming the beaches of Normandy. Truly inspiring, how an artists works changes by the changes of the artist itself. * [Amen! (D'Angelo is Back)](http://www.gq.com/entertainment/music/201206/dangelo-gq-june-2012-interview) - The story of where D'Angelo has been for the last 11 years, and how he’s coming back. Quoting Angie Stone: “It’s not a little bit of God in him. It’s a lot of God in him. Sometimes when you have that much power, Satan works tenfold to break you.” * [The Book that Changed my Life](http://www.aaronsw.com/weblog/epiphany) - I’ve been going through Aaron Schwartz’ blog since his passing, some articles are incredible. Here he writes about ‘Understanding Power’ by Noam Chomsky, how the book sheds a whole new perspective on the world and how it crushed him. * [Why we took Cocain out of Soda](http://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2013/01/why-we-took-cocaine-out-of-soda/272694/) - How Coca Cola used to be an “Intellectual Beverage” but was soon to become a problem by “The negroes of the South”. * [The Indiepocalypse](http://waxy.org/2013/01/indiepocalypse/) - We all know the music industry is broken, the Indiepocalypse is upon us. But how did that happen and is it possible for upcoming bands to become successful without signing to a big label? Enjoy! --- ### How to get your current viewport width in em? - **URL**: https://roelvanderven.com/posts/get-current-viewport-width-em/ - **Date**: 2013-02-08 The answer turned out to be a bit tedious so I tried fixing that. Say hello to [Viewportmarklet](https://github.com/roelven/viewportmarklet): ![](/images/photos/viewportmarklet.png) Example of the Viewportmarklet How does it work? ----------------- The tool is build around the assumption that you need an actual letter m on your canvas in the base font size. The width of that letter m is what the browser will use as 1 em. When working on a frontend project I found myself struggling with the sites current viewport width in em and in pixels. To save myself and others from demotivation problems I build a small tool that helps you to wrap your head around em usage. Check out [the repository on Github](https://github.com/roelven/viewportmarklet). Help me improve it ------------------ I know the code is not great but for now it's helping me a great deal. If you see any improvements or have any feedback, fork away or let me know in the comments! --- ### Organizing your Music Discovery - **URL**: https://roelvanderven.com/posts/organizing-your-music-discovery/ - **Date**: 2013-02-06 I like music a lot. I enjoy listening to it, let it grow on me, let it define me for that moment. Maybe I build up a connection to a certain song because of my mood, or because of the memories I’ve attached to it over time. Discovering music has changed a lot the last years. There are great online services helping you find amazing gems from all over the globe. But I realized one thing: this whole thing around timing and newness of music is slowly fading away. It’s not important anymore if you discover this band right after they released their new EP, or if you heard that song on the radio the first day it aired. Here are a bunch of music discovery services I use myself in no particular order: * [The Hype Machine](http://hypem.com/) * [This is My Jam](http://thisismyjam.com/) * [SoundCloud](http://soundcloud.com/) * [Last.fm](http://last.fm/) * [Songkick](http://songkick.com/) * [Tumblr](http://tumblr.com/) * [Grooveshark](http://grooveshark.com/) * [Spotify](http://spotify.com/) Music discovery has become more personal. It became more important to people when they heard a song for the first time, rather then when it was released. A great thing about this is that you can send a rather old song to a friend, but you’ll possibly spark a precious memory or give him/her something new. The song will then grow on that person from then on and it will be perceived as something new. It has become quite hard to keep discovering interesting music, simply because the internet has become quite good at making music accessible. There is just too much out there! Organize all the things (songs) ------------------------------- I’ve slowly started to organize my music consumption and discovery, but I wonder how it works for other people. Let me explain how I handle huge amounts of great music: 1\. Discovery ------------- I discover a song or an album on [SoundCloud](https://soundcloud.com/mightyoaksmusic/rainier),  [Thisismyjam](http://www.thisismyjam.com/bwhitman/_4ohif43), or a [friend sends me a link](http://open.spotify.com/album/2lwyy2OFXetxZy2ginhv5I). I’ll add the song to my Spotify queue or play it directly. If it’s a SoundCloud link or a song on Thisismyjam, I’ll try to find the song on Spotify. I know, with all these different services it often happens something is not in the Spotify catalogue yet, in that case I bookmark or like it on that respective platform or service. 2\. Save to remember -------------------- I keep a playlist on Spotify to remember what great stuff I have been listening to this week. Some things might be queued up in there that I haven’t listened to yet but planned to do so. Some things might be bad, some things might be good. Most of the things are new to me. This playlist is always changing. I’m adding and removing things as I go, I regard it as music I have “on deck”: ### Spotify playlist: [This is what I’m discovering right now](http://open.spotify.com/user/roelven/playlist/6OQ93lxgQyCICd1oiZNnzp) 3\. Share the good parts ------------------------ Share the things you like. I found out that when a song really hits me I want to share that feeling. I most likely know some people who might enjoy this song too (since they’re my friends our musical compatibility is quite high). This also creates a moment in my memory where I shared this song with this friend, it’ll likely come up in discussions later when we meet. Also, your friends might be happy that you shared that great song with them. They’ll appreciate the gesture and will probably do the same later when they run into a great song, everyone wins! In this same mood I usually might find the artist on [Songkick](http://www.songkick.com/users/Roelven) as well to track their concerts. Songkick then sends me an alert when the artist announced a tour in my city. 4\. Add to collection --------------------- When an album does grow on me or I want to save it for later, I add it to my “collection”. This is just one big uncategorized playlist, but it works for me. I can scroll / browse through it, find the things I was looking for and give them a listen. I keep coming back to this list to find things to add to a new playlist, find that one record I used to play back in 2004, et cetera. Of course you can use whatever music services’ search function as well, but now I’ve applied my personal filter to the music. I’ve heard these songs before and they mean something for me. ### Spotify playlist: [Albums that Stick](http://open.spotify.com/user/roelven/playlist/6a1lnYxhpusR7MVW1lTm10) 5\. Rinse and repeat -------------------- Music comes and goes. The first playlist shrinks and grows, helps me to keep track of my discoveries. The second list keeps growing, enriching my musical history. Of course not everything I’ve ever listened to is in there, for that there’s my [listening history at Last.fm](http://www.last.fm/user/Roelven/library). This has been the way I’ve been handling my music discovery, but I know it might not be ideal. There is still no default resource to find all the music you want and I know my method is quite Spotify-centered. [Why don’t you add me on there](http://open.spotify.com/user/roelven) to share a song or two? You can also find me on [Hypem](http://hypem.com/Roelven), [Thisismyjam](http://www.thisismyjam.com/roelven) and [SoundCloud](http://soundcloud.com/roelven). How do you handle your music consumption? Do you have any suggestions or recommendations? Please share them in the comments! --- ### Upstream Color - **URL**: https://roelvanderven.com/posts/upstream-color/ - **Date**: 2013-01-23 Of course you remember [Primer](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4CC60HJvZRE). That film from 2004 that would keep you puzzled for days. After nine years Shane Carruth is back with a new project, Upstream Color. Go watch it, don't read anything else. https://vimeo.com/57342043 Anticipation ------------ While most film critics collectively claim one shouldn’t spoil more then the plot outline for this movie that already has been published, I’m going to stop here and wait for the film to play at Berlinale with only this quote: > A man and a woman are drawn together, entangled in the life cycle of an ageless organism Enjoy. --- ### Somebodies: the endless mutations of Gotye - **URL**: https://roelvanderven.com/posts/somebodies-endless-mutations-gotye/ - **Date**: 2012-11-05 Last week my friend [Peter Bihr](https://twitter.com/peterbihr/status/261507764671614976) tweeted about this Gotye mashup that was being played at the [Wired 2012 conference](http://www.wired.co.uk/topics/wired-2012). Yes- we’ve all about died of how many times this track has been played on the radio, tv, well everywhere and ALL THE TIME, but I must admit my interest was raised when I found out Wally De Backer (aka [Gotye](http://www.last.fm/music/Gotye)) was giving this mashup “back to the internet”. You’ll find a [writeup of this talk here](http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2012-10/25/gotye). > “I’m fascinated that people would spend all day covering themselves in body paint to create this humour, (
) I realised this song wasn’t really mine anymore, but belonged to the internet.” So he gave it back. He downloaded 350 different adaptations of his own song and remixed those into something new. Here’s how 350 “Somebodies” look when sampled & remixed by the original artist: (Unfortunately this video is blocked by GEMA in Germany, I’m sorry for the inconvenience) Remix? Mutate! -------------- This is no ordinary hype. Of course I knew that this terrible ear worm had traveled all corners of the world but that it managed to inspire so many people was impressive. And it’s not just a meme. Nor simple remixes of a sample. If you haven’t seen the documentary [Everything is a Remix](http://www.everythingisaremix.info/watch-the-series/) yet, go do it now. Remixing intellectual property is getting more common these days, but “That Gotye song” goes beyond remixing, this is on a whole new level. People take the original song as a base version for their creative work to create something new. They adapt and mutate this song to celebrate their own creativity while at the same time inspiring others. Just look at the numbers (and yes, those are millions): * The Star Wars that I used to Know - 7.6m views * That Gotye Song - 6.2m views * Dutch Choir cover - 1.2m views * Walk of the Earth cover - 138m views * Pentatonix cover - 9.2m views * Ivy & Gold cover - 1.6m views * Matthias Harris acappella version - 2.8m views The reach of every mutation on itself as well has been huge. What I find also striking is the amazing quality of these videos. While most of these are sprung out of a fun idea or a want to create something cool, almost all of these mutations look like they’ve been made by a professional studio or producer. It’s quite uncommon to find a video that is not uploaded in HD, some use crazy camera effects and the post production is incredible. If we call these creators bedroom producers, what happened to the amateur? The Mutations ------------- I’ve searched for the best mutations that where used in the video above and collected them in a [Youtube playlist](http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXMo2KzIiF7CatsJFgs9lbNHmgY3wc4HV&feature=mh_lolz). Click on the playlist icon below to see all 19 of them. Every single one of these has something special. The trembling sax, the two macho guys in the car, a complete choir humming the back vocals, 5 people on 1 guitar or that crazy acappella production, amazing! When pondering about intellectual property, creativity and (viral) networks, I’d say we’re only just at the beginning of something great. Technology will become even cheaper, more and more of the worlds population will be connected to the internet and we all share a common language called music. The future will be awesome. Have you seen hypes before that grew to a similar size? Which one of the mutations is your favorite? --- ### zZz - Running with the Beast - **URL**: https://roelvanderven.com/posts/zzz-running-with-the-beast/ - **Date**: 2012-10-31 Browsing my Spotify playlists I stumbled upon this great album again [zZz - Running with the Beast](http://open.spotify.com/album/2BJQu8ezp18PMGJsvd3A1B). I saw them once years ago as a support act and was really impressed by the energy and performance these guys were putting up. A bit later they released their album Running with the Beast, for which [Roel Wouters aka Xelor](http://roelwouters.com/) has made this awesome video. I agree, it’s pushing quite some moral boundaries but I think that’s mostly because of the switching of contexts, both creative and biological. There is an [animal welfare statement on Roel’s website](http://www.xelor.nl/xelor/media/texts/RwtB_Statement.pdf) to make sure you won’t loose any sleep. If you want to know more, check out [todayandtomorrow](http://www.todayandtomorrow.net/2008/11/24/running-with-the-beast/) for more posters and the ‘making of’ video. This video is 3 years old so no HD quality unfortunately, but still a great watch. Enjoy. --- ### Erased Tapes 5th Anniversary tour - **URL**: https://roelvanderven.com/posts/erased-tapes-5th-anniversary-tour/ - **Date**: 2012-10-17 Erased Tapes did a tour featuring Nils Frahm, Ólafur Arnalds and Winged Victory for the Sullen. I attended one of their shows in Berlin and it was amazing. This should give you a good impression: Check out more of their music on [their site](http://www.erasedtapes.com/) or [SoundCloud profile](http://soundcloud.com/erasedtapes). --- ### Horse - Mighty Oaks - **URL**: https://roelvanderven.com/posts/horse-mighty-oaks/ - **Date**: 2012-09-29 My good friends Claudio and Ian are doing an amazing job with their band called Mighty Oaks. A recent feature by ARD during the Reeperbahn festival in Hamburg shows that these guys are seriously kicking ass. Mighty Oaks, remember that name. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tvbPtmi\_I5g They’re currently working on their first album, keep an eye on their [website](http://www.mightyoaksmusic.com/) and [SoundCloud profile](https://soundcloud.com/mightyoaksmusic). --- ### Blom & Blom: Industrial Authentics - **URL**: https://roelvanderven.com/posts/blom-amp-blom-industrial-authentics/ - **Date**: 2012-09-27 The last months I have been helping out my friends Kamiel & Martijn with the launch of their new company called [Blom & Blom](http://blomandblom.com/). ![](/images/photos/blom-and-blom-homepage-screenshot.jpg) Homepage design by Till Wiedeck In their own words: > Blom & Blom is about two brothers. Two brothers who share a passion for forgotten items from forgotten places. Unique items. Items that once had an industrial life, but have now been abandoned; left to perish. Items with a rich, and almost epic history. Items that deserve a new life. So what they do is discover forgotten lamps and other furniture, to grant them a new life. Here are some images that make up for exactly such a great story: ![](/images/photos/blom-and-blom-abandoned-bottles.jpg) ![](/images/photos/blom-and-blom-abandoned-desk.jpg) ![](/images/photos/blom-and-blom-found-ceiling-lamp.jpg) ![](/images/photos/blom-and-blom-old-documents.jpg) Exploring those abandoned buildings does have something magical, I’m looking forward to future adventures with them. Design ------ The design has been done by [Till Wiedeck](http://tillwiedeck.com/), who has done a great job in developing not only a super clear identity for them, but also approached the webdesign in a very lean attitude. We shaped and modified the basic concept with the whole team bringing the end result to the level it is now. So proud of this. The website is build using [Wordpress](http://wordpress.org/) and [WP E-commerce plugin](http://getshopped.org/). There are some cool responsive features and the site is highly optimized using W3 Total Cache, but I’ll make a writeup of the technical details later. For now, check out [Blomandblom.com](http://blomandblom.com/), or view their video portrait: https://vimeo.com/47231123 --- ### Cut the World - **URL**: https://roelvanderven.com/posts/cut-the-world/ - **Date**: 2012-08-07 Seems like since [Carice van Houten](http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0396924/) has been featured in [Game of Thrones](http://www.hbo.com/game-of-thrones/index.html) she’s been kicking ass lately. This sums that all up: a music video for Anthony & the Johnsons featuring Willem Dafoe & Carice van Houten. Filmed at Schiphol. Enjoy. --- ### MailChimp publishes study on mobile email - **URL**: https://roelvanderven.com/posts/mailchimp-publishes-study-mobile-email/ - **Date**: 2012-06-21 Today [MailChimp](http://mailchimp.com/), the cool kids who know email over at Atlanta, have released a study: [Email on Mobile Devices](http://mailchimp.com/resources/guides/email-on-mobile-devices/?utm_source=Roelvanderven.com&utm_campaign=05ee013c3a-v7_2_Mobile_Mandrill6_19_2012&utm_medium=website). While working on an email project over at SoundCloud, I’ve seen some other companies doing some efforts to display their transactional emails nicely on mobile. Then [Campaign Monitor](http://www.campaignmonitor.com/) published a blogpost on [how to make Twitters email notifications compatible on mobile](http://www.campaignmonitor.com/blog/post/3744/twitter-5-minute-email-notification-mobile-makeover/). This proved my gut feeling, but I didn’t had the numbers. Summary ------- While the research is not going so deep on the subject and the studies are quite simple, there are some things that I find worth noting: While Return Path published a study saying [Mobile email open rates increase with 34%](http://www.mobilemarketer.com/cms/news/research/11667.html), we now have a [complete overview in this document](http://mailchimp.com/resources/guides/html/email-on-mobile-devices/). > Mobile email open rates increased 34% in the last six months of 2011, according to a study by ReturnPath. Compared to mobile, desktop email opens dropped by 9.5%. Similarly, email open rates via webmail decreased by 11%. Boom! 34% increase in the second half of 2011, that means it should be a bigger number by now. > 72% of the people we tested read their emails in bed. I confess, I do that too. Frankly, while I disabled notifications, I read my emails everywhere. I’ll be looking more into email notification trends and hope to post my learnings here soon. Oh and also, check out [Mandrill](http://mandrill.com/), the transactional email platform MailChimp has launched lately; I really liked how two of their engineers were [dogfooding the platform with their own pet project](http://blog.mailchimp.com/measuring-transactional-email-performance-with-mandrill/). --- ### A Pet Project - **URL**: https://roelvanderven.com/posts/a-pet-project/ - **Date**: 2010-02-27 > A project, activity or goal pursued as a personal favorite, rather than because it is generally accepted as necessary or important. The url you’ve entered is or has been a pet project of mine. Are you interested in learning more, or researching the availability of the domain? 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