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Please have a listen and pass on the word If you enjoy the mix.

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Enjoy another 30 min. set for Meia Hora Mix Show.

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(Know Re:Quest)

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Funky and groovy. Get on down!

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It's been a long wait for a longer mix. Today, I've released "Galactic Luv." A 90 minute session featuring Deep, Afro, Soulful, Vocal, and Tribal house vibes with some Funk, and Garage thrown in for good measure. Hopefully you enjoy this mix spun for your listening and dancing pleasure.

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Another 30 minute set. 6 tracks of deep, funky, afro, jazzy, tribal house music meticulously blended to seamlessly flow for a beautiful, harmonic and rhythmic experience. Enjoy, and spread the love

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(Know Re:Quest) gives us another 30 minute set composed of various types of house music. Give it a listen and if you like it, tell me what you think and spread the love to others who you think may enjoy these mixes and sets as well. Older mixes can be found at https://www.mixcloud.com/DJKnowReQuest/ as well.

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30 Minutes of Deep House Music. Funky, jazzy, and soulful; it smacks of groove to make you move. Only 30 min.; have a listen and enjoy! You can find more of my mixes and sets at

MixCloud: https://www.mixcloud.com/DJKnowReQuest/

SoundCloud: https://on.soundcloud.com/c4ZTcgCTJiXEAbcg8

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Love this visual breathing exercise for self care.

I have a lot of anxiety surrounding the news lately and I know others do as well so here’s a reminder that it’s okay to take a break from your phone. It’s okay to disconnect. It’s okay to take care of yourself.

It’s going to be okay

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(Know Re:Quest) Back on the decks after a long hiatus. 30 minute mix of Deep, jazzy, funky House music. Lend me your ears for 30 minutes and hopefully, your body will follow.

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What Makes A Great Logo?

I’ve been having a difficult tie with branding and have started to look into what makes a great logo. 

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What is Atomic Design?

Is it designs taking cues from chemistry?

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Nine Guidelines For Running Productive Design Critiques

by Richard Valentine

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1. Identify the owner of the design.

The design owner will be the person responsible for any problems which are identified during the critique after it is done. Their name should be written on the board. This will remind everyone of who the designer is, keeping focus who the critique is meant to help.

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2. Designate a facilitator.

Designating a facilitator works as a good way to keep the critique running smoothly. Although this role could be filled by the designer, it doesn’t have to be and may be advantages to have another person deal with being the facilitator as it relieves the designer of playing dual roles allowing the designer to be able to focus on the critique at hand. The facilitator’s name should be written on the board as well.

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3. Restate and display the project goals.

Design owners should briefly remind those participating in the critique of the goals of the project. Having the the goals of the project written out and available for reference will enable a team to make judgements which are informed and better aligned with the project.  These goals should be written out on a board for all to see as 1 - 5 bullet points. Having a measurable goal on the list is also helpful. 

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4. Ask for what you want together what you want.

One of the ways to get the most out of your critique is to draw attention to the areas of the project for which you specifically want feedback. Being specific keeps the critique session focused and productive. Writing the goals on the board for the critique itself gives the team constraints which they can reference and keeps the critique from straying to another context.  

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5. Avoid lengthy design explanations.

Do not start a critique with lengthy explanations of every frame of the design. There are two reasons for this: 

One reason is it takes up a significant amount of time which could be used to critique the design.

The second reason and probably even more important is explaining the design in depth beforehand takes away the ability of those critiquing the design to be able to look at it and explore the design from a fresh perspective. Giving them extensive prior knowledge of the design and intentions will decide how the team approaches the design and hinder their ability to identify comprehension issues. 

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6. Foster Individual experience of the design. 

Once the the design owner has been identified and design and meeting goals are posted it is a good idea to give some time for the team to silently review and take notes on the design work individually. 

Spending between 5 - 10 minutes reviewing the work on their own gives everyone the opportunity to experience the design work on individually and have time to review it in depth. This also undercuts groupthink as they have time to think which is not influenced by the opinions of their colleagues. 

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7. Seek negative and positive feedback.

Finding flaws in the designs during the mockup phase is crucial to the design process. Constructive criticism can allow for a list of problems to be addressed to help the design evolve into something better. Having a list of things that are working well is also good to have as the designer needs to know what aspects of their design are working well to accomplish the goal and therefore don’t need change. 

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8. Don’t design in the meeting; that job is reserved for the design’s owner.

Design critiques shouldn’t be used to resolve big design problems. It is alright to suggest different approaches, however too many cooks spoil the meal. Design work requires critical thinking and this may be done best. 

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9. Make sure to leave with a task list. 

Once an issue with the design has been noted; it should be changed into a task to be done later by the design owner and conversation should move on to the next subject to keep the meeting flowing and as efficient as possible. 

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Adhering to these guidelines, design critiques should flow better, be more efficient and productive.

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