Think Fast Talk Smart: Communication Techniques 260. From Role To Soul: The Four Ingredients For Mastering Meaning
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Feb 2, 2026 
Bill Burnett, Stanford Life Design Lab director and design-thinking professor, and Dave Evans, co-founder of the Lab and product design lecturer, share practical approaches to crafting a meaningful life. They discuss purpose as direction, the compass and coherence tools, prototyping futures with odyssey plans, and the four ingredients of meaning: coherence, wonder, flow, and community.
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Meaning Is A Direction
- Meaning is a direction, not a fixed destination; people are a becoming, always changing.
- Focus on going north (the right direction) rather than finding one static purpose.
Use Human-Centered Design First
- Start with people and empathy before defining problems when using design thinking.
- Ideate broadly, then prototype and test your way forward.
Prototype With Conversations
- Prototype your future by having conversations or experiences with people living the life you imagine.
- Use these prototyping conversations to gather experiential data, not transactional facts.
