Brian is the Founder of Authentik, Studio Press, and a Partner at Rainmaker Digital. Brian is a champion of community, and he loves minimalist design and believes in white space. He is a well known and influential leader and minimalist designer in the WordPress community and marketplace.
My connection to Brian Gardner began when I decided to take the Forward Thinking Workplaces website to the next level. That search led me to Brian Gardner and his work, which I soon embraced. But I also came to know that Brian was mastering the art of creating his own workplace where he could thrive and work independently and with others. While most of the Forward Thinking Workplaces interviews address the traditional workplace, Brian brings innovation and clarity to creating our own workplaces where more and more of us are now moving to in greater numbers.
Brian, welcome to this forum and thank you for contributing to the questions that are at the heart of Exploring Forward-Thinking Workplaces 2.0 where we are uncovering the footprints that lead to the Forward-Thinking human and workplace.
How can we create a workplace where every voice matters, everyone thrives and finds meaning, and change and innovation happen naturally?
Brian Gardner: First off, it depends on whether you’re referring to your own workplace at home — for those who are solo entrepreneurs like myself — or those who work in buildings and offices with other people.
As a creative, it’s very important for me to have a palette that allows me to paint the pictures I want to paint. If I have a busy atmosphere, then I’m not going to be able to clear my mental clutter and create the things I want to create. I think a lot of it is just the general space you’re in. Whether it’s pictures, or furniture or even music in the background. For me, those are all key elements to creating something that helps me thrive.
I just wrote a blog post on Authentik on creating more and consuming less. First, you need to give yourself the opportunity to step outside of the office if you will. I do a lot of my best creative thinking either on the trail or in the shower. The idea is to create enough of that time so you can come up with those things. But then follow it up with time where you’re back at the desk or back in front of the computer, so you can expand those thoughts that you had into something that’s more meaningful.