profile

Wild Ducks

For creatives on non-traditional career paths

Join 7,000+ readers for reflections by Melinda Livsey, designer turned strategist, as she explores staying true to oneself when the world wants to tame you.

Posts
Featured Post

Behind the scenes of a fav rebrand project

Hi friend, A few months back I shared how I was part of a Design Residency team doing an on-site rebrand. It was so dreamy. At that time, the rebrand hadn’t launched yet so I couldn’t share anything… but I finally can! The project was for Anker, a Puget Sound design center, botanical garden and wedding venue in Kitsap County, WA. If you want to see the behind the scenes (and even a video documenting our time on site) you can see it here. The video is halfway down the page. One of my favorite...

1 day ago • 1 min read

I’ve been feeling uninspired lately as I surf the inter-webs. Don’t worry, this message isn’t all doom and gloom. I have an idea with a dash of hope! I even deleted Instagram and LinkedIn from my phone for the past few weeks as a way to unplug from what felt like a parasitic relationship where my brain was being sucked right out of my eyeballs. As I look for the weird and wild… the things that stretch my thinking and lead me down curious rabbit holes… all I find are dead ends… A screen full...

6 months ago • 2 min read

“Would you like an American or Italian breakfast?” The waiter asked as I sat down in a cafe in Rome back in February. I laughed to myself as I thought about an article I read a few days prior about why we Americans love our bacon and egg breakfast, and typically choose it over something lighter like an Italian breakfast of coffee and a pastry. It’s not just because bacon is delicious. It’s because a company wanted us to want it so they could sell more. And they hired the father of PR, Edward...

6 months ago • 2 min read

Hi friend! I remember seeing a TV show when I was a kid about someone who found a map in a thrift store that ended up being worth thousands of dollars. And that’s when my love for finding treasure, hidden in plain sight, was born. I believe there might be something of value* sitting right in front of me, even if I’m not able to see it yet. That belief not only makes thrifting fun, it’s been the cure for my creative anxiety… ya know, the anxiety and cold sweats you get from being handed a...

7 months ago • 2 min read

Hi friend! It's been awhile since I last wrote to you and I'm happy to be back! With the constant stream of headlines lately, I've found moments of reflection refreshing. I'm here to share what's been on my mind about creative work through it all. More on what I've been up to at the end of this email. — “My style comes from my limitations.” A few weeks ago, a coaching client said this wonderful phrase and I’ve been thinking about it ever since. It’s so easy to think of our limitations as bad...

8 months ago • 3 min read