Luis Ouriach
Designer Advocate
Welcome to the third edition of Async Chats! This letter is all about candid conversations with people like yourself. If you’d like some more context see this letter. Otherwise, let’s get into this.
Luis Ouriach is a Designer Advocate. He is located in London, UK and is a hybrid worker.
Why hybrid work?
I visit our office maybe once or twice per week, depending on whether I need to collaborate or just want to see some faces! My main team is based in the US, so my London team isn’t one that I work with all that much but it’s great to familarise yourself with the wider business.
What are your interests outside of work?
I love to cook, and I miss traveling a lot. Pre pandemic, I tried to plan a trip every 3 months or so, and now mostly dream about getting back to that kind of reality. As a result, my hobbies have definitely become more work focussed, building my 8px side project with articles and a new podcast.
What are some of your favorite digital or physical tools?
I’m a big fan of simple products done well. I’m in love with Dropbox Paper, Loom, and Reincubate Camo (an iPhone webcam app).
Do you prefer to work/ communicate asynchronously or synchronously? Why?
I get distracted very easily, but also need communication to feel like I’m part of a team, which means that I think I’m a bit of both. I find myself, given the timezone nature of my job, spending every morning catching up on communication from the day before, and then working a bit more async throughout the day.
Questions of the week:
Based on this edition of The Gray Area.
In your opinion, why are newsletters so popular right now?
For me it’s because they can be consumed when you’re ready. Or not at all, and that’s totally fine. The world won’t end if you miss a newsletter, but your day can become significantly brighter when you read a good one. It’s the flexibility that keeps me coming back.
What does this shift mean for writers and, more broadly, creators?
Anyone can publish a newsletter, which is both a good and a bad thing. The openness of them means that if you have an idea you can potentially reach a lot of people very easily, but this has its drawbacks because of the lack of filtering or editing. There have been many times when I’ve published something with a typo, or a hilarious mistake (I once wrote Michael Jackson instead of Michael Jordan), but no one was there to catch it. With great flexibility comes great responsibility.
Why do you write your newsletter Milk, No Sugar?
I’m not the biggest fan of small talk – “how about that weather!” – and in order for me to try and remove it from conversations I want to help equip people with cool stuff to talk about. Whether it’s a long read article about the history of typography, or a piece about productivity, it should hopefully inspire you to talk less about the mundane and build better connections.
How has writing this letter made you feel?
It has honestly made me a better writer. Putting words on a page consistently over the course of many years will inevitably help you firstly grow your voice, but secondly be able to produce work fast and at a higher quality.
In your opinion, are there any downsides to writing newsletters over a blog or longer form publication?
The one thing I do find scary is that everyone receiving your newsletter is consuming and you have no idea how they feel about it. Was this week’s newsletter good, bad, the worst thing they’ve ever read? The community side is an opportunity for newsletter publishers for sure.
What have you learned about writing newsletters or in general, since starting Milk, No Sugar?
You never really know what someone is going to like. It links back to the blindness of publishing a newsletter that it’s effectively you opening up and being vulnerable to an audience who you don’t know, and there being potential positive or negative reactions to that. Doing it all for free is another aspect which can oftentimes feel like a burden, but the passion for writing will always sustain.
What is something few people know about you?
I was in your position once.
Anything new or important you’d like to mention to the readers?
My publication, podcast, and soon to be design newsletter 8px.
Links
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