For slow internet connections:
Click here to watch the video on YouTube.

 

The six phases of the ESPICE Framework:

 

 

 

 

 

 

1. Envision – This is where we define our vision, the north star that guides us.
2. Survey – Here we prepare for our journey by mapping out our current situation.
3. Plan – This is where we design our path towards our vision.
4. Implement – Here we are on the journey, actively moving towards our vision.
5. Celebrate – This is where we remind ourselves to celebrate often.
6. Evaluate – We reflect on our journey and prepare for the next cycle.

 

Video Transcription:

In the last lesson we talked about the project you will complete during this class, which is using the ESPICE Framework to design your life. ESPICE is an acronym for the six phases of the framework which are Envision, Survey, Plan, Implement, Celebrate and Evaluate. Each lesson in this class focuses on a different phase of the framework, so you will learn how to use it as we go. In this lesson I want to give you an overview of the framework before we dive in to each phase in the rest of the class.

The first phase of the framework is Envision. This is where we define our vision. It will be our north star and guide us as we navigate the changing circumstances and distractions of every day life.

The second phase is Survey. Here we prepare for our journey by mapping out important information such as resources, patterns and risks that might be ahead.

The third phase is Plan. This is where we design our path towards our vision.

The fourth phase is Implement. Here we embark on our journey, using tools and strategies that optimize our day to day actions.

The fifth phase is Celebrate. Now that we are on our journey we celebrate to fuel our moral and keep our spirits high. This is a reminder for us to celebrate our small wins as well as our big ones.

The sixth phase is Evaluate. Here we reflect on our journey so far and prepare for the next iteration. We check our navigation tools to make sure we’re on the right track and correct our course when needed.

The ESPICE framework is an iterative process which means that it runs in cycles. Instead of getting it perfect the first time around, we focus on improving from one iteration to the next.

This dynamic design is flexible enough to address life’s complexity, allowing us to adapt to emerging circumstances while always moving towards our vision.

This iterative process addresses many of the issues found in conventional ways of creating things. They often include elaborate planning and implementation phases only to discover that the outcome is outdated by the time it’s ready.

With ESPICE, instead of elaborate plans we run quick experiments. We move forward in iterations, which are short cycles of thinking and doing. As we go we collect real data from our actions and use it to improve our idea from one iteration to the next. This means that the more cycles of the framework we complete, the more refined our ideas become.

The iterative process prioritizes forward motion. Instead of trying to get it perfect the first time around we embrace the idea of learning through our mistakes.

This might take some time to get used to as many of us are conditioned to avoid making mistakes. This is reinforced by most modern school systems that punish mistakes and reward perfectionism through things like test scores.

The paradox is that creativity is fueled by mistakes. Every human invention worth mentioning was crafted through the process of trial and error. This process is crucial if we want to find creative solutions in the complexity of our lives.

The ESPICE framework is like a fractal that can be scaled and used for pretty much everything, from planning and executing projects of all sizes to designing your life, which is what we will use it for in this course.

In this lesson we introduced the different phases of the ESPICE Framework. We also talked about the iterative process and how we move in cycles of improvement instead of trying to perfect things the first time around. We also covered how important it is to create safe opportunities to fail, so that we can learn quickly and improve our ideas.

In the next lesson we will see how to complete the first phase of the framework, which is the Envision phase. During this phase we will define our vision which will be our north star and will guide us throughout the process. I’ll see you there.