14: Don’t just create a “safe space” – create a “brave space" – How to design your working life with Wouter Smeets from Prototype You

We are all prototypes, with a lifetime of learning ahead of us. That’s the insight that led Wouter Smeets to cofound Prototype You, an organisation that runs workshops to help people work towards their ideal work experience. For Wouter, the office is just another tool, and moving a mouse or typing at a keyboard are not signs of productivity. And conversely, sometimes working less is the better way to achieve good, sustainable work. Wouter is a Dutch entrepreneur, innovator and ideas guy that loves to hang out on the beach. By reinventing why and how we work, he helps move the needle towards a society that optimises wellbeing over wealth. As co-founder of Prototype You, he helps organisations create a positive impact on employee wellbeing, happiness and productivity through programs where employees experiment towards work-life harmony. Links Connect with Wouter on LinkedIn Prototype You Let My People Go Surfing: The Education of a Reluctant Businessman, by Yvon Chouinard Happy Startup Summercamp The Culture Code: The Secrets of Highly Successful Groups, by Daniel Coyle The Fearless Organization - Creating Psychological Safety in the Workplace for Learning, Innovation, and Growth, by Amy Edmondson David Bowie on why you should never play to the gallery Four Thousand Weeks, by Oliver Burkeman