#051 — Make Space for Life
Exploring the concept of yutori: the Japanese approach to creating space for what truly matters.
It’s so nice to see you!
This week, we’re exploring yutori, a Japanese concept that can help us reclaim balance and joy in our lives. Yutori is all about creating space — space in our schedules, our thoughts, and even our relationships. In our busy reality, where the rush never seems to end, what if we made room for something different? By making deliberate choices to do less and be more present, yutori offers a pathway to a calmer, more fulfilling life.
We’ve also noticed a lot of folks making the leap from X to Bluesky lately, and we’re right there with you! It’s been wonderful to connect with more of you over there, and honestly the interactions have been really refreshing and fun. Come join us and keep the conversation going — give us a follow on Bluesky to stay in touch.
And as always, we’ve also gathered some interesting links for you to enjoy. From timeless design inspirations to technological innovations and thoughtful reflections, there’s a lot to spark your curiosity this week.
Enjoy!
DISCOVER NEW STUFF
Your dose of curiosity
✻ While Jaguar’s recent rebranding sparked controversy, these vintage Jaguar print ads remind us of the brand’s golden era of advertising, where sophistication met wit in perfect harmony. Travel back to when car ads were an art form themselves.
✻ Speaking of old forms of art: journey through the fascinating evolution of web design with this comprehensive Web Design Museum archive, featuring everything from early ‘90s web aesthetics to the peak of Flash websites.
✻ A must-read interview with Jonathan Ive, where Apple’s former Chief Design Officer discusses his deep admiration for Dieter Rams and reflects on their shared design philosophies, from white product aesthetics to the importance of holistic approaches in design.
✻ As “House” turns 20, revisit the groundbreaking medical drama that paved the way for TV’s complex antiheroes and aged surprisingly well. The show that made Hugh Laurie a global star is finding new life with Gen Z viewers, proving that great storytelling and compelling characters truly are timeless.
✻ Fascinating new feature in Transit app: using your phone’s vibration patterns to track your location in subway tunnels, even without GPS. Through extensive data collection and machine learning, they’ve created an offline system that predicts your underground location with 90% accuracy, helping you never miss your stop again.
✻ Experience the wonders of Earth observation in a personal way with NASA’s interactive “Your Name in Landsat” tool, where you can create custom satellite images using letters formed by Earth’s natural features, captured over 50 years of Landsat missions. Here’s ours:
“Good design is a renaissance attitude that combines technology, cognitive science, human need, and beauty to produce something that the world didn’t know it was missing.”
– Paula Antonelli
GET INSPIRED
The Japanese Concept of Yutori
The word yutori itself can be translated as “room”, “margin”, or “ease”. It’s a concept that emerged in Japan as a response to the hyper-busy lifestyle that many found themselves trapped in. In its essence, yutori is about creating intentional space — both in time and in mind — to cultivate a more relaxed, thoughtful approach to life. It’s about doing fewer things with greater presence and creating pockets of calm amid the daily hustle.
In the Japanese education system, yutori represented a move towards reducing the immense pressure on students by introducing fewer school hours and more unstructured time to foster creativity and well-being. This shift — sometimes controversial — was a statement about the value of balance over relentless striving. In a society that often glorifies overworking, yutori was a bold declaration that well-being should be just as important as achievement.
In our everyday lives though, yutori can be a practice of not packing our schedules to the brim, allowing ourselves to breathe, and savoring the moments between tasks. This philosophy encourages us to create a margin for error, creativity, and — most importantly — joy. By giving ourselves space to simply be, we open the door to more fulfilling experiences and a deeper connection to the present moment.
How to Bring Yutori Into Your Daily Life
Adopting yutori can be surprisingly simple, yet deeply impactful. Here are some practical ways to start incorporating this philosophy into your life:
Schedule Less
Instead of cramming each day full, deliberately leave blank spaces in your calendar. Let those moments become opportunities for spontaneous joy — whether it’s a leisurely walk, a casual chat, or simply sitting quietly with your thoughts. Imagine how liberating it can feel to know that your day isn’t filled to the absolute limit, and there’s room for unexpected pleasures.
Single-Task with Intention
In a culture that prizes multitasking, yutori encourages us to do one thing at a time — mindfully. Whether it’s brewing a cup of coffee or having a conversation, give it your full attention. This approach leads to a deeper sense of satisfaction and helps reduce stress. Multitasking often leaves us feeling scattered, whereas single-tasking brings a sense of completeness and peace. For a more in-depth dive into this topic, check out one of our previous issues:
Designate Buffer Time
Add small buffers between meetings, activities, or even chores. These intervals create a cushion that can absorb delays, reducing the stress of running late and giving your mind a moment to reset. Imagine these buffers as tiny islands of peace amidst the chaos of a busy day, helping you transition smoothly between tasks rather than feeling like you’re constantly sprinting.
Embrace Silence
The modern world is loud. There’s no denying that. On the contrary, yutori means finding time for silence — switching off your phone, resisting the urge to fill every second with noise, and just listening. Silence can be incredibly nourishing for your mental state. Try spending a few minutes each day in complete stillness, allowing your mind to rest. It’s in these quiet moments that we often find clarity and insight.
Practice Gratitude for Small Moments
Yutori invites us to find beauty in the mundane. Notice the way sunlight filters through your curtains or the warmth of a loved one’s smile. Cultivating gratitude for these small experiences adds spaciousness to your perspective. When we learn to appreciate the tiny details of our everyday lives, we begin to realize that contentment often comes from within rather than from grand achievements.
Create Rituals of Relaxation
Incorporate small rituals that bring comfort and calm into your routine. Perhaps it’s enjoying a cup of coffee or tea every afternoon, lighting a candle in the evening, or listening to soothing music before bedtime. These rituals can become anchors that ground you, especially on hectic days. Such positive rituals add a sense of rhythm to our lives, providing moments to look forward to event amidst the daily busyness.
Yutori in Relationships
Yutori isn’t just about how we relate to time; it also transforms our interactions with others. By slowing down, we create room for deeper listening and understanding in our relationships. Imagine giving someone your complete focus — without distractions or a rushed mindset. The quality of those connections can truly blossom in the space yutori provides.
Think of this as a way to intentionally show up for the people you love, offering them one of the best gifts you can possibly give in today’s world: your unhurried attention. It’s a way to build strong relationships that are more meaningful and less transactional. When we approach our relationships with yutori in mind, we’re not just physically present; we are emotionally available, fully engaged in the moments we share with others.
In our busy lives, it’s easy for conversations to become superficial, mere exchanges of information rather than genuine moments of connection. Yutori encourages us to ask deeper questions, to listen without planning our response, and to be truly curious about the people around us. This depth can lead to stronger bonds and a greater sense of belonging. It’s a win-win situation for both sides of the conversation!
Why Yutori Matters Now
In an era where burnout is increasingly common, yutori offers a gentle, yet radical way to push back against the hustle culture. It’s not about abandoning ambition (never!), but about ensuring that our drive to achieve doesn’t come at the cost of our well-being. By building a bit more spaciousness into our days, we can actually enhance our creativity and resilience — qualities that thrive when given room to breathe.
Creating yutori is an act of self-care and, in a broader sense, self-respect. It’s recognizing that life’s beauty often lies not in how much we do, but in how fully we experience what we choose to do. There’s a profound strength in stepping back and allowing space, both in our schedules and in our minds, to foster a sense of peace and fulfillment.
Moreover, yutori can serve as a form of quiet rebellion against a society that often equates worth with productivity. By choosing to slow down, we’re making a statement that our value isn’t tied to how much we accomplish, but to our capacity for joy, connection, and presence. This mindset shift is powerful — it allows us to redefine success on our own terms.
By giving ourselves permission to do less, we may find that what we do is ultimately more meaningful. Our creative ideas flourish when they’re not under constant pressure, our energy levels stabilize, and our sense of purpose becomes clearer. Yutori isn’t just a way to manage time; it’s a way to enrich the time we have, to bring more color and depth to our lives.
Reflect & Act
As you go into the next week, we invite you to think about where you might create some yutori in your life. What commitments could you ease up on to allow more space for yourself? How can you bring more presence into your everyday activities?
Take a moment to evaluate your schedule. Are there activities or commitments that drain you more than they fulfill you? If so, consider whether they’re truly necessary. Even if it lasts for just one week, try leaving a few blank spots in your calendar, and see how it feels to have those moments of unscheduled time. Who knows, maybe this philosophy will stick with you for much longer…
Feel free to share your thoughts or how you’re implementing yutori in your life. Reply to this e-mail or drop a comment! Your experiences could inspire others in our community to embrace this gentle, mindful way of living.
Until next time, let’s embrace the beauty of doing less, and doing it well.
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Love it. I think about how to be less rushed and busy a lot lately. I’ve been experimenting with time productivity tools and colour scheduling in my calendar but not enough breaks between tasks. I feel I will start by actually scheduling ‘Yutori’ time between things and having clear gaps in the day to just ‘be’ and not have anything planned and seeing what I feel called to ‘do’ or just do nothing and stare out the window! Love it. Thanks for the inspiration
Interesting, lately I have found myself making very similar changes in life to this, great to know I'm on to something, and there is even a name for it!
Enjoyed this, thanks 😀