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Aha Moments: Creative Practice Printable Deck
A download you print at home, so you can cut, fold, and hold your own deck of cards today.
- The cardsA PDF you print at home, cut, and fold, plus a screen version and phone pictures
- The backsShort exercises on the back of every card, ready to try today
$19
Your download link arrives by email the moment you pay. You have seven days to change your mind.
- Card fronts
- Card backs
- Short exercises
- Print at home
- A screen deck
- Phone pictures
- Cut and fold
- A QR code on every back
Good ideas show up when you make room to play.
You know the feeling. A meeting runs long, a project stalls, or a quiet evening needs something better than scrolling. You want a fresh way in, and you want the way in to be fun.
Each Aha Moments card holds one theme, like Craftsmanship, Jest, or Rest. Turn the card over and you find a few short exercises you can do on your own, with a friend, in a classroom, or with your team. Some are a journal page, some are a sticky note, and some are a good conversation.
The Creative Practice deck puts real cards in your hands today. Download the file, print the cards at home, cut them out, and fold each one in half. The screen version and the phone pictures come with it for the days you are away from your printer.
Would you rather play in your browser? The Aha Moments membership lets you play every card online at havensmith.company/aha.
I made the first Aha Moments cards to give designers fresh ideas.
In 2015, I noticed that most of the working designers around me had never used a creative technique deck. The few people who had were executives. That did not seem fair to me, so I wrote, designed, and published my own deck as printable cards and built workshops around them.
The research on creativity pointed the same way. Pressure and stress narrow our focus, and new ideas tend to arrive after we step away and feel at ease. Every card gives you permission to step away on purpose and come back with fresh eyes.
Each card holds one theme, and the themes fall into eight families: Fun, Self-reflection, Design fundamentals, Design research, Accessibility, Inclusive design, History of science and technology, and Trust.
See the front of every card in the deck.
Fun
Self-reflection
Design fundamentals
Design research
Accessibility
Inclusive design
History of science and technology
Trust
See every cardShow fewer cards
Fun
Fun
Fun
Fun
Fun
Fun
Fun
Self-reflection
Self-reflection
Self-reflection
Self-reflection
Self-reflection
Self-reflection
Self-reflection
Design fundamentals
Design fundamentals
Design fundamentals
Design fundamentals
Design fundamentals
Design fundamentals
Design research
Design research
Design research
Design research
Design research
Design research
Accessibility
Accessibility
Accessibility
Inclusive design
Inclusive design
History of science and technology
History of science and technology
History of science and technology
History of science and technology
History of science and technology
History of science and technology
History of science and technology
Trust
Trust
Trust
Trust
Trust
Trust
Print your own deck, and keep a copy on every screen.
Print at homeFold-over cards, front and back side by side, four to a page.Print at HomePrintable PDF
Print on regular paper or card stock, cut along the edge, and fold each card in half. You get a real deck without waiting for the mail.
Play on a screenEvery card, front and back, sized for a laptop or a TV.Screen DeckPDF
Share your screen in a meeting or a classroom, and turn the page to turn the card.
Keep it on your phoneA picture of the front and the back of every card.Phone picturesJPG images
Save the pictures to your photos, and you always have a card with you, in line, on a walk, or between meetings.
One scan awayA QR code on the back of every card.Card linksOn every card back
Scan the code to open that card on havensmith.company, where you can share the card with a friend.
What is true when you start playing.
- A fresh idea is always one card away.
- Your team has a fun way to start a meeting.
- Your classroom has a warm-up that gets everyone talking.
- Your journal has a new prompt whenever you want one.
- You can play on your own, with a friend, or with a whole room.
- Your own printed deck sits on your desk, ready to shuffle.
- Each exercise is short enough to try today.
Hi, I’m Ashley.
I have worked for more than twenty years in accessibility, trust and safety, and product research and design. I helped create many of the systems our day-to-day lives depend on: banking, payments, identity, and fraud protection. One of my roles was vice president of product research at JPMorgan Chase, and I hold a master’s degree in human factors and systems engineering.
I write books, teach, and build good products. Whatever brought you here, I’m glad you came.
Ashley
Read my storyYou have questions, and I have plain answers.
How do I get the files?
The moment you pay, an email arrives with your download link. Save the files to your own computer and phone. There is no account to create and nothing to log back into.
How do I print the cards?
Open the Print at Home PDF and print it on standard paper. Card stock feels best, and regular paper works too. Cut each card out and fold it in half, and the front and back line up.
Can I play with a group?
Yes. The deck works for a classroom, a team meeting, a workshop, or the family table. Put the Screen Deck up on a shared screen, or print a deck for each table.
How is this different from the membership?
This deck is a download you keep and print, so you hold real cards in your hands. The Aha Moments membership is $5 a month, and it lets you play every card online at havensmith.company/aha.
Is there a printed deck?
A printed deck in a tuck box is coming soon. Join the list, and I will email you the day it launches.
Can I share the files?
Play with as many people as you like. Please keep the files for yourself and the people you play with, and send friends here to get their own copy.
Can I get a refund?
Yes. Read it, try it, and if it is not what you wanted, write within seven days of buying it. A real person will get back to you soon with your refund.