Refe Tuma | SpeakerHub

Personal Details

Bio

Openness and imagination are the fuel and spark of childhood. What if you could recapture that sense of wonder as an adult—as a parent, artist, employee, entrepreneur, or CEO?

Learn to engage with your life and work with the energy of play. After all, who says adulating can't be fun?

Refe Tuma is the author of the WHAT THE DINOSAURS DID book series and co-creator of Dinovember, a month-long celebration of childhood imagination found in more than 60 countries around the world. He lives in Kansas City with his wife and co-author/creator/conspirator Susan Tuma and their four kids.

Current position (2)

Author, Founder

Dinovember, LLC

Experience Designer

DST, Inc

Presentations

Presentations (5)

Get Messy: A Manifesto

Messy=bad, right? Maybe not.

Beautiful things can emerge from a mess — strength and purpose, confidence and trust, empathy and love; people who bring more to the world around them than they take.

Every scraped knee, bloody nose, and bruised ego is as unique as a fingerprint, pressing and pinching us, shaping who we are in ways utterly unpredictable. Each one speaks of a risk we’ve taken and messes we’ve made.

How to Survive the Post Viral Hustle

In 2013, I wrote an article that was shared over 30 million times, featured on Good Morning America, and syndicated to countless publications across the world. It landed my wife and I a two book publishing deal, a movie option, and opened doors to opportunities we never could have imagined.

But what happened when the excitement wore off?

Going viral was an exhilarating experience, but the real story lies in what happened next.

Everything is Better in Community

Community for community's sake rarely lasts. Why? Because true community is built around meaningful shared experiences. It often begin with a single idea—for us it was a box of plastic dinosaurs and a desire to ignite our kids' imaginations.

How to Spark a Child's Imagination

From dressing up as Santa Claus to acting as the Tooth Fairy, grown-ups have always found ways to inspire a little wonder in their kids’ lives. The fact that Mom and Dad (or Aunt or Uncle, or Teacher or Librarian), or play a part in the mystery doesn’t make this wonder any less real. The imagination of a child is something to be encouraged and celebrated. Sometimes, a few plastic dinosaurs are all you need to get started.

The Design Historian

You’ve been tasked with a new feature or enhancement. It must be beautiful, efficient, and frictionless—and they need it Monday. When you’re building a product release by release, how do you ensure each new iteration moves it in the right direction? Remember: it’s our job to design the forest, even when we’re only asked for a tree.

The role of UX Designer offers a unique opportunity to dream big (designing with the product roadmap and Ideal State in mind) even while shipping small (nailing the details of each new enhancement). This can be achieved using methods like vision workshops and ideal state documentation, as well as the implementation of next-wave UX processes like Dual Track Design. It takes a little storytelling, a little product management, and a lot of execution.

After all, history is written by the victors.

Past talks (3)

Everything is Better in Community

Delight Conference

Portland, OR

December 31, 2013

Don't Let Imagination Go Extinct

Creative Mornings

Oslo, Norway

December 31, 2014

A Messy Adventure

Storytime in the Atrium