Building a Second Brain
Creating a scalable identity for a rapidly growing educational program
Building a Second Brain
Creating a scalable identity for a rapidly growing educational program
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Building a Second Brain is a cohort-based online learning program that helps people manage information, organize knowledge, and work more intentionally. As the course rapidly expanded beyond its early audience of productivity enthusiasts and technologists, its visual identity needed to evolve alongside it—reflecting a more polished, approachable, and premium experience while remaining true to its innovative roots.
THE CHALLENGE: The original brand had earned recognition among a highly technical audience, but the program had outgrown its initial identity (there was a logo, but no designed system). The refreshed brand needed to appeal to a broader community of professionals, creatives, educators, and lifelong learners without losing the curiosity and experimentation that made the program distinctive. The system also needed to work across an expanding ecosystem of touchpoints, from online learning experiences and marketing materials to apps, bestselling books, and in-person environmental graphics. MY ROLE: I independently designed the visual identity system, grounding design decisions in audience research and firsthand experience with the course itself. My responsibilities included:
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PROJECT SUMMARY Role: Branding strategist and designer Responsibilities: • Audience research • Comprehensive visual identity system, including illustrated graphic elements • Documentation • Templates • Art direction • Subbrand design • Implementation including books and environmental graphics Focus: Appeal to more mainstream audiences while reflecting its basis in technology systems |
Building the system
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To better understand the audience and the learning experience, I completed the five-week course before beginning the redesign.
The resulting identity balances digital precision with warmth and approachability. A modular circuitry-inspired graphic language reflects the course's technological foundations while adapting flexibly across print and digital applications. A distinctive geometric typeface introduces personality without sacrificing readability, while a restrained color palette accented with vibrant highlights conveys both sophistication and creative energy. Rather than functioning as decorative elements, each component was designed as part of a cohesive system that could grow alongside the organization and remain recognizable across a wide variety of communications. |
Logo redesigned
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As the acronym was so frequently used as a shorthand for the program name, I leaned into that direction with a refreshed mark. After exploring many abstract representations of a brain for a symbol, we decided not to use a brain for better legibility at smaller scales. A
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Original logo
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The refreshed logo
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Guidebook
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To support adoption, I developed a comprehensive brand guide documenting the system's principles and applications, along with a reusable library of graphic assets that enabled efficient content creation across the organization.
The guidebook was designed not simply to document visual styles, but to help future contributors understand the rationale behind the system and apply it consistently as the brand continued to evolve The brand media kit is here. Or, click to view only the guidebook. |
Click to view guidebook
Applications
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During the rebrand, founder Tiago Forte was writing his first book based on the course. I created diagrams and illustrations for the manuscript and explored cover concepts that extended the new visual identity into publishing. The final cover was developed separately by Atria Books, but shared several visual ideas from these explorations.
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Click to view sample of workbook
Implementing at scale
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Following the rebrand, I applied the system across publishing and live events, extending the visual language while tailoring it to the constraints and goals of each medium.
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Print book (interior design and illustrations)
Designing a bestselling book within the identity system
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Following the success of his first book, when Tiago Forte began writing his much-anticipated second book, Atria Books (Simon & Schuster) commissioned me to design the interior and create the book’s visual language.
Working within the publisher's production constraints—including a two-color printing process—I designed the complete interior layout and created more than 50 diagrams, illustrations, patterns, and supporting graphics that translated complex ideas into clear, engaging visuals. The project demonstrated how the broader Building a Second Brain identity could extend naturally into long-form editorial design and storytelling. Like Tiago’s first book, this, too, went on to become a Wall Street Journal bestseller. |
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Samples of illustrations for the book:
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Event brand design
Extending the identity to a global community event
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As Forte Labs prepared for its first in-person conference, Second Brain Summit, I expanded the identity system for an immersive event experience.
The venue’s large minimalist architecture created an opportunity for a bolder visual expression. Building on the existing identity, I introduced electric glow treatments and environmental graphics that brought greater energy to the space while remaining recognizably part of the BASB brand. Beyond designing banners, wayfinding, signage, badges, stickers, and presentation templates, I proposed interactive moments—including collaborative welcome graphics and conversation prompts—that encouraged attendee participation and reinforced the community-centered nature of the educational event. The conference welcomed more than 200 attendees, with nearly half traveling internationally. |
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Sharing the thinking In addition to designing the conference experience, I presented “Building a Stronger Brand,” a session exploring the strategy and design process behind the Building a Second Brain identity. Using the project as a case study, I shared broader principles for brand design, helping attendees think beyond aesthetics to the role of systems in creating cohesive experiences. |
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