The Shortlist

The Short(er) List: Better Home Offices

In the era of remote and hybrid work, your home office is either working for you or against you. And if you're reading this from your couch with a laptop balanced on a throw pillow—you might be ready for some improvements to your situation. In this episode of The Short(er) List, Becky sits down with guest Hanna Kaneko to tackle the space where the real work takes place, and where so many ergonomic decisions come into play. They dig into what it  takes to build a home office setup that supports a happy, healthy, and efficient day—and how to keep your mind right when the tether of the desk feels unbreakable. From lighting and layout to tools and temperature, they discuss the small upgrades that can make a big difference. No, you don't need a standing desk that costs more than your car. Yes, you probably do need to stop working from the kitchen table. Settle in and get ready for some tips! Your wrists, your eyes, your brain and your back will all thank you.

The Marketers!

What type of AEC marketer are you? Are you the Eagle Eye, catching every compliance detail? The Octopus, juggling a dozen priorities at once? The Cheerleader, keeping your team motivated? Or maybe the MacGyver; the marketer who always finds a way to save the day?! In this special episode of The Shortlist, the entire Middle of Six team jumps on the podcast to discuss "The Marketers"—MO6's wildcard personalities that celebrate the strengths and superpowers that make AEC marketers so unique and invaluable. Through personal stories, shared experiences, and plenty of laughter, the team spills the tea on how these traits show up in their daily work and how to leverage these strengths without getting pigeonholed into certain roles. Listen in, see which character sounds most like you, and take the quiz at middleofsix.com/wildcards.

The Short(er) List: Staying Grounded in AEC Marketing

There's always a lot going on in the world of AEC marketing. The deadlines are real, the pressure can build, and somewhere between all of the submittal requirements, check-in meetings, task lists, and marketing production, it's easy to get overwhelmed by the details and lose sight of the bigger picture. In this episode of The Short(er) List, Becky sits down with Grace Takehara for a conversation that has nothing to do with proposal strategy and everything to do with the person behind all that planning. They talk about finding balance (even in the small moments), setting up a home office that actually feels good to sit in, and how to make space to celebrate the wins—without immediately pivoting to the next thing. Whether you're thriving, surviving, or somewhere in the middle, we're got you covered with a conversation that is practical, honest, and committed to sparking joy in your day-to-day—because you deserve it!

What it's Like to Engage with Middle of Six

Have you ever wondered what it’s actually like to work with Middle of Six? In this episode of The Shortlist, Principals Wendy Simmons and Melissa Richey answer one of the most common questions they hear from AEC firms: “How does this even work?” From the first meet-and-greet conversation to onboarding, discovery sessions, project check-ins, and final deliverables, Wendy and Melissa walk through how MO6 plugs into teams to provide strategic marketing and business development support. And in classic MO6 style, they're transparent about the challenges many firms face before bringing on extra support, including back-to-back deadlines, budget constraints, team personalities, and even the fear of letting an outside consultant see behind-the-scenes. Leave those worries behind and hear first-hand how bringing on an outside perspective can add tremendous value to your in-house team.

The Short(er) List: Bluebeam Rumble!

In this episode of The Short(er) List, we're bringing you the software debate event of the century! Becky welcomes guest and sparring partner Katy Byers for knock-out, drag-out, no holds barred throwdown over the best tool for collecting proposal feedback from technical staff. Katy is team Bluebeam. Becky is not. She is very, very not. What follows is a good-natured and delightfully passionate argument about markups, workflows, and whether Bluebeam is a powerful proposal tool or just a PDF editor that engineers love a little bit too much. Becky makes her case for Adobe Share for Review. Katy holds her ground. Neither is backing down without a fight. No proposals were harmed in the making of this episode. Please leave your feedback for the team by highlighting text, adding a comment, or typing out a note in a red squiggly cloud—we're flexible, kind of.