The last month of Q4 is always a good time to assess the year. To take note of successes and failures. And if applicable, celebrate important milestones and reflect on formative regrets. One milestone this year would be Willie Nelson rocking Neligh, Nebraska in the T-shirt I designed. Stoked on that for sure. One regret would be the realization that I’d been had. Being fooled is no fun, but this particular time it turned out to be an incredibly motivating experience. It led to refocused energy and new priorities where, in the end, I was loads happier and way more fulfilled with the work I was doing. There’s certainly still regret looking back, as I never like wasted efforts. But now I do have more healthy skepticism when it comes to what people/things say they do. Which helps keep ideas grounded in reality and usually means more successes for everyone involved.
Is it always right up to it?
Do we have to always come right down to the wire? Must it always be pushed to the bitter end? Yes, of course, and probably. Why does it have to be this way? Just because. You ever have those times when you finished early and you were able to twiddle your thumbs? Sure you did. And what happened? Mediocrity, that’s what. We push on to the bitter end because we want things to go as far as they can in the constraints we have. We don’t want to be workaholics, but when we’re working, we’re really working. It’s on, as they say. And we squeeze every ounce of creativity out of any idea until we arrive at the wire and we can call it good just in time. Then we’re on to the next.
Gratitude
I got the best email the other day. It was from a client, partner, friend. She was absolutely ecstatic about a print piece we did together that had just returned from the printer. She was so grateful for all the work that went into it, and in turn, I was so grateful to be able to do the project. With some clients, mostly the smaller ones, who painstakingly work within small budgets and are extra mindful of time, cost and outcomes, there’s a level of mutual gratitude that is really something to marvel at. When working with someone where what he or she does is a life passion and has all of themselves poured into it, it’s not something I take lightly. Sleep can be lost, project obsession can take over and schedules can get a little chaotic, especially as we get down to the wire. But the outcomes can be magical and is why being a designer can be a wonderful thing.
Woe Email
I think I used to be good at email. Really on top of it. Nothing ever slipped through the cracks. I received and I responded in a timely manner. Communication quality was high and thorough. Across the board. Sadly, that is no longer the case. Why? It’s nothing personal, I just have a lot to do. And anyone out there who has been on the non-receiving end of expected email communications from me, consider this a blanket apology. I’m trying to be better, because it’s bumming me out not being on top of my all important inbox. Honest. It might end up being a 2015 new year’s resolution or something. Regardless, I hope there are no ill feelings due to my tardiness. Very soon, though not as soon as I’d hoped, it will be remedied.
AIGA, Nebraska Style
Looking forward to being in a room full of people who are there to show support for each other. Our little chapter of AIGA is having their annual awards show tomorrow. I’ve said it before, our awards show is just a big party. A celebration of hard work done for great clients with exceptional results. We get to hear from notable judges, see a bunch of great work and hang out with a fabulous community of folks. With Nebraska beer, tasty food and maybe a couple wins, it’ll be good times for sure. No fuss, no pretense, no silos, and no table seating. Nebraska style. If you’re heading down to KANEKO for the event, I’ll see you there.
Few Words
Using few words helps you say what you really mean. Using few words helps you focus your message. Using few words reduces the fluff and the repetitiveness. Using few words makes you work. There’s a comfort to the idea of the next paragraph. You think to yourself that if someone doesn’t quite get what you’re saying here, then he or she will for sure get it when the next group of words are read. Perhaps. But if this stuff is boring the next paragraph won’t get read anyway. And the work that would go into those extra words would go to waste. Best to spend the time that would’ve been spent on all those other words on these few instead.
(Your Thing) Speak
I like rubbing elbows with people who aren’t designers. I attended a TED Active conference a few years back and that’s what I enjoyed most. Writers, activists, advocates, technologists, entertainers, organizers, etc. All people who did creative, progressive things that had nothing to do with type, colors, brands, Adobe or Dribbble. I learned so much while at the same time sharing a lot about what a designer like myself does. But after a long week, last Friday I met a fellow designer for a drink to discuss a potential project. He’s also independent. Aside from the specific work possibility, we talked process, cost, collaboration, animation, 3-year plans, Adobe and Dribbble. A great conversation highly beneficial on both sides because we both “design speak.” Totally refreshing. A charge that shook out some of the cobwebs. Whatever it is you speak, make sure you have someone to speak it with.
