I used to think perfect was a thing. Something to strive for. Something to go after. But with any type of creative work, it isn’t the end that’s why you do it, but the beginning and middle, the climax and conclusion. It’s the journey, as they say. And striving for perfect is not only missing the point, it can be harmful to the work you do. When you’re in it—the thinking, the making, the trying, the failing—thinking about a perfect end result gums up the works. It gets in the way. It misleads you. For creation’s sake, we must stop doing this. We need to give up on perfect and just make, make, make and try, try, try. Get rid of perfect, have more fun, and make better stuff. It’s that simple.
Getting paid on time, mostly
Getting paid on time is great. The majority of the time, I get paid on time. When that happens, there are signals that get sent out. I feel valued. I feel like the client really gets what we’re doing. They understand that what I do is my livelihood. They know that without money there would be no designer. They ask for design deadlines to be hit and in return, they get me the needed funds in a timely manner. And then, as I’m working on their project, I feel like everyone is playing their part. Mutually assured collaboration. Yep.
To get better at X, you just have to do X more
To get better at writing, you have to write more. To get better at public speaking, you have to speak in public more. To get better at designing, you have to design more. To get better at anything, you just have to do it more. It takes work. Hard work. You simply have to put in the time. No short cuts. No pure talent right from birth. Just work. Always. If you want to get better, that’s all you need to do.
Happy Pinning!
Pinterest is an odd beast. It is a lovely platform but it’s still low on my list of social networks to put time into, whether personally or for clients. I have started using it again periodically with a focus on it being a resource for JKDC. In my mind, Pinterest was really amazing in the beginning when mostly beautiful things were pinned to it. And then as it got more popular, it suffered overall as uninspiring brands and people without taste uploaded things that weren’t beautiful or just didn’t fit the overall platform vibe. Now, aside from adding my own inspiration when it comes to design, web, music, film, and books, it has been handy to catalog mood boards for client projects. And I even have a design portfolio section. (Oh dear God, not more portfolio pushing!) It seems like a good use of a board—to have a solid set of beautiful pins of my favorite work. Sort of like Dribbble, but more for the masses. Anyway, yeah, Pinterest. A thing again for me. Happily pinning over this way »
It will all snowball I guarantee it
In between periods of steady work when all is golden and you can do no wrong, there will always be lows. When nothing clicks. When everything just kinda sucks. When anything you do has some uncomfortable barrier of resistance. You won’t get the content you need, the process will seemingly fall apart, people won’t get the wireframes, or the designs will not be liked. Sometimes this will happen all at the same time. Then approval will get reversed and that project that didn’t come in will all-of-a-sudden need to be done faster than you originally thought. (Can you still make it happen?) That client still hasn’t paid you and now it’s tax time. The budget will get whittled down and then whittled some more. All the while more features will try to be snuck in for this and for that. Computer on the fritz! (Silence, silence.) You’re tired and frustrated and then, voila! It all starts to come together. It all moves in the right direction. It all feels right. And this is why you do what you do. For the thrill of it all. Aren’t you glad you stuck it out?
What are you doing to attract dream projects?
For the most part, I work with nonprofits, activists, and other creatives on progressively minded projects. For some sort of social cause. After 6 years of being independent, that’s expanded to include interesting startups, a University, and other small businesses I think are rad.
I really think small is beautiful. And local is beautiful since I do care about this place where I live. Small Omaha projects are just as engaging as bigger, national things. And often more rewarding because of how the work is used in the community. I’m just not all that into big brands.
Film and music and other culturally interesting efforts I enjoy and hope to do more by being more aggressive in approaching the people I really want to work with, rather than just letting the work come to me.
So to answer the question, I share the type of work I want to do more of. I write about that type of work and I have strong opinions about that type of work. And I’m out in the community participating in that type of work with the people who are making those types of projects happen.
Is there a job out there that has it all?
No, I’m going to say “no” firmly and hold to it. The quest for the perfect job is certainly a noble one. There was a time when I was obsessed with that quest. With establishing my criteria on multiple fronts and trying to get stars to align. The problem was that it became a quest for perfection. It was less about a new experience and more about finding the thing I was meant to do. This thinking became a trap and I was rendered immoveable until I finally just went for something.
I’m not saying you should make job decisions willy-nilly and jump to the next thing whenever it suits you. But I am saying to not be concerned with making sure a particular job has everything you’re looking for and will be a sure bet. There are no guarantees and no job is perfect. Whether you’re building your own business or with a stellar firm doing the type of work you want to be doing, there are always things missing. Always drawbacks. Look at a job as an opportunity to grow, change, and to be surprised by things you currently know nothing about.
