I can be a fairly no-nonsense member of a creative team. I tend to fall back on a Fight Club style of collaborating. Very much a “you decide your own level of involvement” sort of thing. How much do you want it? Do you have to be asked? Are you willing to keep going? Will you stay on top of it? Can you really deliver? These questions constantly go through my head on a project. They’ve become a good set of guide posts to make sure my involvement level is high and the work being designed is up to the challenge. No shirking, no short-cuts, no phoning it in.
The city of Seattle
Last week, my wife and I spent a few days in Seattle, WA. My first real visit to the city; part business, part vacation. We were able to see the final project of Joe Sparano (now a Master of Design) at the U-Dub. I reconnected with a TEDActive friend to talk design, foundations, and film. We hit up the EMP (Nirvana exhibition!), went to the top of the Space Needle, strolled through Pike Place, wandered around the Central Public Library, and ferried to Bainbridge Island. And, of course, we toured the new KEXP.
Seattle is quite a city. It was unusually sunny and 70+ the whole time, which was lovely. And the pulse was undeniable. We walked all over downtown, jumped on the light rail, and took Uber when needed. We enjoyed some truly amazing restaurants and had plenty of fine drink. We got a sense of the challenges; a city in flux, large crane development seemingly everywhere we looked, the slow rumble of heavy traffic, and a sizable homeless population. Mostly, we felt the creativity, the vibrancy, and the possibility.
There’s a rattle and hum that bigger cities have. It makes them great and it makes them vulnerable, at the same time. All sorts of people colliding into each other trying to make their way, to make their mark, in whatever way they know. The musician, the construction worker, the waitress, the tour guide, the fisherman, the student. All doing what they do. Rattle and hum, struggle and dream, create and evolve. We can’t stay put, and so we don’t, on a large scale, under clouds on top of concrete. What comes next is anybody’s guess.
Sometimes the only thing left to do is to get obsessed
To go deep. To get crazy. To stay in the zone and cut off your ties to the outside world. It can be complicated. It can be exhausting. But it also can lead to great things. Get obsessed. Get absorbed. And really get after it. You can watch TV when you retire and you can sleep when you’re dead. Although, I do function poorly on lack of sleep and the thought of pulling an all-nighter is a non-starter for me. So yeah, know your limits and then get obsessed.
Where’s your element?
That place where you’re at your best. Your wheelhouse. The zone. Where you really feel it. And it all comes together for you. When I was a kid, I’d travel with my dad in the semi as he drove truck across America. I noticed something different about him when he was behind the wheel. I now understand that he was in his element out there living the dream of the open road, working hard for a living, in command of his destiny. I’ve seen this with many creatives in different situations—selling it in a client presentation, humming along behind the computer, commanding the elements on a photoshoot, or standing over a sketch pad ordering ideas into existence. It’s really a magical thing to behold.
Every creative has a place where they’re in their element. It’s impossible to be there all the time, but it’s key to know where that special place is so you can call on it when it needs to be called on and you can get there when you really need to deliver the goods.
Everyone needs to keep a Journal
And it needs to be public. Read: Joe Sparano is a solid dude. That’s all that really needs to be said here. I just prefer to have these blog posts go to at least 3 lines.
What are you thinking about these days?
I like this question as an opener for fellow creatives. They’re certainly working on something, but I’m also curious what they’re thinking about. I used to think a lot about design as activism, community engagement, and “good design” projects. These days I’m thinking a lot about process, building teams, and getting new progressive clients who are working on interesting ideas. Regardless of where you’re at, I’m curious.
I had lunch last Friday with Craig Hughes (Studio Polymath). He’s thinking about lots of interesting stuff — design anthropology, running a business, what to do with his new master’s degree, etc. All of which made for a really excellent way to the end the week.
So with that, what are you thinking about these days?
Remember to be kind, please close the loop
I try to make it a priority to always close the loop on a potential project or collaboration. If we’ve spent time working out some initial details together, it seems obvious that if we decide to not move forward for whatever reason, we should at least conclude officially. No just letting it hang out there in the abyss. If we exchange emails, talk on the phone, or meet in person, that definitely means I should let you know, the potential client or team member, that things are a no-go. Call it good business practice or common courtesy, let’s all try to make this a priority in our busy lives.
