Creativity comes standard with feelings of dread and despair. It isn’t all flash. Not all flare. It’s uncomfortable. And the more it’s pushed the more you find yourself out there, miles from shore. Sometimes in swamps or bogs, marshes or fens. But you have to get used to it. You have to persevere if you’re to get through to the other side on some kind of shore of stability. You have to persevere if you’re to look back at where you’ve come and hold your head high with a final product that delivers. Why does it deliver? Because you stayed with it in the heart-pounding, uncomfortable decisions that are typically followed by chilling silences. And when those silences are broken with work that solves the problem in the more inspiring ways, you can rest assured the job is done well.
Keep the Process on the Rails
The process is of the utmost importance when creating any kind of design. A logo, website, infographic, etc. What happens in the process is where the idea comes from. In its research, discovery, exploration, refinement, adjustment, more refinement and ultimately finalization. Whenever the process is let to do what it does, it always works. Sadly, however, when the process is not let to do what it does, results turn weak, boring or even ugly. A hollow shell of what could’ve been. The process off the rails is one of the most frustrating things. To stamp out poor processes, we must be mindful, communicate clearly, justify with reason and be decisive. Hone these skills, trust the process and enjoy creating something out of nothing.
Budgets, Spectrum
I sometimes design on pretty lean budgets. It’s part of the challenge for a lot of activism and community-focused work. I like making a project doable on a spectrum of doing good and making a living. With a lot of my client relationships, the idea of working toward the same idealistic goals cuts out a lot of process pain points that increase time and thus increase cost. They do what they do, and they let me do what I do. When this happens, projects that may seem too costly become possible because they don’t get bogged down in rounds and rounds of revision. But on the business side, JKDC needs to make money doing work otherwise there will be no more JKDC. Hence, very hands-on, “design by committee” processes equal standard design rates. This way I keep my work time focused on work, my collaboration time focused on projects and my not-working time not thinking about work.
Why Infographics Are Key
At a PRSA Luncheon, a presentation on the importance of infographics in the stories creative professionals tell every day. What makes a good infographic. What makes a bad one. The process I’ve used for projects as well as some of my favorites from around the Web. And what resources to use when trying to craft a relevant, interesting and shareable piece of information.
Tuesday, August 5, 2014 at 11:30pm
Midtown Omaha
Professional photography, by a professional.
After four years, I thought it wise to build out the JKDC brand a bit. Part of this was getting nice, high-quality photography so there’s a face to go with the name. What I tell clients is to always hire professionals to do what they do. Following my own advice, I called on Scott Drickey whose work I love. Other portraits he’s done I’ve liked very much so I was excited to have him apply his craft for me. The session was tons of fun. He has a great space with loud music, good coffee and meaningful conversation. We ended up with four variations, from casual to animated, direct to light-hearted. A great variety of expressions capturing vibes I couldn’t have done with a more DIY approach. Crisp, perfectly lighted, delivered ahead of time. You know, professionally. The way things should be done.
Cage Match: Detective Graham Waters vs. Lieutenant Horatio Caine
Here’s a soundtrack example for creativity. Remember that film CRASH with Don Cheadle? It’s one of my favorites of the 2000s. Powerful, emotional, unresolved and so on. There’s a moment towards the end where a beautiful sounding song is played. In the Deep by Bird York. It’s a perfect metaphor to the central idea behind the film; people out there in the chaos, isolated, occasionally crashing into each other. As the song goes, “now you’re out there swimmin,’ in the deep.” On the other side of that, CSI: Miami. Which my wife was way into for awhile on NETFLIX. I suppose I can appreciate those David Caruso intros. But in one episode, they use the same song. Because they found a murder victim in a body of water. Towards the bottom. Deep. And sadly, the idea of using that song just sort of sat there flat, part of a weak see/say/hear. So in the Cage Match of Creativity, “H” loses. This time.
You just gotta put in the time.
Simple solutions, those are easy to get to, right? Clarity and focus magically present themselves after a quick brainstorm, yes? It doesn’t look complicated so it probably isn’t, yeah? The correct answer to these and similar questions is no, no and no. I’m on a big kick these days of reciting this: the act of making is difficult and should be treated as such. I wish the answer to the previous questions was yes. If a potential client needs it to be, I’m not the designer for the job. Making something beautiful, a solution perfectly appropriate for the problem, while inspiring people to take action, that is fucking hard to do. And to get to that point, you MUST put in the time. Concepting, exploring, doodling, browsing, daydreaming, mindmapping, walking, computering, more computering, refining, deleting, redoing, and on and on. Along the way, things happen. It’s remarkable when they do. Why do they happen? Because you put in the hard work of time dedication. And when you come up for air, you have something you can run with.
