In general, in work settings, I don’t like urgency. It’s misleading, the source of unneeded stress and can lead to subpar results. There are two types of urgency and I’m talking about the first kind. The false kind. There is the honest-to-goodness kind that can lead to some amazing work when your back is against the wall and everything is humming along at a good clip. For any number of reasons, some urgency is real. But the kind that isn’t, that’s something I’d like to eradicate from my process. The kind that comes with deadlines on a Friday afternoon, frantic micro check-ins at every turn or the due date that ends up not being such a big deal after all. I’ve always loved the idea of a steady state economy. So I’m going to try to be a little more intentional about crafting a consistent, steady state design process. Should be an interesting challenge.
Power to the Poster + The Creative Action Network
To bring people together around a ready supply of well-designed, wild postings that comment on the issues of our time. The central question: “As a global citizen, what moves you?”
This graphic design democracy project has officially entered its next phase. Now part of the Creative Action Network, we’re asking for new posters designed to move people to action.
We start by featuring some old favorites to act as artifacts of the original site. This also allows some compensation to go to the artist as a small token of thanks for contributing a great poster. The designs we’ll bring into the Creative Action Network from Power to the Poster {dot} org are both aesthetically well-crafted and address an important issue in an interesting way. They capture the spirit of the project since it launched in 2008.
For new contributions, we’re looking for compelling content beautifully executed. More details can be found in the creative brief. Thank for your interest. We look forward to your participation.
“What are you really excited about?”
Had a birthday recently. Lots of celebrating with amazing people. At dinner one night, my wife asked me what I was really excited about looking forward. One of my answers was having a career I loved and seeing what happens next. Honestly, design has never really felt like work. And it being something I’m fairly good at, I feel extremely fortunate to be able to do it every day. When I was younger, I thought a lot about having an adult job I enjoyed. Probably because I had many jobs I didn’t like so much for many, many reasons. And now that I’m at a point where I can say I love what I do, I’m just really excited to continue to move things forward. New projects, new clients, new challenges. When the baseline is one of enjoyment, that’s an exciting place to be.
Everything is not in neat little bows
The design process leads to an end result that is clear and concise. Many times it appears simple and easy to understand. If this happens, it’s a sign of a job well done. However, this can also feed into the myth that the end result was as easy to create as it is to understand. This is not the case. There are no neat little bows. Even a clearly defined process is accompanied by the messy, the untidy and the round-and-round. There are the times of blank screens, creative block and feeling uninspired as well as the never-ending email chains, missed deadlines, scope creep, misaligned expectations, drawn out projects and so on. Rarely are things smooth because creating something out of nothing with other people is tough business. Learn to love the untidy and appreciate the back-and-forth. Not only for sanity’s sake, but held onto long enough, the swirling round-and-round is where the magic happens.
For the where, here’s my why
Next up for Flywheel. The anatomy of a supportive design community.
But what makes a design community great? There’s lots to be said about working as a creative professional in a big city with so many exciting things happening all the time it’s hard to keep up. And there’s lots to be said about smaller places and their interesting, unique opportunities. Regardless of location specifics, I have an important set of criteria that I think makes a great – and supportive – design community.
Chasm
The chasm between saying we should do THIS and THIS actually being a reality is filled with the Work. And it’s a pretty damn big chasm. Saying we are going to do something does not get it done. Wishful intentions do not get it done. Writing out a list of things to do does not get it done. To get it done, you have to do it. As unglamorous as it sounds, “we are going to change the world with this idea" is always followed by the Work. Even though its size is never known going in, if it is understood and appreciated, this chasm can be a place of originality, innovation and truly remarkable creativity.
The Best Time to Travel
Back from vacation and picking things up where they left off. On a lot of levels, this last bit of time away was ill-timed. You know, too much going on. A ferocious mad dash to complete all kinds of things before heading out and now frantically playing catchup. But really, that’s the best time to stop, go somewhere unique and do a solid reset. I was initially worried I’d have a hard time putting the work aside during vacation. But I didn’t. I just stopped. It was glorious. And now everything seems more manageable. I’m refreshed and ready to get things done for a great set of continuing and upcoming projects. Thank you travel, I owe you one.
