Students: It's been said before that success is gauged on results, not effort... this is true at all levels: at school as well as in the real world. But what does this mean: results v. effort?
If you think about it more than a few minutes, it's often glaringly obvious. By now, you know what good work looks like (and what it doesn't) and you know that in order to secure a good job in the competitive marketplace, you need to have good work... the chasm is "how to get there". As instructors, we'll push you to do good work -- often based on your own objectives, not ours. We show you good work. We relay stories on how other students (and we) got to the point of doing good work. But ultimately, we can't do the work for you and you can't copy someone else's path to success -- this is something that has to come from within.
[Image: Lewis Hine]
But sometimes a story works best to illustrate a point, so here goes:
A few semesters ago, I had a student struggling with an assignment. She was trying to channel the aesthetic of an "old-timey", Victorian-era medicine bottle label. Her previous attempts were not going well -- ranging from circus-like to kitsch -- and she had only one example pulled from a low-res web image that she was using as inspiration.
...
Me: "Well, you're still having trouble getting to where you want to be... but you have only one example to pull inspiration from. How about looking for more? In fact, the Alameda flea-market is this weekend. Why don't you go there to get some additional inspiration from older bottles? I recall a few regular vendors there that have that sort of thing."
She: "Ok, I'll try... thanks."
[The following week, she returns with just a few alterations to the previous non-working examples.]
Me: "Um, these aren't a lot different from where we were last week. Did you go to the flea market to get additional inspiration?"
She: "Yes."
Me: "Did you take some pictures and see things that were inspiring?"
She: [a bit indignant] "Yes... well... we got there late, but I did see some things and I took this one picture on my camera-phone. We could only stay about a half-an-hour... but I *did* go... but I still don't have a lot of inspiration."
Me: "Um... this photo is super low-res and pretty blurry. Were you not able to get a good shot? Why didn't you bring a better camera?... I know you have one -- you've brought it to class. Were there not more things there to take pictures of? Did you look anywhere else other than the flea market for inspiration?"
She: [frustrated] "Well *you* didn't tell me to look anywhere else. *You* told me to go to the flea market and I did -- in fact, I could've slept in, but I didn't. I went to a party the night before and was really tired, but I woke up and went. I accidentally left my camera in the car and didn't want to walk back to the parking lot to get it once I was inside. I was s'posed to meet my girlfriends for brunch so I couldn't stay long... but when I got back to my car, I left the lights on and my car wouldn't start, so I spent the next 2 hours waiting for a tow-truck in the parking lot... I tried what you said and I still don't have inspiration or a good piece of design... I wasted a whole bunch of time and I had to cancel brunch plans and it's *your* fault!"
Me: "Um, still... these aren't a whole lot different from where we were last week..."
--
So... what's wrong with this picture?
First: Try and Try Again
It's important to understand that *trying* and *succeeding* are two different things altogether. In an academic setting it's important to do both... and in a professional setting, it's crucial. You can't succeed without trying, but you don't always succeed every time you try. This is an important distinction. Books and books have been written on finding success in everything from relationships to real-estate... the common thread is that you can not stop trying until you find success (and even then, you keep trying in order to improve) -- and that success is neither automatic nor routine. Every problem has multiple unique solutions and it's up to you to figure out how to get there.
Second: The "Spirit" v. the "Letter"
It is important to understand the "spirit" and the "letter" of your actions, the assignment, advice, etc. ... while I might've said "try the flea market" (the "letter") the "spirit" was that the student needed lots more inspiration to pull from and this was one of a few ways to get it. Ultimately, it's up to her to succeed. It's up to her to find paths to get there. My tip to try the flea market was just one of many paths she could take, but the bottom line is that she needed more inspiration and *she* needed to find it.
Third: Absorb, Synthesize and Apply
Folks will give you suggestions -- instructors, peers, etc. -- however, it's up to the individual to absorb, synthesize and apply this feedback and come out with something meaningful... and ultimately, something successful (or more successful). If she had conflicting plans and couldn't make it to the flea-market, she *still* needed that additional inspiration. There are antique stores all over town which she could have visited. There are likely bottles littering ebay. Ultimately, it was up to her to come up with something that is meaningful to her and apply it to her work.
Lastly: Making lemonade out of lemons
There are lots of things that can happen -- good and bad -- in your life.... (sh)it happens. However, it's important to recognize the opportunities that being resourceful can bring you even when bad things happen. It's also important to note that school (or the competitive marketplace of graphic design) doesn't care about your brunch plans any more than a client would care that you stood them up for a meeting because you couldn't find a babysitter -- it's up to you to balance and manage the stuff in your life, and in the end, it's up to you to get the job done. She left the lights on in her car and had a dead battery. A resourceful person might've gotten back to the car, looked over the situation, realized that brunch was already a lost cause (and that success in college/grad-school trumps brunch), grabbed the camera from the car, turned off the lights (car-tip: a car battery can often "bounce back" and recharge just enough to start if given a breather) and head back into the flea market to get the job done right and do more than just go though the motions to try to fulfill an instructor's tip about heading to the flea market for more inspiration.
A wise 3 foot green alien once said to a whining space knight: "Try not. Do... or do not. There is no try"...
So... if you don't believe me, take it from Yoda.
...
Me: "Well, you're still having trouble getting to where you want to be... but you have only one example to pull inspiration from. How about looking for more? In fact, the Alameda flea-market is this weekend. Why don't you go there to get some additional inspiration from older bottles? I recall a few regular vendors there that have that sort of thing."
She: "Ok, I'll try... thanks."
[The following week, she returns with just a few alterations to the previous non-working examples.]
Me: "Um, these aren't a lot different from where we were last week. Did you go to the flea market to get additional inspiration?"
She: "Yes."
Me: "Did you take some pictures and see things that were inspiring?"
She: [a bit indignant] "Yes... well... we got there late, but I did see some things and I took this one picture on my camera-phone. We could only stay about a half-an-hour... but I *did* go... but I still don't have a lot of inspiration."
Me: "Um... this photo is super low-res and pretty blurry. Were you not able to get a good shot? Why didn't you bring a better camera?... I know you have one -- you've brought it to class. Were there not more things there to take pictures of? Did you look anywhere else other than the flea market for inspiration?"
She: [frustrated] "Well *you* didn't tell me to look anywhere else. *You* told me to go to the flea market and I did -- in fact, I could've slept in, but I didn't. I went to a party the night before and was really tired, but I woke up and went. I accidentally left my camera in the car and didn't want to walk back to the parking lot to get it once I was inside. I was s'posed to meet my girlfriends for brunch so I couldn't stay long... but when I got back to my car, I left the lights on and my car wouldn't start, so I spent the next 2 hours waiting for a tow-truck in the parking lot... I tried what you said and I still don't have inspiration or a good piece of design... I wasted a whole bunch of time and I had to cancel brunch plans and it's *your* fault!"
Me: "Um, still... these aren't a whole lot different from where we were last week..."
--
So... what's wrong with this picture?
First: Try and Try Again
It's important to understand that *trying* and *succeeding* are two different things altogether. In an academic setting it's important to do both... and in a professional setting, it's crucial. You can't succeed without trying, but you don't always succeed every time you try. This is an important distinction. Books and books have been written on finding success in everything from relationships to real-estate... the common thread is that you can not stop trying until you find success (and even then, you keep trying in order to improve) -- and that success is neither automatic nor routine. Every problem has multiple unique solutions and it's up to you to figure out how to get there.
Second: The "Spirit" v. the "Letter"
It is important to understand the "spirit" and the "letter" of your actions, the assignment, advice, etc. ... while I might've said "try the flea market" (the "letter") the "spirit" was that the student needed lots more inspiration to pull from and this was one of a few ways to get it. Ultimately, it's up to her to succeed. It's up to her to find paths to get there. My tip to try the flea market was just one of many paths she could take, but the bottom line is that she needed more inspiration and *she* needed to find it.
Third: Absorb, Synthesize and Apply
Folks will give you suggestions -- instructors, peers, etc. -- however, it's up to the individual to absorb, synthesize and apply this feedback and come out with something meaningful... and ultimately, something successful (or more successful). If she had conflicting plans and couldn't make it to the flea-market, she *still* needed that additional inspiration. There are antique stores all over town which she could have visited. There are likely bottles littering ebay. Ultimately, it was up to her to come up with something that is meaningful to her and apply it to her work.
Lastly: Making lemonade out of lemons
There are lots of things that can happen -- good and bad -- in your life.... (sh)it happens. However, it's important to recognize the opportunities that being resourceful can bring you even when bad things happen. It's also important to note that school (or the competitive marketplace of graphic design) doesn't care about your brunch plans any more than a client would care that you stood them up for a meeting because you couldn't find a babysitter -- it's up to you to balance and manage the stuff in your life, and in the end, it's up to you to get the job done. She left the lights on in her car and had a dead battery. A resourceful person might've gotten back to the car, looked over the situation, realized that brunch was already a lost cause (and that success in college/grad-school trumps brunch), grabbed the camera from the car, turned off the lights (car-tip: a car battery can often "bounce back" and recharge just enough to start if given a breather) and head back into the flea market to get the job done right and do more than just go though the motions to try to fulfill an instructor's tip about heading to the flea market for more inspiration.
A wise 3 foot green alien once said to a whining space knight: "Try not. Do... or do not. There is no try"...
So... if you don't believe me, take it from Yoda.
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