When speaking to our early graduate students, we remind them that the choice they’ve made is to come back to school… to leave the path that their BFA prepared them for, or to put their working life on hold to embark on a new adventure. The process is all encompassing and there will be some adjustments and acclimations to make along the way — and that they should expect to emerge as a different person. In class this week, I likened this to a fitness regime. I asked the students:
“If I wanted to get fit. Lose weight. Get in shape… would I be successful if I only thought about fitness for the hour-and-a-half I went to the gym two times per week?”… the answer was, of course, a resounding: “No.”
• “You’d have to eat better,” they said… Correct. Not just that, but I’d have to change my relationship to food. We’ve forgotten what it’s like to be hungry. We use food for emotional support. Social glue. Rewards. Food fuels our body. Not only would I have to choose a carrot over a candy bar, but I’d ultimately need to rethink what role food plays in my life.
• “Well, you’d have to take the stairs,” they followed with… Right! Not only that, I’d have to incorporate activity into my daily life at every level. Walking instead of taking the bus. Isometric exercises at my desk. Something other than staring at my iPhone while on the escalator.
After this, they paused a bit and ran out of steam… I added:
• “You’d need to surround yourself with people who would motivate you to reach your goals,” I said... and they agreed. You'd accept that invitation for a hike on the weekend instead of the invitation for drinks after work. You’d want to surround yourself with people who promote qualities you aspire to. Hang out with people who model behaviors that you admire… people you want to be like in some way. Or, at the very least, spend far less time with people who might otherwise hold you back. You need to make new friends.
• “You’d need to surround yourself with things that would encourage you to maintain that path,” I ended with. If you don’t want to find yourself reaching for the Oreos at midnight, don’t bring Oreos into the house. Stock the fridge with easy-to-grab healthy snacks and you’ll not miss the convenience of the snack-cake (well, not as much).
"… and I’d hit the gym 2X per week and give it my all, right? If I wanted to get healthy, this is a good plan, right?" ... Everyone agreed.
Now, forget about fitness and apply all of the above to design and becoming a better designer:
1: How can you change your relationship to the visual world around you?
2: How can you incorporate design thinking and making into your daily routine?
3: How can you surround yourself with people who motivate you to be a better designer, communicator, and student?
4: How can you surround yourself with things that inspire you in the right ways?
This is the challenge to our students. But how to start?
1: How can you change your relationship to the visual world around you? First, raise your chin while walking around. Look at signage, buildings, people. Analyze everything. Make up stories about the things that you see — this is especially fun with people. Take pictures. Start an Instagram, Pinterest board, Tumblr or blog about it all. Draw, sketch and write. Keep your eyes open. Be a keen observer and take notes… and start to make connections. Pay. attention. to. everything.
2: How can you incorporate design thinking and making into your daily routine? Everything you do can be seen as an act of design — from writing your name on your mailbox to stacking groceries on the conveyor belt at the store checkout. Make everything count. The beauty of this is that after a while, it stops being conscious and becomes automatic. By doing these things, you actually become what you're practicing to be.
3: How can you surround yourself with people who motivate you? Find new friends. This is the hardest point to come to terms with, but realize that people in your life play roles — and that you control what effect they have on you. Is it positive or negative? You control that… particularly by exposure. If you tend to get sidetracked when Dave drags you on one of his misadventures, then find a way to conveniently lose your phone. Set Dave to “unfollow” on Facebook to avoid his drama and set chat to “unavailable” — you don't have to "unfriend" him, just avoid him. More importantly, find people who do motivate you and spend more time with them… but try not to be creepy. Join clubs of the right* type. Volunteer at the right* places. Go to places where you’ll meet the right* kinds of people. Get out of the house once in a while.
* What's right? Stay on top of the AIGA-SF chapter events. Check out school and department activities. Find a few good bookstores and museums and visit them often. See what those people who you admire are up to — ask if you can tag along.
4: How can you surround yourself with things that inspire you? You bring things into your life all of the time. Make sure they are the right things. Subscribe to design magazines. Buy well-designed products when you can. Would you pay 10% more for the more beautiful packaging? You should… that’ll be you designing that one day. Audit what’s around you. Is that thing you’re tripping over in your apartment hurting or helping you? I’m a big fan of purging — it’s cathartic as well as helps to keep the place clutter free. Maybe it’s time for spring cleaning with your “designer-goggles” on. And things don’t have to be expensive… some amazingly inspiring things are the most humble: Mason jars and binder’s clips can be handy in the kitchen and are much cheaper and visually inspiring than plastic junk from MegaMart.
Of course, like with any fitness (or design) regime, it's important to keep in mind that you need to place importance on progress before perfection... and recognize that there will be a few setbacks along the way. You'll need to overcome some obstacles and pick yourself up after a few failures and continue on the path. Along the way, you'll need to allow yourself a few guilty pleasures now and again, as well.
But, it's up to you to make the change and take the first step. To quote one of my favorite movie lines: Get busy livin' or get busy dyin' ...
These are my four tips. What things have worked for you?
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