Welcome to Room557

Designer hats

Designers can wear many hats. Depending on the designer, one hat might fit a bit better than others — but, in general, we’ve become adept at sporting a good variety of headgear: that of a strategist, writer, researcher, photographer, illustrator, programmer, craftsman, aesthete, typographer, production manager, information-architect, etc.

However, knowing which hat to wear for which occasion can sometimes present a challenge. Because we’re so used to doing everything, when we need to interface with other team-members in very specific ways, collaboration can become challenging... or more specifically, identifying the type of collaboration needed can become challenging.

In his book, The Ten Faces of Innovation, Tom Kelley details the archetypes he’s run across in his life at IDEO. On design teams, we might add two more: The design collaborator and the collaborative designer. While they might seem similar, the role and result of each can be very different… and you might find yourself wearing different hats at different times and deciding which type of collaborator you need to be.

Social circles...

The other day, we were asked what we might tell beginning students insofar as bits of advice on how to improve their game. One of the ways to get better at anything: music, fitness, chess… is to incorporate it into your everyday life in an effortless way. Design is no different. You’re already on the internet and dialed into social media. By upping the design quotient in your Facebook feed, you’ll become a better designer without even trying (or trying too hard). And not only should you absorb, but you should also share by starting your own design blog, tumblr and/or Pinterest page.

The below is from my own Facebook feed // challenge: visit them and /you/ figure out why people seem to pay attention to them...
https://www.facebook.com/room557 (hello!)

The Internet is a bad friend...

There are bad friends. The internet is one of them.

The internet is the guy who leaves you stranded at the airport when they promised to pick you up. The internet is houseguest who eats the food you were saving for that special dinner with your date. The internet is the one who steals money from your wallet and leaves you stuck at the cash-only restaurant that you had to take the date to because he had eaten the food that you had planned on cooking.

There are bad friends. The internet is one of them. Why? He promises you the world and leaves you with expired links and photos that are too low-res. He gives you things that he swears are original, but instead are copies of copies and the original is no where to be found. He keeps you from hanging out with your other friends. And he encourages you to fall into bad habits — like him. And he’s a bad friend to /everyone/, so you not only look like a sucker when he lets you down, but are now part of a large army of suckers.

He’s not worthless, of course. It might be great to catch up with the internet at a party, but you might want to set him to “acquaintance” rather than “friend”. Don’t ever lend him the keys to your car… and for goodness sake, don’t introduce him to your sister.

Look for better friends… namely real people. Real people with real talents who you can shake the hand of (or punch if you need to). Real friends who can introduce you to other awesome people. Friends who encourage you to be the best you can be and help you to get there… that’s not the internet.

It’s spring break, kids! Get out of the house and meet some real people.

Storytelling

The term “storytelling” has come into its own lately as a term that’s been embraced — and sometimes over-used — in design.

Are we really storytellers? Yes… and no. But mostly, yes.

I ran across this video the other day:

[During my first month at IDEO, I had the great fortune of working closely Stefan in a series of workshops. I got to peek behind the curtain. As a brilliant provocateur, he’ is as self-aware as they come — and fully cognizant that he participates in the same bullshit that he lampoons. That’s one of the reasons, perhaps, that it comes across as so genuine.]

The Importance of Being Number Two

I've mentioned this a few times in class and it dovetails with the idea of being pop-culture literate, but the importance of Family Feud should not be underestimated.

Hosted by the slightly inappropriate Richard Dawson in the 70s and 80s and now in the hands of the Steve Harvey who adds his own flair to the show, it features teams (families) trying to guess the most popular answers to questions.

How is this remotely tied to visual communication?

As a designer, you'll need to connect with your audiences in new, unique, and interesting ways. If you always approach the problem through the lens of the #1 answer, folks will very likely get it, but their interest might not be piqued. If your approach isn't even on the board, there's a good chance that it will fly over the heads of your audience. However, you might look to the #2 or #3 answer to find a solution that is familiar, but a bit unexpected...

 

Sometimes what you think might be the right-and-proper way to approach something isn't actually the most natural or effective.

 

... And in the instance above, we see the importance of at least landing on the board. Why does this matter? You're charged with connecting with your audiences — not future historians... not design award judges. In other words, you have to be the conduit via which your audience will make meaning and gain understanding. If you aren't able to help them connect the dots in ways that they can understand, appreciate or relate to, then you've failed.

How We Evaluate Creative Work

Unlike a math test, when we look at your creative work, we don't start with an A (100%) and work down, we start at a C and work up — and, we don't deduct points from a A, but instead add them to a C. This is markedly different from how something like a quiz is graded... and a bit more like how an essay is graded.

Smile for the Camera

I've shared Bert Krages' link many times with my students — it's a great POV (from a lawyer) on the rights of a photographer in the public sphere. If you're taking photos out in the world, I'd suggest taking a look and maybe printing it out and keeping in your camera bag.

There is no (capital) "I" in Graphic Design

This week, the topic of removing the (capital) "I" from graphic design came up — and it's the first time I've talked about it in this way:

In a very real sense, "you", the designer — in the figurative sense — don't matter. Graphic design isn't fine art. It's not about expressing yourself and exorcising demons. Graphic design (i.e.: visual communication) connects a message to an audience with a hopeful result. There is no "I" in that equation, is there?

Hitting a slow pitch over the fence

[or Failure Is Overrated]

We're getting into the swing of the semester and tensions are running high. It's time to remind ourselves of where we are. We're students (you), new parents (me)... and lots of things in between.

It's also about this time that I remind students —-especially my second semester students — the value of perspective and taking it one step at a time. I often say:

"At this stage we'd rather see you hit a slow pitch over the fence than to continually foul-out fastballs".

What do I mean by that?

How much will it cost?

Congratulations — you've just about landed a freelance job, but now you're wondering how to price it. Pricing can be the most difficult thing in the design business — even harder than coming up with new, good ideas. There are a lot of folks with differing points-of-view on this topic, too, and I encourage you to absorb and reflect on all of them — there are a lot of smart folks out there with a lot to say, so dig for it. A great place to start is the AIGA's most recent salary survey when it comes to fees. Hopefully the below can serve as a bit of a brief guide on how to best to structure the engagement..

Remember that people will often approach you because you're talented (yay!), but don't have a lot of experience (doh!), and will consequently be more affordable. There's no shame in this on either side — all professions have their "beginners": dentistry, real-estate, cosmetology — even medical test subjects get higher rates with more experience. Design is no different. People are taking a risk* on you and for that they'll pay a bit less, but even then, how to begin?