In some ways, the conference has been like our visit to the JHT. In the bustle of everyday life, the rush of deadlines and angst of committee and client buy-in, we opt for a sense of tunnel-vision and push through details to get to the end of the line. But away from it all, we gain a sense of perspective over our jobs; we look from the nitty gritty details and see the big picture. And when we step back and really take stock of our situation and the overall goals of the institution, clarity hits us like a tidal wave.
In the words of Sam Harrison, one of the speakers this weekend:
"If you want something but don't go out and get it, it's like sitting on a pig waiting for it turn into a ham sandwich."
We want the university to succeed, but if we merely sit around waiting for someone else to find the solution, we're going to be waiting a long time. From the perspective of the in-house designer's conference, we need to be on the ground level, researching and find creative solutions to our company/institutions' problems. Our job should not involve the last, aesthetic coat of paint upon a project, nor should our titles just be "graphic designers." We need to think outside the box, and gain the trust, responsibility and authority as creative problem-solvers in our respective workplaces.
This sounds like pie-in-the-design-sky kind of talk, doesn't it? But if we don't set a goal for ourselves, some challenge that we strive towards, then what is the point of our job? We may be descending from heights of design utopia back into the everyday world, but that doesn't mean we need to leave the lessons and advice on the 94th floor. No, we will etch these ideas into our brains so that when we are back in the fray we will remember there is more to this job than what we deal with daily.
In the words of Sam Harrison, one of the speakers this weekend:
"If you want something but don't go out and get it, it's like sitting on a pig waiting for it turn into a ham sandwich."
We want the university to succeed, but if we merely sit around waiting for someone else to find the solution, we're going to be waiting a long time. From the perspective of the in-house designer's conference, we need to be on the ground level, researching and find creative solutions to our company/institutions' problems. Our job should not involve the last, aesthetic coat of paint upon a project, nor should our titles just be "graphic designers." We need to think outside the box, and gain the trust, responsibility and authority as creative problem-solvers in our respective workplaces.
This sounds like pie-in-the-design-sky kind of talk, doesn't it? But if we don't set a goal for ourselves, some challenge that we strive towards, then what is the point of our job? We may be descending from heights of design utopia back into the everyday world, but that doesn't mean we need to leave the lessons and advice on the 94th floor. No, we will etch these ideas into our brains so that when we are back in the fray we will remember there is more to this job than what we deal with daily.
No comments:
Post a Comment