I initially heard a version of this quote on a Design Matters episode with James Victore. His point was: instead of making stuff to appeal to a mass audience, make things that are specific, honest, and true to you. In that specificity of individual experience is something that other people will connect to, because it comes from a soulful place, instead of pandering to an audience.
Read MoreI started my design and coaching studio last fall— chipping away on it during early mornings before work and on weekends- but it’s only been 3 months since I left my job to do this full time. Since I try to be so deliberate about planning my goals, I see the review process as the closing of that loop. At the end of every month, I sit down to look at what I’ve accomplished, and I articulate the lessons to take with me as I continue to grow. Here’s what I learned from months 1-3.
Read MoreIf there's any lesson that's struck true to me lately, it's this: that we can't predict, anticipate, and plan for the infinite possibilities of the future. As much as I like to set up structures and routines for myself and my growth as an artist, I try to remember to let myself trust in the unfolding mystery that is my life.
Read MoreWhen it comes to undertaking any daunting task — building a business from scratch, creating a piece of creative work, or aiming for some other ambitious goal - it’s too easy to get bogged down in the details. As a long-suffering perfectionist with a submerged urge to prove myself to the world, I tend to say to myself: OK, let’s take this from the top, and make sure everything I make is perfect and beautiful before I continue.
Read MoreI grew up in a risk adverse, immigrant culture in which the idea of finding the work you loved was always counterbalanced by the idea of having a stable, steady career. When you’re young and uncertain, the easy choice is the one right front of you. It’s the path you fall into out of convenience, as in: This is what I did for two summer internships, so, this is what I’ll continue doing.
Read MoreFor people starting over from scratch, the career quest falls into the category of “large life things which can be very overwhelming,” simply because it feels like there’s infinite options, so many unknown variables, and it never fails to make you feel small and vulnerable. Like starting a business, going back to school, or even, dare I say it, dating— you have to know what you want and keep putting yourself out there, over and over again.
Read MoreThis blog post by Keri Smith is one of my favorite advice letters I've ever read, so much that I feel like I need to print it out and reread it when I'm feeling discouraged.
She writes about the paralyzing effect of the pressure we put on ourselves for creative work, the importance of paying attention to the energy we feel when we do things. Do more of what gives you an open sense of energy, and less of what doesn't. It's that simple.
Read MoreMy typography teacher, Jason Heuer, told us that this one quote by Goethe inspired him to change careers and go to design school in his thirties. He said he had the chills just rereading it in class. When you stumble upon words like this (and of course it has to be in the right place and at the right time), it's such a treasure.
Read MoreBefore I quit my day job, I binge-read everything I could about what it would take to support myself as a creative professional. How do I balance the business side of things— marketing myself, getting clients, building a digital presence, sharing my stuff, and that awful-sounding word, networking— while doing the tender, loving craft of my work?
Read MoreI’m taking an amazingly thought-provoking class at SVA called “The Feeling of Design,” taught by Sue Walsh. One of our assignments is “Design for a Cure,” in which we identify a social campaign and think critically about the tension between the issue itself (cancer, heart disease, diabetes, etc) and what its campaign branding communicates about the issue.
Read MoreOne of my friends—Jonah, a data-scientist who loves Scandinavian design and probably maintains inbox zero with no effort— is also impeccably orderly in his domestic life. What impresses me the most? Right after he eats, he immediately does the dishes. No questions asked.
His process looks something like this:
Read MoreFor a really long time, I couldn’t say out loud that I was a writer, designer, illustrator, or even artist without feeling like a fraud. I whispered it, mumbled it, and felt sheepish about it. It is too easy, I thought, to pick up a laptop or paintbrush or Photoshop pen tool and call myself an [insert creative title]. I hadn’t earned it.
Read MoreThis quote jumped out at me because we’re in a culture in which being ‘busy’ is worn as a badge of honor. Busy, to me, feels like a word loaded with obligation– that I’m juggling many commitments and demands on my time. Busy feels tiring. Busy is rushing from thing to thing with little room for pause, or reflection.
Read MoreThere is a lot of writing across the internet about how to find your voice, and this applies to a variety of creative endeavors, not just writing voice or speaking voice. It’s also about finding your style, your unique POV, which – just writing those words “unique POV” make me cringe.
Read MoreAs a hyperactive planner, I really love making New Years resolutions. I’ve been making big goals since I was a teenager at home during winter break (and spring break, and summer break) — long lists of things I was going to accomplish, groundbreaking habits I was going to form. Of course, I rarely actually did any of them.
Read MoreI’m really excited to start this little project I’m calling Advice for Creatives — where I document and transcribe all the lessons I’m absorbing from people wiser than me in books, podcasts, and real life.
The first lesson is about the importance of self-forgiveness. I heard it on Elizabeth Gilbert’s podcast,Magic Lessons.
Read Moreon how drastically my life changed (in 2015) after starting a morning routine — and a detailed process on building your own.
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