Design and Culture Thoughts of the Day

This is a talk that examines creativity and education that I wrote circa 2012. I was a teacher, song writer and design graduate student at the time. How authenticity can get lost when money is involved.  The artistic process How many of you who make things recognize the following familiar questions from people-- and if you're not creative I would like to argue that you just haven't discovered your creative talent yet. Those of you who make stuff, (song or movie or painting or artisan customized bicycle or whatever) Show of hands if people ask you– “where did you get the idea for that?” Show of hands if people ask you, “how long did that take to make?” OR EVEN “how did you do it?” And that's a big one isn't it? People want to know about the process. I know a bunch of artists and programmers and metal workers and they have a hard time keeping track of their process. How much time went by? What was the journey of the project like? For me, whe...

It seems that all industries are interested in paying their employees less. A fascinating speech by renowned author, Ursula K Le Guin. https://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/nov/20/ursula-k-le-guin-national-book-awards-speech

Twice in the last six months, I came across start-up companies that tout diversity as a PR tactic, but avoided paying me like the plague. So, actions speak louder than words. What if a company says they're about diversity, but they lowball their female employees, and try to fabricate a fake company team, using the images of women that they don't pay? This is what happened with Robobev / Infinifill at the start of this year. Or, like Radd3, break their promises to students and say off-record that they don't want to hire any more women, because "what it comes down to is that men have been working with hardware their whole lives." The owner at Radd3 had said he was all about diversity when I first came to the company, and that he wanted to "show the world that women and minorities can also use and work in technology." Below is an actual slide that was used to promote a team to potential applicants and investors... I designed it myself. Then, the other fem...

This article came out recently, and takes a strong stand on insider/ outsider culture. https://www.greatplacetowork.com/resources/articles/1071-outsider-cultures-are-costing-tech-companies-innovation-productivity-and-talent-losses

Confidence - balancing self-promotion and confidence with being outgoing, but modest. Criticism - how to take criticism well, while using your senses about where the person is coming from. Concerns: What if... They are wrong and you are being mislead? Is the person your side or not? Does this person mean well or not? It's often hard to say. This person is just trying to piss you off?? Remember... Everybody gets criticized More success -- > More criticism Criticism is often a necessary part of personal growth Some people who criticize are on your side It's impossible to design / create things without criticism Successful people are always learning how to improve Rude v.s. Has a Point Matrix How to take Feedback / Criticism When people say take criticism, this doesn't mean that you think they're right. It can just mean that you're angry and you're emotionally reacting (don't let it ruin your day, don't let it trigger your imposter ...

For anyone out there who can relate, I think it needs to be said that it can be very intimidating when a friend, contact or colleague criticizes your choices. It can be difficult enough to make it in a professional industry. Culture shock, impostor syndrome, denying others of their qualifications are all social issues that serve to stand in the way of a young professional and their success. I'm sorry to say that it's almost like elitism at times-- the subtle (or less subtle) ways of the pecking order. We deal with these issues in competitive settings. We have past work that is under our belt called into question, and we have to work to regain that sense of legitimacy. I'm proud to say that I swim in these perilous waters and remain triumphant... and very strong! It was great to get out of my comfort zone after school, and then plunge into my professional degree, with a thick skin. But, since I have dealt with it for years, I feel almost like it...

Now I am a team manager and I have the ability to hire recent grads who are looking for their first game job. I'm able to give them advice while trying to push them to add to their rapport at this job. For many, it's a breakthrough, when job applications were not receiving replies. Honestly the impatience of not moving up has totally gotten to me in recent years. So since I am being given a lot of responsibility, I will try to stop them from waiting too long to get moving on their repertoire so that doesn't happen to them.