What’s good design or bad design? The answer is completely irrelevant. It doesn’t matter to me at least. To whom it matters then? To the owner of the design, of course. Customers are out of the equations because they have no control over it.
Our responses to a design are totally different from one another and that’s natural. Which begs a question: Why is this design good or bad for the owner?
What does he like about it? What does she want to say through it? What are they trying to achieve? It is not my place nor productive for me to judge other people’s design from my point of view. No. It’s much more meaningful for others if I could ask questions and listen. I can’t turn off my subjective response. But what I can do is to use my emotional response as a trigger to ask some objective questions.
Looking back into my past conversations, now I see them as not even conversations. Anxious monkey talking like a robot was more like it. Obviously, I was not listening. Oh, I missed so many clues! If I were really listening, I could’ve picked up what they were really saying: I’m anxious. I’m overworked. I’m bored. I’m not sure about my direction. I need help in this and that but I don’ know how to say it. They were saying all that but I could not understand them.
If I could define my job as a designer not as a professional who pretends to know what’s beautiful and what’s not, but as a person who tries to understand what’s useful for my clients, I think I could be more helpful as a professional and niceful (is that a real word?) as a regular person.
Keeping My Glass Half Empty
Keeping My Glass Half Empty
People have told me in the past that I’m aloof and too cynical. Cold. Selfish. Obviously who found me so are no longer around me. A relationship is a two-way street. Why
Being Smart About Being Stupid
Being Smart About Being Stupid
When I built my website for the first time in the spring, I was trying as hard as I could to sound smart. I wanted to sound like those veteran designers. I went through
You Can Say Love With Typography
You Can Say Love With Typography
How do you express your love? Musically with a song? Kinetically with a dance? Classically with a lovely letter? Or maybe some touchy-touchy feely-feely? Lol Well, how about
Pay Your Tributes. Find Your Clients.
Pay Your Tributes. Find Your Clients.
“I want to work with you because you have a unique perspective. You don’t bring in the bias that a lot of local designers have.”
How to Work with Everyone: Don’t.
How to Work with Everyone: Don’t.
When I saw my ex-employer’s website for the first time, I was like, “Ohhh my Buddha! I can’t believe they are doing this shit! This is just so f***ing dumb! They definitely need my
Unsubscribed From the Cult of Daily Habits
Unsubscribed From the Cult of Daily Habits
The other day, I had a conversation with a so-called daily habit expert. “Build a daily habit. Build your ideal lifestyle.” Yep. I can’t disagree with that. But then
What’s Missing From Performative Speaking & Why I Signed Up
What’s Missing From Performative Speaking & Why I Signed Up
When I invest my time and money, obviously I look for benefits I will get in return. I’m approaching it from a different path this time though. Instead of focusing on
The Consequence of Being a Bilingual
The Consequence of Being a Bilingual
I wish I could’ve been Van Damme. Composed and powerful between the two massive masses. I dreamed of being the one who could be the bridge between the two alien cultures.
The Life of an Expat Designer
The Life of an Expat Designer
I have always been an intellectual refugee because most of the writers belong in one of the 3 groups and write only to their audiences within one group. It was as if
Be Your Own Country & Print Your Own Money!
Be Your Own Country & Print Your Own Money!
How do you motivate yourself to keep writing? Does getting $$$ work?I came to believe that writing online is like printing your own money. It’s legit too. Check out the