A few of my coworkers and I recently went to the How Design Live conference in Chicago, IL. I would have to say that taking the train there was actually really enjoyable and the right decision. We were able to get some work done so by the time we got to Chicago we were all set to tackle the conference and the city. When we arrived there we realized that there was an opening keynote speaker and booths set up with a bunch of different companies. We grabbed our swag and did some networking! Of course, the next day was more serious as we started the day off early to take in as many of the speeches as possible. After two long days of soaking in as much knowledge from amazing leaders, we were left in an inspired daze. But I wanted to share some of the key takeaways of the conference that seemed to be repeating themes:
- Work Hard, Play Hard:
I was inspired the most by the thought of having fun in the office and still getting work completed. The first speaker Tina Roth stressed the importance of this in order to have the right work environment to foster creativity. Also with keeping work fun, she stressed the importance of being generous as much as possible. The more you help others in the workplace, the more your coworkers will want to follow suit. She shared a quote that said it perfectly, “If you are lucky enough to do well, it’s your responsibility to send the elevator back down.” (Kevin Spacey) She went on to say that everyone needs a confetti drawer at work! We don’t have drawer filled with confetti but I believe that here at XD we strive to keep that creative atmosphere afloat. We make sure to set aside some time to talk about anything that drives us or discuss what we are working on and get some feedback.
- How to Handle Rejection:
We went to a really informative talk about handling the rejection of our creative work. I know I’ve been in that boat before. Taking criticism of your work that you poured your heart and soul into. It is very difficult to not take it as an attack to you personally. Mark McGuiness stressed that we are not alone in this and that it is normal to feel this way. We ask ourselves on a daily bases, “why does it hurt so much? Its only work.” He says to roll with the punches. Each time you have to get yourself past it, you end up building resilience. It’s ok to take a break or breather and feel what you need to feel so that the next time you face this rejection you will react with less emotion. Then give yourself a process or a system. This is only the beginning, things are still happening in the process so you don’t feel like it is coming to an end and that helps you have something else to focus on. He also talked about the different types of criticism; constructive, destructive and abuse. Of course the constructive is the most common and most effective type in helping the creative process. But there are always those who like to feed the destructive type. They like to be vague and say things to devalue your work. The way you react is critical. Always reply with specific questions to understand why they feel the way they do. “If I change this, will it make it better?” Then the abuse type is said to cut you down and usually has nothing to do with your work. Another thing to help you through is to think of whom the rejection is coming from. Are they important? Are they a mentor or are they just the general public that maybe doesn’t even understand design? So no matter how hard the rejection is, the key is to breathe and learn how to fall and land softly. - Sustainable Insanity:
As we go through our creative workdays, things can get out of hand and become hard to juggle. We all want to multitask to get stuff accomplished and can end up feeling burnt out. I know this has happened to me on more than one occasion. Jim Krause spoke to us on “Sustainable Insanity.” I came out of this talk knowing that I could use some of his tips to help me keep up with the daily grind. Give yourself two goals for the day: do the best work you can do and get out of the office at a reasonable time. It’s all about the pace and focus. You can actually get more accomplished if you slow down and work on one thing at a time. It is said that every time that you change focus it takes about 10 min to get completely focused back into the task. Lists make everything better. Put even the small things on the list like grocery shopping and lunch. This helps you keep the focus through the day. Try to avoid those task killers such as social media, emails, and bad food. He stressed the importance of a good diet to also keep focus and feed the mind. In your non-working hours don’t talk about work, and find things to do that keep your mind off it. “Work when you’re working, and don’t when you’re not.” I find that I have to turn off after work. After being on the computer all day, the last thing I want to do is turn it back on when I get home. But I know a lot of people who do more creative work in their free time. Other problems arise that can stress you out at work such not growing your skills. “If your design skills are not growing than they are dying.” This is where you may need to create on your own time.
