We Are Not So Different

I read an article today on a football coach who had decided to resign from his position due to health concerns.

Now most people who know me would wonder why the heck I read the article in the first place. But I have found that in running one's own business, inspiration and good advice can come from anyone, whether their profession is related to yours or not.

And I actually started this post in a different vein earlier. I was waxing oh-so poetic about the similarities between being a coach and being a designer.

But, on retrospect I deemed the post was much of the same old stuff that designers try to explain over and over again: Mainly no we don't all work in our jammies, and yes there is much more to running your own business than just making things look pretty all day long.

I even tried a rewrite about how coaches are expected to win consistently no matter what they are up against: new teams, new coaches, sick players, not a strong backing from their school or city or refs who might not see things their way. And I likened it to how Designers are expected to always be "on". No matter what we are up against, we are consistently required to have a bevy of creativity at our disposal.

But, much like creativity, that concept was proving rather difficult to explain. I felt the post was making me sound like a whiner who had nothing good to say about their chosen profession when in fact it is exactly the opposite!

I knew from the age of 8 or so that I wanted to have something to do with art when I grew up. Being a designer almost feels like a natural extension of myself. Even before I understood what a commercial artist was, I had a strong pull to do what it is that I am so lucky to do now. Math problems do no excite me, but tell me your woes about paper and font choices, or the problem of merging your love of vintage and modern styles to communicate to your audience what you are about and I'm all over it!

Even when I break away from the office to pursue other interests, that love of design creeps in. I'm obsessed with cars, and the first thing I'll point out (over the handling) is what design aspect they nailed or messed up. And you can't take me into a retail store without losing me in one of the isles as I ooo and ahhhh over packages and illustrations. Colors, textures, lighting...it all excites me and inspires me no matter where I am at, or what I am doing.

Get it? I love what I do. But like all professions there are setbacks. That is not to say I will give up! The coach in this article originally vowed to retire due to his setbacks. Very quickly he changed his mind to just take a leave of absence. The lure of the game is too much with once coach even likening it to being a drug that you can easily get addicted too. I totally understand. Everything I do in life feels like it is guided by the undertones of design.

So, as 2009 comes to a close, all I can say is, good or bad, I love what I do and I love being able to do it. I promise to continue to relentlessly pursue knowledge of the design world, to embrace new styles and ideas and to take what I have learned in the past and run with it:)

And if you would like to read the article in full, check it out here.