design dispatch 004 : moonlit motivation
From time to time I struggle with pursuing personal design projects. Although I have a pretty sweet and fulfilling day job in the design industry, I do not always have the wherewithal to realize the potentially great concepts that float around in my head and on the pages of my sketchbook. I design for a living, so surely I should be able to parlay that experience into my own personal forms of design expression? Unfortunately it often doesn’t work out that way.
Believe it or not, this condition plagues many designers with something more to give than what they do for bosses and clients. Whether running a freelance studio or working for a firm, for some reason, when left to our own devices, many designers lack the execution component (i.e. motivation) to see personal projects realized.
While each one of us is different (what motivates one may not always motivate another), I’ve often wondered whether there are any universal motivators that get you beyond just having a good idea and into development – and recently came across the following theory that (over)simplifies the value of an idea in relation to its level of execution:
AWFUL IDEA = -1
WEAK IDEA = 1
SO-SO IDEA = 5
GOOD IDEA = 10
GREAT IDEA = 15
BRILLIANT IDEA = 20
NO EXECUTION = $1
WEAK EXECUTION = $1000
SO-SO- EXECUTION = $10,000
GOOD EXECUTION = $100,000
GREAT EXECUTION = $1,000,000
BRILLIANT EXECUTION = $10,000,000
To make a business, you need to multiply the two.
The most brilliant idea, with no execution, is worth $20.
The most brilliant idea takes great execution to be worth $20,000,000.
In spite of its application to a ‘business’, this model is interesting for two reasons; firstly and perhaps most importantly, it asserts that an idea, no matter how great, is worth nothing without the drive to make it happen’ secondly, its default valuation of an idea is financial, making the assumption that money is a supreme motivator. That’s no surprise - most of us have bills to pay. But money isn’t always the reason why people choose creative careers. Not to be hokey, but to some of us creating is almost as important as breathing. So when I look at this formula, I’m tempted to substitute execution value from dollars to units of emotional fulfillment or happiness, and I know many creative people will agree. But then why is there still this lack of motivation to execute our own ideas?
I’ve observed a trend, at least among those of us whose day jobs are very similar to our personal design aspirations. Although our professional and personal styles or approaches are conceptually different, we still use the same skill set. I’ve heard variations of the following from many of my fellow designers: “I design all day and don’t always feel like doing the same thing when I get home.”
So it would seem that we need to establish a contrast between what we do from 9-5 and what we do in our spare time. A colleague of mine once confided to me that design isn’t entirely her passion. It’s clear to everyone around her that she is an expert at all of the design tools, but in her own mind design is merely a day job. Her passion is more craft-oriented so she started her own craft studio at home and has begun to churn out all sorts of work. Another colleague is married to a doctor who manages to come home from a full day and continue developing a video game he’s been working on for the past year. So it would seem that a certain measure of success comes from differentiation.
It is also important to be honest with yourself when ascertaining your Day Job vs. Personal Pursuit situation. I’ve developed a matrix of sorts to visually determine where I might be located on a spectrum between my day job and the personal design projects I’d like to accomplish one day. The x-axis represents this, while the y-axis represents the level of engagement/motivation required. Take a look and think about where you think you might position yourself:
Depending on your goals, there will be differing points of optimization. North along the y-axis would indicate a good level of engagement, both at work and in your free time. Anything below the x-axis would indicate the opposite and might require you to take some action to get yourself to a happier position. If you find yourself in the quadrant 1 then congratulations, you are one of those rare individuals who actually love their day job! You might not be so engaged on the personal work front, unless (and I suspect) your day job is also your own personal pursuit. Quadrant 2 indicates that you are actually managing to execute the side work. Quadrants 3 and 4 indicate that you have the blues either in your individual projects or at the office, respectively.
Keep in mind that this is not a measure of success, but rather, how motivated you are. So if you’ve found yourself in a spot that you’re not too proud of, determine where on the matrix you’d prefer to be and think about what it would take to get there. I’ll end with 5 guidelines that have helped me and other designers I know:
Create clear goals and deadlines for yourself.
Make a physical space in which you can work – and if it’s in your bedroom try to literally delineate your work space, so that it feels different to the rest of the room. You can do this by surrounding your space with your inspirational stimulus (which is actually number 3).
Keep inspirational stimulus and other supporting materials accessible and visible, as you never know how you might look at something differently from one day to the next.
Condition yourself; keep a schedule to keep you on track. As with practicing anything, it creates momentum which helps maintain your motivation by giving you a sense of moving forward.
And finally, involve others. Start a club that meets regularly to discuss the development of your individual ideas. This will sort of hold your feet to the fire and help ensure your concept’s progress. Over time, you can chart your progress on the matrix until you find yourself at the situation that best suits you.
