My design journey
Once upon a time, in a galaxy, far, far away…
Okay, not exactly. Though growing up in a small, mid-western town, it kind of felt like a faraway galaxy. Exposure to design wasn’t exactly… er, abundant.
The early years.
As a kid, I fell in love with drawing character art, specifically comic book characters. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Spider-man were always my go-to’s. A big reason for this passion stemmed from watching the talent pour out of my cousin, Kaleb (who now is a published author of graphic novellas). When I wasn’t drawing TMNT, I was often building LEGO. It was the only time I’d beg my parents for a Happy Meal (okay, that’s probably a lie).
As I got older, though, I began putting aside comic books (but not LEGO) as my attention shifted to consumer branding. I’m a sucker for a good, clean brand. It began with luxury car brands — BMW, Mercedes, Aston Martin — but quickly expanded into all different kinds of products. I was starting to acknowledge which brands resonated with me because they looked good and told a compelling story through their design.
As I continued along this journey known as adolescence, I also became fascinated by technology. Oh, how I would pray the Napster download I set up to run overnight wouldn’t fail by morning. There had to be a way to blend my passion for art, story, and tech into some life profession, right?
Breaking out of my comfort zone.
Jump ahead a few years, and I found myself moving to Tampa, where I attended design school, graduating in 2003 with an AS in Web Design (yes, that was actually a thing). Quickly out of college, I began my career at a small interactive agency in St. Petersburg, named Blue Reef Creative. It was here I was fortunate to meet my long-time mentor, Greg (who went on to start the successful Philly-based studio, Push10). Greg really inspired those early years, and I credit him a lot of the designer I am today.
After a while in advertising, I came to realize I preferred consuming it over creating it. I was missing something I had fallen in love with about the web — building something people would actually use and not just passively observe. This revelation ironically came around 2007 paralleling the launch of the iPhone, the explosion of mobile web, and how it quickly weaved into our societal fabric.
It hit me like a ton of ACME bricks. I knew designing digital products was the next phase of my design journey.
I was missing something I had fallen in love with about the web — building something people would actually use, not merely observe.
I stuck around advertising for a little longer but kept a tight focus on all aspects of the web and web-based software. Then, in 2012, my wife and I moved to Austin, and the rest, as they say, is history. From designing my first touch interface for iPad to starting my own agency, Mighty, in 2015, Austin was a treasure trove of experience.
That itch to start my own business started early in my journey. From my initial exposure at Blue Reef to working on products for Facebook, I wanted to create an environment that would foster creative thinking and challenge people to grow professionally. This became the impetus for every stop I made along my journey. I paid attention to how business owners — at varying degrees of success — made decisions, cultivated culture, and balanced the needs of the business with the needs of the creative process.
The later years.
As I evolved as a human and a designer (read, ‘as I grew up’), I discovered that I felt equally rewarded when supporting other designers and helping them be successful as I was designing myself. I genuinely believe the best products come from teams who work smart, think quickly, and collaborate every day.
And that’s where I am today: furthering my own education by learning from those around me, while also sharing my knowledge and experience to support and develop others.
