Takeaways From A Year Long Master’s in Design
As a cohort, we have come around the final turn and we are just a few strides from crossing the finish line. Things have started to settle, the amount of projects I have is decreasing, I’m not as busy as I was in the thick of grad school. The decrease in workload is allowing me to reflect on this past year, making me desperate to grasp onto the kernels of knowledge that I’ve discovered along the way before I leave.
Here are a few of them:
This isn’t about me.
This was something that became very clear to me in our spring semester. I came to realize that design has very little to do with me. What makes design successful is when it resonates with a broader audience rather than my own internal passions or desires. Good design is solving a real problem. In that way, it is not art. But there is certainly an art to making it all come together.
A few heads are better than one.
It is clear to see the power in successful collaboration when it comes to the work we have created. Design requires a collection of minds, opinions, and criticisms in order that an idea, user flow, color palette, anything can be sharpened and readied for an audience. When one person is doing it, it is only a reflection of their abilities, ideas, and interpretations. What this is does is make something completely non-relatable or not developed. A team that works together well combats this by listening to each other and creating something that takes into account a multitude of experiences and understandings.
When in doubt (actually always), test it.
Wow. This one hits hard. I can’t tell you how much time I have sweated over tiny details, making sure that it was perfect before anyone saw it only to be given feedback that it is not working. Instead of expecting a strike of genius to come to you, TEST A FREAKING IDEA. Put it in front of people– they will tell you very quickly if something is working or not, either by their words or their reactions. Your job is to listen very carefully and dissect their answers appropriately. If your idea doesn’t work, great you can move one to something else or iterate on the piece that wasn’t working. And if it is working, congratulations, you are genius (but only for about two mins cause something will bring you back down to earth, no sweat). But seriously, stop making it perfect before anyone sees it. Do the least amount possible so that you can test it and see what your feedback is.
The year has been filled with lessons, and as I venture into the beginning of career in light of that knowledge I am filled with gratitude for all of the knowledge I have gained. I am eager to see how these lessons play out in the real-world.
