I’ve spent a fair share of my life studying. The first degree was a stepping stone to something else, the second an expectation, but the third was from perspective of want. And let me make clear, studying something you are passionate about is so much more satisfying.
That said, I was eager to leave what felt like an academic career behind and play catch up in the corporate world.
And I’ve made a great go of it.
Yet at some point, I realised that my thirst for knowledge was unquenchable. I had masked it in the past by taking on new roles and responsibilities, while in the extreme, sought new employment for greater challenges. It’s been an interesting journey thus far but I have found peace upon the road I am currently travelling.
The creative industry, where I solve people problems in a digital context, is just beginning to find its feet. At a time when new technologies promise glimpses of childhood dreams and where procedure and protocol change daily, I find my role as a designer and its power to shape how we interact with things and each other very rewarding. The sector is in flux and I have a hand in shaping it.
Interacting with people is inevitable, and I have always found that most of life’s problems can be solved through effective communication. I find this area of design fascinating — what motivates people and how do they go about it. Engagement design, service design, and the in-vogue gamification, all approach these questions at different cognitive stages — the hook, the experience, the return.
And to formally sure up my experience in this nascent field, I once again dipped my toes into the fountain of knowledge and took up the books — only this time, digitally. It was a long ten weeks, but the comfort in knowing that my approach, method and thinking in this area of expertise was spot on, proved to be immeasurably fulfilling.
That, and the fact I didn’t do too badly, makes this piece of digital paper all the more sweeter.
tdha
