WEEK NINE
- Angie Moyler
- Aug 2, 2022
- 7 min read
Updated: Oct 9, 2022
Core Characteristics, Ethics and Theory.
The title for this week leads me back immediately to the need for authenticity in all aspects of practice as a graphic designer. Ethics or basic good practice demand that all involved in the communication graphics design process continually address concepts of right and wrong behaviour within the context of multicultural visual communication. This in turn requires a strong self awareness, an appreciation of others and a driven curiosity in order to collaborate to actualise an idea. With your core characteristics, an ethical approach to others and to communication a theoretical, foundational world view emerges. The hard part is to then put this in to practice.
A reflection on my work in setting up The Oxford Charcoal Company was a good example for me of working with others to find the common ground resulting in a successful product.
The story is outlined in my week six blog.
Your idea is only as good as your ability to communicate it.
One of the biggest frustrations of a creative is the ability to actualise an idea.
In the past I have found myself wishing I didn't have so many ideas. As a young person it got to the point where I wished I was someone different. What is the point of a head full of ideas if you couldn't do anything with them?
The natural response to an idea from a business head who lacks the original idea but has business acumen is 'you could make a fortune out of that'. This statement for a creative person is the equivalent of asking them to sprout wings and fly.
Side Note - As we live in an extreme capitalist, commercially driven society we are conditioned to believe that all ideas are only worth dwelling on if they lead to financial reward.
Yes, we need to earn a living and how great to be able to do that with something you enjoy - and even better - your original idea. But, the creative mind will always be dreaming up ideas. Just enjoy who you are and the fun of being able to imagine - just for pure pleasure.
Dream within a structured environment as a design entrepreneur but make space to dream outside of that - just for the pure enjoyment of it. Capitalism and commercialisation are not part of our DNA. They are human constructs which are at times effective. The ability to create is part of what makes us human. Creativity came first. The connection between creativity and financial gain came way, way after.
In this paper Graphic Design and Entrepreneurship: The Rise of the Design Entrepreneur written by Denise Anderson Assistant Professor, Robert Busch School of Design
Kean University. New Jersey, the dilemmas and frustrations of the creative thinker are highlighted and discussed with my own observations;
All graphic designers have the potential to become entrepreneurs simply by virtue of their ability to think creatively, generate ideas and help clients bring those ideas to market by creating and executing commercialized branding programs ...
If graphic designers want to bring their own ideas to market, they need to know what
to do, how to do it and where to find the network and resources necessary to launch and
build sustainable businesses. In order for this to occur, graphic designers need to think and
act more like traditional entrepreneurs. They need supplemental business education that is
tailored to understanding the full life cycle of how to take a product or service from idea to market. They also need to understand the concept of risk and how much of it they are
willing to take in order to pursue entrepreneurial ventures, as well as understand the
common traits of entrepreneurs and how to draw upon or develop similar traits in the
context of their role as graphic designers. The acquisition of this business knowledge,
coupled with graphic designers’ innate ability to think creatively and innovatively, will be the
driving force in helping graphic designers become successful Design Entrepreneurs.
What I have learned is that to develop a high level of self awareness is absolutely fundamental to bringing ideas in to fruition - or, taking an idea from concept to market.
Know who you are. Recognise your strengths and know your gaps. Working in your strengths is easy. We can all do that. The greatest fulfilment is to face your fears and watch your 'gaps' or your weaknesses become less of a looming black hole and just simply a challenge.
I have found that working with my gaps - in my case - business acumen, and to be fair practically anything to do with numbers and spreadsheets takes a huge amount of brain power. If you have the time and resources some gaps can be filled with learning. Otherwise spend that time promoting your idea to those who can fill the gaps with their own strengths.
To do this you need to be fully convinced of the success of your idea and to also have the communication skills to network, enthuse and collaborate.
On knowing yourself, your limits, attributes and potential to be an entrepreneur;
The internet and bookshops are rammed with self help fodder and personality profiling programs. I have shamelessly indulged on every level.
Result:
Listen to yourself first.
No-one knows you better than you do.
Then ask questions of those who know you best.
All anyone or anything else can offer is the possibility of a guiding hand. Useful at times - blind and demoralising alleys otherwise. Humans are complex and amazing and full of surprises and possibilities.
Of all the tools which enable a good understanding of self and personal development the Enneagram, in my opinion, is by far the most holistic, hopeful and insightful. An ancient personal development system which allows for transformation and working with the 'gaps'. It also enables you to see how others function and therefore how best to work in a team and collaborate. Heaps of podcasts and books available - here's a few;
And on topic I have found a great collaboration example - The Enneagram to music - and then a podcast about it!
Who knew?!!
Must listen.
If you haven't listened to Sleeping At Last's album "Atlas: Enneagram" yet, do it now. Ryan O'Neal, the man behind the band, recorded an entire album on all nine Enneagram types. And he made a podcast about it.
This is our number two, because the sheer beauty of his music combined with his own explanations and in-depth dissection of how his songs were inspired by each enneagram type are completely unique thing in the Enneagram podcast landscape.
You don't just learn about Ryan's writing process, though. He's also joined by author Chris Heuertz, who wrote "The Sacred Enneagram", explaining the nine types in beautiful language. The Sleeping At Last podcast is not about the Enneagram alone, so there's much more to discover here than just Ryan's Enneagram album. But for that alone it's worth a visit.
Our favorite episodes were easy here – there are only nine, and we loved them all.
Side Note: A tiny snippet of who I am is this - apparently:
On Experiences of Design and Entrepreneurship;
According to Fixson and Read, “the ability to translate between two languages
and being comfortable switching between two different thought worlds is an ideal skill with which to identify and make completely new connections (2012).”
As a designer to purely focus on the creative arts is storing up huge problems in the whole creative process. If the process doesn't allow for how the product or idea is actualised or brought to market, frustration sets in and potentially great ideas flounder at concept. In any form of design education to include business strategies or Design and Entrepreneurship input would arm the creative with tools which, when seen in context can be developed and used well.
CHALLENGE
Being an entrepreneur today
Create an information graphic, or diagram, or animation that, for you, highlights the effective definition and process of a being a design entrepreneur today.
Upload your diagram to the Ideas Wall and discuss the pros and cons of how risk, failure and innovation is built into a model for business success;
What is the impact of different cultural insights with regard to opportunity and potential?
From my perspective the perfect info graphic to highlight the effective definition and process of being a design entrepreneur today is described within that famous Simon Sinek TED talk.
When relaying the theory to my students I simply visualise it like this;
When these questions are applied to all aspects of the creative process in developing and delivering an idea the result will be authentic and therefore connect with the community you are designing for. Risk, failure and innovation will be built in to the business model simply by applying the answers to these simple questions to every aspect of the project. If the project is driven by a cause or a defined purpose or belief and not by fame or influence or money the difference will be the ability to connect with an audience on an emotional level with a genuine narrative. That is what others get.
If you don't know your 'why?' then how is anyone else going to get it?
I would argue that the creative process for a design entrepreneur today would use the same basic structures as outlined in the timeless classic of James Webb Young - A Technique for Producing Ideas, first published in 1965.
In this gem Young quotes the Italian sociologist Pareto; "an idea is nothing more or less than a new combination of old elements" and then continues by stating; "The second important principle involved is that the capacity to bring old elements into new combinations depends largely on the ability to see relationships". Translate just these two principles to our global community and culture and you have the rationale for insistence upon mixing the relationships, processes and skills between graphic design and social sciences.
Those relationships have to include the tools of relationships with on-line distribution and marketing alongside the relationship and development of successful ideas with business know-how. To see an idea become a great idea, these skills need to develop and work together.
In order to reduce the possibility of failure in developing any design initiative there also needs to develop a continual cycle of relationships between UX and CX design skills. This then creates an evolving, live product which responds not only to market forces and culture but creates a responsive working relationship with its community.
What is the impact of different cultural insights with regard to opportunity and potential?
The answer to this has to be of course hugely beneficial for mankind and the environment in general. Just my own experience and insight tells me that the impact of different cultures brings a richer life and broader outlook. Therefore greater opportunity and potential.
The ability to communicate and find relevance with different cultural insights is about the ability to find the common ground or the common language. The ability to connect with that which makes us human. The greatest and most universally accepted form of communicating and finding that cultural insight is through narrative. Through telling a story.
The value of story or visual narrative as a form of connecting on an emotional level cross culturally is outlined well in this article by Marcus Jenal - Ruminations on Systematic Economic and Social Change.
To connect the value of narrative back to cross cultural communication, authenticity and core characteristics the video I included in my first blog is a great example;
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