The Value of Vacation

Sometimes I take for granted the value of time off from "the normal" in my life. For me it doesn't necessarily mean doing nothing, but more importantly creates space for me to do what I desire to be doing, rather than what I'm obligated to be doing. I suppose I've always looked at time off as something that got in the way of progress, but I now realize it is essential to productivity and health.

I have a to do list that is constantly growing and has a lot of business that needs to be taken care of, but without deliberately prioritizing and assuring that the things on that list actually are important and have matter, it can quickly become just busyness rather than business. I find much more value in doing things that are progressing, that are new, that could potentially go wrong if not carefully tended to throughout the process. However, the flip side of this reveals to me that I'm not a good maintainer, and I thrive on new solutions, new projects, and new challenges.

I spend a lot of my job maintaining things that already exist, but I also realize that's a necessary evil so I take it in stride. Even writing this blog is a form of maintenance in that it's not new but it's a new challenge each time, so I enjoy it. I am constantly trying to find ways to make maintaining fun, whether that's changing the graphics just a little bit (ideally for the better), tweaking the color scheme a bit, rounding corners, or whatever.

Sometimes the ratio of maintenance to innovation can be a bit unbalanced, and I think those are the times when I start to fall into what feels like a flatline. I like having just enough maintenance work to let my mind rest between seasons or bursts of exploring new things. The two other extremes are a little dangerous either way you weight it though. For example, if you have to be innovating constantly then you'll eventually run the well of ideas dry because you're not allowing time for it to be filled back up with thinking time, exposure to other ideas, or inspiration. However, having to constantly maintain means you never have to innovate, and eventually become irrelevant or out of the loop of trends and fall behind the curve. Another almost undetectable imbalance involves having just enough maintenance work to keep you too busy to allow you to allot due time to truly committing to innovating (this is the one I feel I face most).

All this to say, I'm learning to manage tensions, some which are necessary and some which I truly feel could be done away with in my life altogether. A first step to this process of learning is taking some vacation time. Time to rest, relax, do as a I please, travel, adventure, and do things that I want to do in place of what I have to do. Allowing this time, will allow me to come back refreshed, and as my boss says, "The world has become black and white, and I need to start seeing the world in color again".

She's right.

God teach me in this time, show me what you need to show me. Show me when to rest, when to take action, when to write, when to pray, when to sleep. I need your guidance more than I realize. I'm dependent—upon You.

Christmas 2010 in Lynchvegas, VA

Ah yes, Christmas. Another season of frenzy and togetherness come and gone. I spent today with my roommates Wade & Andrew and had my Mia over as well. Wade provided quite the spread of a Paula Dean inspired French toast casserole, eggs, bacon, and biscuits. All was delicious. I am so thankful to have such great people to share the holidays with right in my own house.

I've sort of felt like a Christmas putts this year, meaning I am just not very good at giving gifts without being able to focus time on it. The sad part of that is that I control my time. I can say all day that I'm subjected to my schedule, that my work is delegated to me, that I have no say in what I work on and don't work on, but that's not entirely true. I could say no. I could risk my job, by doing so, but I can still do it. It's easier to be the victim, but it's better, more rewarding, healthier, and more fun to be in control of your time and priorities. I just didn't do a good job with gifts this year, and I know that's not what it's about, but I do enjoy giving gifts that meet needs for people, not just "stuff". Never again will I let myself be victim to my circumstances that I have the potential of influencing. That kind of gift giving takes quality time with people, research, listening, and good note taking to recollect what it is people desire, need, and enjoy. I've been really intentional about this in the past, but I've let other (less important but seemingly urgent) things get in the way of what matters.

This is a large portion of my life that I've let control me as of late, in large part because beforehand it managed itself. It's time to take action. No excuses. I regret letting it get to this place as it is, because it's much harder to backtrack try to change the course of something already in place than to just implement a course of action from the get go. Alas, I've dug this hole myself, and it's up to me to get me out. God help me. I digress.

Christmas was a great day, and though I of course wish I could have been around my family, I know that day will soon come. I spent the afternoon with Mia opening gifts at her place, and then watching Elf, which is of course hilarious. It snowed most of the day and got continually whiter throughout the afternoon and into the evening. We went to a Japanese hibachi grill for dinner with Chad, and after going back to Mia's place and watching a few episodes of season one of The Office I am now out at BRCC for the night so I can rest assure I can be here for tomorrow mornings services (though first is cancelled because of the snow). I look forward to this upcoming week that I will be forcing myself into cashing in some of my unused vacation days and taking some much needed time off.

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I'll leave you with a couple random photos from today's festivities, how was your Christmas Day? What are you learning?

Our Christmas Breakfast crew (not including Wade who is taking the photo)

The Christmas Tree at Mia's place.

Dave (the Despicable Me Minion), the latest addition to my life.

Another Year Gone By

Well another year has gone by. It's around this time of year I look back and ask myself, "What have I done with all this time?"

Have I become a better person? Have I invested it in things that have improved my skills or abilities? Do I have deeper stronger relationships with the people in my life? What's changed in the last year? Am I closer with God? What has God taught me in the last year that He is using to shape me for the future?

All of these questions sort of haunt me, because I feel like the answers aren't what I'd hoped they would be when I first thought of them a year ago. Don't get me wrong, things did happen over the last year. I got a new car, my sister came to visit me, Mia and I took a few adventures out of town to some nearby places, I worked a lot. I've gotten a lot closer with the guys I work with who are some of my closest friends. I thank God I have a great friend in Chad Schaub and look forward to what God is going to continue to do in our friendship as it grows. God has shown me some tough things about myself in this year regarding pride, selfishness, and having an unhealthy critical spirit and I am growing in those areas.

But what else? Have I wasted this year? Could I have done more? Without a doubt yes, however I think more than anything 2010 has shown me that I need to make some changes in 2011. Changes in my priorities, my work load, my time management, and my personal habits.

I'll continue to unfurl what those are in later posts, but I recognize the need for some necessary overdue change in my life that only I have the power to implement and enforce, and though it will take some proactive conversations, it needs to start.

I've let things happen that have been embarrassing, (nothing wrong, just not how I would have envisioned them happening,) and I don't want that to be the case in any area of my life, especially when it affects other people I love and care about. I need to honor God with all facets of my life, and not let some be sacrificed so I can feel better about honoring Him in other areas, it needs to be consistent. I will need Him to sustain me in all of this, and I know He will.

What did you learn in 2010 and what does the new year hold for you? Let's do this together.

What can people in business learn from studying the ways successful designers solve problems and innovate?

A friend of mine Pete Amato shared  this with me and it's amazing how accurate it is. I couldn't help but share it. I now want to read the book Glimmer from which this is based.

 What can people in business learn from studying the ways successful designers solve problems and innovate? On the most basic level, they can learn to question, care, connect, and commit — four of the most important things successful designers do to achieve significant breakthroughs.

Having studied more than a hundred top designers in various fields over the past couple of years (while doing research for a book), I found that there were a few shared behaviors that seemed to be almost second nature to many designers. And these ingrained habits were intrinsically linked to the designer's ability to bring original ideas into the world as successful innovations. All of which suggests that they merit a closer look.

Question. If you spend any time around designers, you quickly discover this about them: They ask, and raise, a lot of questions. Often this is the starting point in the design process, and it can have a profound influence on everything that follows. Many of the designers I studied, from Bruce Mau to Richard Saul Wurman to Paula Scher, talked about the importance of asking "stupid questions"--the ones that challenge the existing realities and assumptions in a given industry or sector. The persistent tendency of designers to do this is captured in the joke designers tell about themselves. How many designers does it take to change a light bulb? Answer: Does it have to be a light bulb?

In a business setting, asking basic "why" questions can make the questioner seem naïve while putting others on the defensive (as in, "What do you mean 'Why are we doing it this way?' We've been doing it this way for 22 years!"). But by encouraging people to step back and reconsider old problems or entrenched practices, the designer can begin to re-frame the challenge at hand — which can then steer thinking in new directions. For business in today's volatile marketplace, the ability to question and rethink basic fundamentals — What business are we really in? What do today's consumers actually need or expect from us? — has never been more important.

Care. It's easy for companies to say they care about customer needs. But to really empathize, you have to be willing to do what many of the best designers do: step out of the corporate bubble and actually immerse yourself in the daily lives of people you're trying to serve. What impressed me about design researchers such as Jane Fulton Suri of IDEO was the dedication to really observing and paying close attention to people — because this is usually the best way to ferret out their deep, unarticulated needs. Focus groups and questionnaires don't cut it; designers know that you must care enough to actually be present in people's lives.

Connect. Designers, I discovered, have a knack for synthesizing--for taking existing elements or ideas and mashing them together in fresh new ways. This can be a valuable shortcut to innovation because it means you don't necessarily have to invent from scratch. By coming up with "smart recombinations" (to use a term coined by the designer John Thackara), Apple has produced some of its most successful hybrid products; and Nike smartly combining a running shoe with an iPod to produce its groundbreaking Nike Plus line (which enables users to program their runs). It isn't easy to come up with these great combos. Designers know that you must "think laterally" — searching far and wide for ideas and influences — and must also be willing to try connecting ideas that might not seem to go together. This is a way of thinking that can also be embraced by non-designers.

Commit. It's one thing to dream up original ideas. But designers quickly take those ideas beyond the realm of imagination by giving form to them. Whether it's a napkin sketch, a prototype carved from foam rubber, or a digital mock-up, the quick-and-rough models that designers constantly create are a critical component of innovation — because when you give form to an idea, you begin to make it real.

But it's also true that when you commit to an idea early — putting it out into the world while it's still young and imperfect — you increase the possibility of short-term failure. Designers tend to be much more comfortable with this risk than most of us. They know that innovation often involves an iterative process with setbacks along the way — and those small failures are actually useful because they show the designer what works and what needs fixing. The designer's ability to "fail forward" is a particularly valuable quality in times of dynamic change. Today, many companies find themselves operating in a test-and-learn business environment that requires rapid prototyping. Which is just one more reason to pay attention to the people who've been conducting their work this way all along.

Warren Berger is the author of "GLIMMER: How design can transform, business, your life, and maybe even the world" (Penguin Press). He edits the online magazine GlimmerSite.com.

Posted via email from Colin Harman's Posterous

12 Things People My Age Will Regret Later In Life

I've been giving this list some thought over time, and though this is only a portion of them, but here we go.

1. Trendy Tattoos
If there is one thing about tattoos that makes my brain nervous is that 99.99% of them are born out of and defined by some trend. I think with enough experience you could train a monkey to identify what time period and under what conditions a person got their sweet tat. We've all heard a story like, "Oh ya, I was belligerent drunk one night and since that's when I catapult into my high quality decision making mind-state, that was when I got my tattoo of Optimus Prime fighting the Ninja Turtles over who liked Chuck Norris the most on my lower back. I thought it'd be cool." Wrong. Have fun explaining that one to your grand kids who are going to be asking you to tell them stories about the days when you "used to use paper." Don't be that guy or girl. And while we're on the subject let me settle the bet for you: Forget Chuck Norris. Mrs. Pacman wins the awesome award 1000% of the time, don't even bother arguing with me.

2. Mullets
It's said that a mullet is business in the front and a party in the back, but it should be more accurately described as a face-to-face debacle you lost to an angry mexican gardener with a weed-eater. Let's face it, mullets aren't cool. You just need to choose a hair length and roll with it, you can't just say "I choose both" and think we as society will accept that as a legitimate answer. You're clearly not very good at making decisions, but is that really a character trait you want to flaunt on your head? For shame.

3. Not taking risks
Anything worth doing is a little risky. Think of all the companies that would have never started if investors didn't take risks in a huge way? I don't even want to attempt to fathom the amount of pop-ups I would have had to wade through during the process of trying to write this post had some big money millionaire not invested money in funding the start of Apple. Go do something scary. Jump off of something. Drive too fast at least once. Go do something you should only do in a group. Challenge yourself. Find out what is the max you can handle of something and then do it just a little bit more. Do something you would watch someone else do and say, "That guy's an idiot for doing that." It's good for you, and it gives you a memory to look back on.

4. Not Traveling
Trust me on this one, I've yet to travel as much as I would like to, and it's already becoming more difficult than I'd like it to be. There will never be a time in life when it's more simple for you to drop whatever it is your doing and go. There's so much more world than you've seen, and just because it's more cozy in your room, or you know the streets around your town and that's enough for you, suck it up and go explore. It's worth it to have the adventures and to learn how other people experience life differently from you.

5. Video Games
I know logging in every late at night and playing the joint campaign until the morning sunrise with guys from Germany and Albania is totally awesome but winning that Tricidian 3-edged up-angled spirit sword is not only lame, but also dipped in a vat of real-life-friend retardant. The amount of time you spend playing video games is only that, time spent. Sure you can say it improves your "hand-eye coordination" but really it's just going to melt your corneas and give you carpel tunnel. Your Xplay-Weestation-Box is not going to get you a job testing video games. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news.

6. Not Getting Married/Getting Married
This one could go either way. I think it goes without saying that "when you should get married" varies for each person. I have friends from high school that I know will never get married because they love WoW, Magic the Gathering, and beer pong too much to ever grow up and do something with themselves. However, in the same way I have friends who were ready to have a wife, 9 to 5 job, a house with a picket fence, and 2.5 kids as a package deal with their high school diploma. Make sure you are getting married for the right reasons for you, and not for anyone else. Either way it's worth the wait/rush.

7. Inappropriate Internet Photos
This one doesn't need much explanation, but no matter what you do with your life, you'll never be proud of your lack of "facebook upload discretion" from the "good times" from your youth. Good luck explaining those same principles to your kids while those not-so-kodak moments exist forever frozen on facebook or the futuristic equivalent (remember Myspace? Ha). For your sake, your future kids, and my future kids, be wise, don't be an idiot, and don't be trashy. Period.

8. Smoking
Oh Tobacco and your manipulative controlling ways. You're like the mother-in-law everyone dreads, yet people choose you. I bet you feel so cool when you exhale that smoke out of your nose. It won't affect you right? And you know what isn't that cool? Chemo and radiation. It's not gonna feel so awesome when you can't even get out of bed and your lungs (if you still have them both) are blacker than african sin at night in a cave. It's also gonna be cool when you're kids are stealing your last pack of Marlboro lights out of your glovebox with their stubby six year old fingers. That jank will kill you, maybe not 'right now' but it will, so cut it out.

9. Not Volunteering
Let's get serious for a second—there's something about selflessly giving of yourself that is written into the human nature of DNA. However, in our world of self-preserving pretentiousness that has turned us into time/effort/resource/money hoarding buffoons that can't see past the end of our noses, doing something for someone else out of the pure kindness of your heart will never return void. I promise.

10. Tanning Beds Many have lied to themselves and said "I just want a base tan so I can look hot in (insert article of clothing here)". But let me be the first to tell you that it's gonna be hard to say that when you look more like a dried shammy or an old leather briefcase in your 50's. Prepare yourself now to not be an aloe vera dependent hot mess of skin cancer later. A little extra darkness now is not worth it.

11. Bad Credit
That Louis Vuitton matched luggage set is not an investment no matter how you spin it. Don't confuse something you want with something you don't need. Having bad credit will only make your life difficult in nearly every way. Frivolous spending, though promoted in our culture is not the way to happiness. Pay your bills on time, don't buy useless crap you can't afford, and for goodness sakes get a savings account that isn't shaped like a piggy on your dresser.

12. Being Lazy
This one is nothing but a choice. I can't think of one person that sits at home all day, covered in cheetos, watching infomercials about knives that can cut through shoes and exhaust pipes that is doing something meaningful with their lives. Do something people. Be passionate about something and do everything you can to achieve it. We live in a world that tells you to relax, do nothing, take time off, and don't do more than is asked of you. While I agree there is a time for that in life, it's no way to live your life. While you sit on your couch watching PBS trying to mimic the sound of a weasel's mating call to impress your sister, I'll be working on something worthwhile so I can make something of my life for a purpose bigger than myself. I challenge you to do something and do it better than you originally thought you could.

That's all I've got for now, but I know there's more spinning in your head.

What did I forget? What do you think will be regretted in the not so distant future? Do tell, I know you've got it in you...

Explore. Dream. Discover.

“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.” - Mark Twain

Posted via email from Colin Harman's Posterous

I don't know why but...

I don't know where it is from, who to it, or when, but I love it. It's everything I imagine a sunset on the water should be. If it look at it long enough a d try to imagine myself in that place, I feel like I can hear the soothing sound of the waves crashing on a beach. I can feel the salty air on my face, and it makes me feel serene.

There is something to be said about "that place". I love when I can, even if for just a second, be taken to another place simply because of a photo, video, sound, or aroma.

I at times wonder if other people experience that level of departure from reality whence they encounter something so seemingly captivating.

Do you have that place you go to? What relaxes/excites/soothes/captivates you? Do tell...

Housemates Adventure

An adventure with my housemates Andrew & Wade to Charlottesville is always a good time. Looking forward to it as we're on our way now.

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Thank you.

I am not a big "go all out for my birthday" person, but I am so grateful for the people who care enough to spend time with me. I love you all, thanks for caring about me so much.

In other news, Despicable Me is hilarious, go see it. Here's a link to a little sneak peak.

Posted via email from Colin Harman's Posterous

Outdoor Environment Circular Plastic Apparatus Slingin'

That's right, I Colin Harman have a not so secret kinship with disc golf. Right now you may be asking yourself why you're continuing to read past that first sentence that is ever so riddled with loserdom, but I thank you for fighting back against your every instinct and making it to sentence two. No promises of it getting better from here.

As many of you know, I am a graphic designer and it is one of my favorite things to do. It is such huge blessing and a curse to get to do what I love to do for my everyday job. I get to come to work and do what I would probably be doing for fun anyway. How cool is that? However, the flip side of that is that when I am just 'designing for fun' it feels like I should be working. It's a weird thing, I accept it.

Enter disc golf. Something that has nothing to do with design, or graphics, or computers, or technical things, or things that most people would consider fun—but I love it. I love how mindlessly focused I can be whilst chasing an injection molded piece of plastic around a field (or semi-wooded area) for fun. Sure there's times it's hot as the inside of a cow's posterior (I live in VA, cow posterior is an acceptable form of thermal measurement, don't judge me), but I love it. 

What's the draw you ask? I don't know. I think for me it's due in part to the fact that it's a complete departure from my normal responsibilities and work routine. I get to be out in nature, in what God created, and just keeping score to see how I improve overtime. I know I'll never be a pro, win tournaments, or gain sponsorship, but it's mindless enjoyment for me.

I find that it's a healthy thing for me, it helps me do what I should do better, because it give me a chance to walk away, to disconnect, and to have a boundary in life. To most it's just a sport that youth pastors and the kids who play dungeons and dragons get to play to appear semi-athletic, but I love it.

So there's a look into the behind the scenes of my brain. I am a frolfer. What do you do that helps you disconnect from life for a second on a completely human level? Do you have those places that have nothing to do with your normal routine that you can say "this is my hobby, I do it for no other reason than personal enjoyment"? I know how good it is for me, so what is that thing for you?

Posted via email from Colin Harman's Posterous

How Would You Like Your Graphic Design?

There are times when things just need to be explained using a spectacular Venn diagram. I made this last night whilst sitting on a screened in porch by an outdoor fireplace when it was late. Design is a funny thing, not as funny as a Kangaroo jumping on a trampoline, but let's be honest what is as funny as that? I'll give you a little hint: nothing.

Anyway, I love design, but it has its limitations in the creation process. Hopefully this helps you understand what those are limitations are, and helps you choose how you would like your design work in the future.

Your thoughts?

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The Only Question Worth Asking

via Deviant Monk (Jason Watson) on Flickr

I wonder this often, it's a question I seem to have to ask myself every month or so. I sometimes feel like I am on a short list of people who enjoy thinking ahead. Don't get my wrong, there are some things I love just doing at spur of the moment, but those things are not related in anyway to work.

Tonight I'll be pulling an all-nighter not necessarily because I had no other option, this one was my choice. Monday is usually my day off, but with this workload I would have normally gone in today to do some last minute work that has to get to the printer by tomorrow afternoon. However, my sister has been in town these last two weeks and today has been her last full day of time here and I didn't want to spend that at work. I wanted to spend that time with my sister whom I don't get to see very often (and who also will be moving to Germany by the end of the summer). I guess that's part of being in the business of design and creativity. Sometimes you have to work ridiculous hours to get something done before the ever nearing deadline.

Living life by the deadline is kind of like the movie Saw (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 or 7—Your choice). You know what you have to do to make "the bad thing not happen", but no matter how hard you try it often gets to the point where at the last minute you're finally getting the key in the proverbial lock to make it happen before your head explodes. (That was a messy example...)

All that to say, I wish I could avoid having to work such crazy hours, but when you're the only one on the "graphics team", you are it. It would suck if I hated what I do, because in reality I love it. I just wish sometimes there wasn't so much to be done so I could do a few things with excellence rather than lots of things at a mediocre level. Also, I look forward to the day when God brings someone who is ridiculously talented and passionate to be a part of my team, but until then this is the life for me for this time in life.

Does your job ever put you in the place of burning the midnight oil? Do you live and die by deadlines? Do you enjoy getting ahead and knowing what you've got on your plate before day/week of? How do you stay organized? Let me know...

Posted via email from Colin Harman's Posterous

I Hate Losing.

I hate losing, but not the kind of losing that most typical meathead guys get frustrated with. I am not a competitive person, I like sports but competing to me is really only a necessary evil (like facebook, and speed limits). I don't need to win, I like working hard and playing as a team, but if I don't win, that's fine.

However, there is a kind of losing I cannot stand. CANNOT. I hate losing things. I was trying to vigorously search through the verbose vocabulary of my trusty friend Webster's book for a word that was more strong and descriptive than just hate, but for now that will have to carry the tune of the following melodious rant. Let me start you out with a little 'behind the curtain look at the terrifying interworkings of my deranged cabeza.

I am super anal about my stuff. Not like a 'don't touch my stuff because I don't trust' you kind of anal, but like a 'I keep lists of all my crap because I hate losing things that much' kind of way. (This next section is for left primarily blank and meaningless so that you have some free time to snicker and laugh at my ridiculousness, and when you are ready and regaining the majority of your composure and your eyes are dried from the unbridled tears of laughter and mockery, feel free to read on.) I just hate losing things.

I try so hard to be a good steward of every part of my life. I avoid wasting time, and I avoid being idle when there is work to be done I avoid wasting money in anyway possible, I strive to use the time I have to put forth the best product that I have, and more than all those things, I hate having something, losing it, and knowing in my mind that I wasted that money because of something stupid I did (or didn't do).

I can count on one hand the things I've lost:

1. Gap Pajama Pants (The only pair that's been long enough for my legs) // 2003
2. Red Billabong T-shirt // Early 2004
3. Innova Star Firebird Frisbee Golf Disc // Summer 2009
4. Discraft Nuke Frisbee Golf Disc // Summer 2010
5. Discraft Nuke Frisbee Golf Disc // June 20, 2010

You're probably thinking, "Silly Colin, you're a dummy and put the same thing twice for the last two, you're a stupid boy." Well on the contrary my observant friend, I lost the disc once, re-bought it, and lost it again today. Ugh, punch me in the neck. I think the only thing worse than losing something is losing the same freaking thing twice.

All this to say, I hate losing things (in case for some reason you decided to overlook the previous segments and eloquently versed paragraphs and skip right down to this very sentence for some brilliant reason I thought I'd reiterate just once more). I don't know why it bothers me so much other than that I'm crazy. It's weird, I know. 

Do you hate losing things as much as I do? Please tell me I'm not the only one that's nuts. Although I suppose  a lack of comments on this post will further confirm I need to be confined to a room with padded walls and a 'cool jacket that makes me hug myself all the time'.

Posted via web from Colin Harman's Posterous

A Few Words of Advice From the Days of Old

Just a little something to remember this morning. This could also apply to unnecessary e-mail forwards or rumors similar to "Facebook is closing, going to start charging, selling your information to Osama Bin Laden, etc.)

Research will do a lot of good and keep you from looking ignorant. Also, I think this is funny.

Lingo changes over the years...

(via 8bit)

Posted via web from Colin Harman's Posterous

"Rework" by 37signals // Thoughts

 

This is the review I put on my readernaut account, but I thought I'd share it here as well:

37signals, writers of 'Rework' are the creators behind Basecamp, which we use at work for project management and to keep us on the same page, it's an incredible and simple product. They have other products as well that fill the needs of many small businesses in a tangible way.

And now, for my review of the book: 

I just finished this book, loved it.

It's amazing how complicated the world of 'small business' and 'marketing' has made itself. I would recommend this book to a lot of people I work with, especially certain pages to certain people. I'd love to hear their thoughts on certain things that could possibly set them free from a pressure they feel, or inspire them to change they way the think about what they do. A few paragraphs in this book pointed to certain people could truly change the reason they do what they do. It would focus their passion. I want that for people.

I appreciate what it has to say about being willing to say the hard things when the hard things need to be said. I think that's something necessary in every avenue of life, whether at work or in any relationship. I also love how it talks about your brand being sum of everything that you do and not your logo, or a handful of events or products you poured yourself into. Your brand is everything you are, say, express, create, maintain, and do.

This is a book I could read every few months and get something new out of that would help me cut through the crap that stands in the way of something that could be done differently. I love new. I love progress.I hate change for the sake of change. I love innovation, I love taking risks. This book reminds me there is something to that, and that it's not all just random thoughts that fly through my head.

Read this book, your outlook on solving problems or moving forward with something will change.

Find out more about this book, what other people think about it, and where to get it, here. Also check out 37signals' amazing blog, here.

Posted via web from Colin Harman's Posterous

Stefan Sagmeister // Sabbatical

Complaining is silly. Either act or forget.
– Stefan Sagmeister.

Stefan Sagmeister is my foremost design hero. His functional, eye-catching, controversial approach to design and typography is epic. Born in Austria and a graduate of University of Applied Arts Vienna and The Pratt Institute (which I would love to attend someday), he came to the U.S. in 1993 and later established himself with his design firm Sagmeister Inc. He has created album artwork for a plethora of artists you've heard of (such as: Lou Reed, OK Go, The Rolling Stones, David Byrne, Aerosmith, Pat Metheny, and many more) in ways that pushed the envelope of utilized the utmost in creativity in everything from the typography to the printing.

In this video he talks about his need for a sabbatical from his design work and how it has been immensly beneficial for his desire to continue designing, pushing his creativity, and allowing him time to work on personal projects. I can't imagine the things I could accomplish in "a year just to create and be". I aspire to have his mind and eye for creativity and design, and to be surrounded by people who not only desire to have the same thing, but to follow through and see them to fruition.

In this second video, he talks about the learnings of his first sabbatical and the projects he came up with and created. He assembled a book with these creations and the stories behind them called "Things I've Learned in My Life So Far" which you can purchase here.

Untestable Variables of the Masses

There are just some things you simply cannot plan for. For example, how do you plan for something that works on a small scale, but is untestable until moment zero for actual reality. A real life demonstration of these inevitable folly reared its ugly head Sunday morning January 4th, 2008. The trouble I ran into was with the seemingly excellent and functional online service known as PollEverwhere.com.

I introduced the using of this service in a “smaller testing market” in the morning High School service at Blue Ridge Community Church. Realizing the potential dangers of using a system like this right off the bat in a huge environment could be a risk difficult to recover from, I felt this was a safe place to get my proverbial feet wet.

For those of you not familiar with Poll Everywhere’s services and capabilities, it is designed with a moron-proof web interface that allows you to build interactive live audience polls using SMS (text messaging) and a short-code paired with a response. Using text messaging the graph/poll on screen is updated live almost instantaneously. The graphs are customizable and can be fitted to your needs. The downside is because they are live updated, they are only functional in Powerpoint on PC and not on mac (for some reason powerpoint for mac blocks the ability for a .swf object to access an outside source for information (lame).

So the concept was simple:

1. Questions on the screen
2. People Text in their answers to the short-code provided
3. Graph updates and works perfectly
4. Much rejoicing and praise for all

However, unanticipated glitch was found in between number 2 & 3 of the above steps. The whole thing choked up. The first 30 or so votes came through no problem, but after that, one at a time squeaked through maybe every 15 seconds or so. My head is spinning trying to figure out where the bottle neck was occurring. As I was voting from my iPhone, I could watch my vote go through immediately, what was the problem?

Well during the second service I figured out what the actual problem was. It turns out that the service polleverywhere.com was not at fault, nor was the internet connectivity of our church, but it was the local SMS service in that area, regardless of who your cell phone carrier is.

I learned that day that every single cell company in the world is enslaved to the demands of a mere handful of companies that hold a seeming monopoly on the text messaging world. These few companies are what’s called SMS Gateway Providers, and they interconnect with every cell carrier to handle text messaging services. These companies have what are called Short Message Service Centers (SMS-C) scattered about to handle the text messages as they come in. Turns out, that in lower density ares of the country (like Blue Ridge’s location), they don’t have the same coverage as they would have in say downtown NYC or San Francisco. So when we sent them a surge of over 500 text messages in under 10 seconds, they were not quite fit to handle it in our given location, at all.

So needless to say, testing it in the high school room was a success with their limited number of users, however using it in the big room where the numbers increase exponentially was a complete and unexpected disaster.

Like I said, things you can only discover in the moment. Has anyone else ever run into any situations like this before where your lesson could only be learned in that very moment? I’d love to hear your stories in the comments.

Obssessions

        How many of us have been obsessed with something before? We think about it day and night, we make decisions based on our obsession, we talk to others about it constantly, and not a minute goes by that we don't think of our particular obsession. I feel like we as people identify with people who are obsessed with something. Obsessed in the way that causes them to dive head first into whatever that obsession calls them to do. Obsession is often seen with a negative connotation, seemingly having to do with a sexual matter, or perhaps even another person. We have OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder) which causes people to be obsessed about things that don't matter to other people in the greater realm of society.        However, I am looking at a completely different type of obsessed. I am talking about the kinda that induces devotion. That drives a person, the kinda that demands excellence of someone in that particular category. If you're obsessed with cleanliness, then vigorously clean. If you are obsessed with reading books, read until your eyes fall heavily limp in exhaustion from their repeated left to right, top to bottom cycles. Some are obsessed with a lack of clutter, and continuously they are looking for ways to minimize their collections of wares, toys, goods, and other sorts of items of which they feel only bring more distraction to their lives rather than assistance.         Many out there are obsessed with the almighty dollar. This obsession can be quite confusing for some, as they tend to mask it with other obsessions. There are people who say they are workaholics, or seem to always trying to find that next get rich quick scheme. There are those who seem to always try to pinch pennies, and will scour the newspapers to find that coupon that will save them 8 cents on a can of generic brand snow peas. Though we call these people penny pinchers and bargain shoppers, they are truly people who value money so much that every moment spent delving into the periodicals looking for the deals is worth the pennies it helps them save.         Yet we love people who are passionate. We love people who are so excited about something they can't help but tell you about it. People who love their car, or who love dogs, clothing brands, sports, places, foods, God, religion, philosophy, art, drinks, deserts, etc. Whatever the particular entity that may be the object of your particular over-zeal may be, we as onlookers admire your unwavering commitment.         At this point you may be pondering what your particular obsession might be, or maybe you are the one who is obsessed with becoming obsessed with nothing (don't think i forgot about you now...). Well, while you mull over your particular infatuations I am going to reveal to you my own personal obsession.         I am obsessed with great design and flawless typography. I am intrigued and drawn into a perfect letterform, or a beautifully laid out page spread. I savor every curve of a visually pleasing typeface and delight in the elegance of a seemingly perfect letterform. I scrutinize the color palate, and the fluidity of how they seamlessly work together in perfect harmony. As a perfect symphony is to the ears of a composer, likewise is the enchanting flow of the eyes across a delicately and meticulously created piece of artwork. My personal looking glass at which I observe these works are through the idea that details are the glue which hold together the focal points of a particular design.         This is true to the core. 90 percent of people can look at an advertisement, and like it or not like it, but then not know why that is true. An understanding of how these things work, and what they are capable of conveying using their form and organization alone is astounding.Word form can convey emotion, it can take you to a place, it can communicate without defining anything. I love to stumble up on new work, and I marvel at the fact that there creativity and can exist after years of art being in existence. Yet with the bringing of new mediums and methods of communication, what was never thought possible, is now indeed possible.         Many will never understand, appreciate, or care about type the way that I do. There are more out there who are overcome with glee when they cross paths with a type treatment they have never seen. My personal obsession was induced by a professor of mine which I encountered during my graphic design studies. He was my instructor for a handful or courses, as I tried to take him for every course i possibly could. Yet among these courses there was one that clearly stood head and shoulders above the rest. It was a class taught by an instructor who was some enveloped in the subject, that his entire life fell victim to the obsession he had subjected himself to earlier in life. Everything he saw from that point on was never same, and after this course, my looking glass is now properly focuses as well. My typography class literally changed the way I see life. My girlfriend thinks I'm crazy, my friends find me annoying, my comrades in school appreciated it more than some, but not like they should have. The bottom line is: I love type. What a weird obsession, and I thought it too at the beginning, but I got swooned in, and now I'm hooked.         I love being surrounded in people who are passionate about something I am passionate in, I love being mentored, I love being discipled. It's an incredible experience to meet someone who knows more about something than you'll ever know, and as soon as you attain that level that they are at, They will have long and far surpassed their place as well.         Sir Edward Edman, who is the man who can look at any typeface and tell you what it is in a matter of seconds. His brain has so memorized the curvatures of the letterforms at every weight imaginable that he cannot help but spew the knowledge so eagerly exploding from within him. I see type everywhere, we're surrounded in it, yet I love to tear it apart in my mind, appreciating the great, and learning from the poor renderings of some. I want the knowledge to see the more that I don't already see. I long for that. He has inspired me to be great, to reach a goal that, to most, is a goal not worth reaching. It's a strange obsession I know, but an extremely useful one at that. In a profession like mine, where your job is to communicate using art, I need letterforms to reach the untrained eye, yet stimulate the eye which can appreciate it most. Having an arsenal of knowledge in the typeface department is unfathomably useful in every situation. I wish that there were more people like me that I was familiar with, I know they're out there.         I know they're out there because websites like ilovetypography.com exist. Yet where are these people? Why am I not sitting in a pub sipping a pint candidly talking about the counters in the timeless typeface helvetica, the exact geometric symmetry of Avant Garde by Herb Lubalin, the sloppy yet genius kerning and inconsistency of Gil Sans, the often illegibility of script faces, the hatred of Times Roman and Papyrus, or the oversized X-height of New Century Schoolbook?! Where are these colleagues of mine?! The uniqueness of such a strange excitement over such an obscure nature leads me only to believe that there are very few of us out there, but when we find each other, it will be a beautiful thing. I look forward to meeting you.

School is a Gimmick

Have you ever sat in a class and though to yourself, "Why do I have to know this, and when am I EVER going to use this worthless information?" There are times that I sit and class and ask myself this every instant that I am sitting in that desk. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE learning, but I don't love learning useless things that I'm never going to use. I love learning about things that I am going to use. I love it. At Liberty, it is their policy that you MUST get C's in all of your major related courses. This is not a challenge because I get A's in all those classes, because I apply myself. I don't know what professor in their right mind wakes up each day, comes to school, and while they're parking their 93 Dodge Stratus in the faculty parking lot are saying to themselves, "I hope that what I say today is completely irrelevant to my students' lives". What teacher would do this? Not one.

Yet, we all sit through the classes that we don't enjoy, writing notes about things we don't care to remember except for the test, and listening to lectures with words we don't care to know the meaning of. Given this argument, why is a "Liberal Arts Degree" so esteemed? Because not only do I know stuff about say business but I can describe for you the inner workings of DNA, or perhaps tell you why rocks fall down when you drop them. What business man will need this if all he wants to do is push paper his whole life? I guess I just feel, that I'm not going to need some much of this garbage, and if I ever do need to procure some information in a hasty fashion on an unfamiliar topic, I'll google it.

Times are changing, and society wants someone who's AMAZING at one thing, not mediocre at a few things...Also, here's something that's perplexing to my mind; something that not one person has been able to answer for me: Why do we pay through nose for school, to be taught, and learn important things, and yet in every class we are told to "teach ourselves". If I wanted to do that, I would just buy the "liberal arts for dummies" book from Barnes & Noble.

I would be thankful if here at Liberty University I was taught how to think, and not what to think. They tell you that you're learning the answers to the questions of life, but their not answers that you've come to on your own. You're not taught how to answer a question, but only to reiterate the answer that they feel you should give. How will I be able to reason my way through life if I am not taught how to do so?

Luckily, my parents have taught me how to make decisions and to reason through issues. I feel at times that I am sitting in a room while a man with the letters "D & R" in front of his name tries to brainwash me into believing what he believes, rather than me being taught why he believes what he believes, and then me being able to reach my own conclusions.

All this to say, I don't mind Liberty, I'll be honest. However, I have taught myself to look at everything from an analytical perspective, and not just believe what people say because they are esteemed by society or peers in their field. Lastly, thank you mom and dad for instilling in me values and principles that have guided my path up until this point and will stick with me until the end of my days. I love you and thank you for teaching me what I need to know, and not what you wanted me to know.

The Board Person

This concept hit me the other day and I didn't write it down, but the following is my attempt to reiterate my thoughts: So I was sitting thinking about my life while listening back to the recording of David Miller's sunday morning talk about "The Box of Our Friends", when I began to ask myself questions. Now, when you ask yourself questions, do you ever really get an unbiased answer? Don't answer that. But here's the real deal, I began to ask myself the question of not what kind of friends I had, but what kind of friend I am to each one of them. I thought about a numerous amount of things that I thought could be true about me, but I realized that I love helping my friends.

Occasionally I won't help just ANYONE, but always my friends. I began to ask myself, "Why do you do this? If you do these things all the time, then they'll start to take it for granted, then you'll just be unappreciated for your 'ministry to your friends'." I couldn't help but think, is that really true?

I love to do things for people, but here is my one and only clause:

I wil do things for you as long as they are appreciated genuinely, but as soon as they are 'expected' or 'taken for granted' I will pull the plug."

Is that so wrong of me? I mean there may in fact be times when I don't have time to do something in which case I will likely (but not always) say no to your request. There have been times when people are astonished that I said no, and then become cross with me, because I'm unwilling to help them.

For example, I am the "go to guy" for the four following things:

1) Computer questions

2) Website/internet questions (coding)

3) and assembling/fixing things

4) "Just a real quick" graphic design project

Am I fine with that? Yes. I have said for some time now, that my goal in life is to make myself to be useful, relevant, and ideally indispensable in whatever I am involved in. In other words, I want people to come to me, and have them know that I can do it and I'm more than willing to do so. For sometime now, I have been the person that is always looking for the next way to help out a friend in need. I want to aid and assist in anyway that I can because that is why God has given me the abilities that He has. I always want to make time for people as much as possible, but as we all know there are only so many hours in a day, and days in a week. Right now in my life, I am juggling 40 hours a week of work, 18 credit hours of school, church, a housefull of my closest friends, my amazing girlfriend, my family of course, and my cute little dog Maxine. Where in there am I supposed to have time for God, let alone doing things in obedience to him?

Now I have never been the person to complain about much or try to get attention about things happening in my life, and here's why: If you cared, you'd ask. There are people that know me, and care for me and my heart.So with that said, here's the reason for the title:I came up with the analogy/metaphor mid conversation, and now I'm going to share it with you. Sure it's got some things about it that could be questioned or misinterpreted, but it give me a better mental picture, so I hope it helps you.

"The squeeky wheel gets the grease." We hear that phrase a lot and it's meant to mean that if you make a fuss, your problem will be solved quicker. This may work in the business world, but I feel it's a cop-out. If everyone and their pet monkey knows your life's problems, of course someone along the way is bound to step up and try to help you, either because they are able to or they just want to shut you up. So I sort of do the opposite; I look at myself as "The squeeky board in the floor that still gets walked on." What does that mean? Take this example: When I first moved into my nearly 100 year old house on Rivermont in Lynchburg, Virginia there was a loose board in the floor in my room upstairs. At first, when I didn't know the house I gave this board special treatment, and danced around it as to not worsen the condition hoping that it would last just long enough for it not to affect me while I am living there. Basically while I need it, I want to make sure it has everything it needs to keep functioning as long as I need it. With proper care, that board could last a long time.

When you first move in, you notice all the cracks, creaks, squeeks, clanks, and sounds that an old house makes because your not used to them, but once you've been around it for a while you just get used to them and expect them to be there. This, my friends, is where I feel I come in for some (DEFINITELY NOT ALL) people.

You see, I don't even care where that board is now, I just step wherever my foot lands with the assumption of, "It's held up this long, what difference will a little longer make?" If I was that board, the second that I got overlooked, I would snap and send 'me' straight through the floor and on to the downstairs couch (probably with a broken leg). All this to say, I am like every other person, in that I like to be appreciated and checked up on, but I know that because I am giving and willing, I get taken for granted. Oh well such is life. I am content with the role that God has given me, I just let "myself" get in the way of what God has for me.

I'm not coming down on anyone, just expressing feelings and thoughts. Sorry I have no real ending to this, if you have one, please share it, I want your thoughts and opinions...