The ANTIDESIGN

As a child, choosing what we want to do for a living seems like a most crucial and time-sensitive decision. I remember just knowing that everyone in my third grade class already knew exactly what they wanted to be when they grew up, and were already working towards their goals. I was behind. I never felt like I knew what I wanted to do for a living. What I knew was that I was fascinated by things that made me feel intensely, and had some kind of unusual draw towards dramatic situations. Since I was 7, I have gone through many passions, but they always change, and I always get bored. Choosing to major in design was not an easy decision for me to arrive at, in fact, it's one that I chose in the last few days of registration. This isn't the first time that having a deadline to make has eased the decision making process a bit. Although I was rushed, I know that design was the right choice for me personally, not only because of future goals, but also by looking back at what I enjoyed and found interesting when I was young.

When I think about design as a career choice, I still find myself thinking that it's best suited for someone who has a passion for creating new things. That isn't my experience. Personally, I do not consider myself a creator, or even one who is passionate about the idea that we can create new things. What I'm really passionate about is being inspired. Seeing new things makes me excited, and it always has. It is enjoyable and effortless to soak up style, technique, mood, and composition of new artwork that I see, but also by structures and objects I find as I move through the world. Being in a new place in the way that novels, video games, movies, and travel can offer is absolutely a source of inspiration to me. That truly encompasses what being a designer is about for me personally. Designers are just pros at being inspired.