Tale of an Impatient Designer

People often tell me that I'm an extremely fast designer, and there is some truth to that. I design at a full throttle pace that most do not comprehend. Many co-workers and Clients simply shake their heads and say "How do you do it? How do you design sooo fast???"  And I generally say, "I don't know, it's just when I get in the zone, I don't stop".  Translated: I don't rely on others to tell me what to design, or how to do my job, it's something that comes from within and that's why it goes so quickly.

What I design in the beginning doesn't need to be distilled or brought to committee for approval or discussion. It's just what's in my head poured out onto the page. Kind of a visual brainstorm if you will. I do not edit until I'm done designing. Editing and tweaking hinders the childlike energy that accompanies, no, drives the design process. If you tell a child "you're doing it wrong, or why can't you be more like your sister/brother" it frustrates and stymies them. Same is true for me as a designer. Tell me "no, do it my way" and you'll see flames coming from the brakes as I slam into park and pout. If you think you can force me into a linear way of thinking, guess again. If I was a linear thinker who loved rules and order I'd be in another profession.

Some would see that explanation as an admission that all artists are egocentric, over sensitive and flighty, which is not at all the case.  No, simply stated, it boils down to process. The process of design is much like turning on a tap, would you turn the faucet on to dribble so you could wash your hands? No, it's not a useful reasonable way to achieve the end goal. It's a slow and arduous way to get the job done. I think, artists, well, myself as an artist anyway, are all creative taps and we aren't meant to just dribble. I need to let the creative juices flow at full capacity, soak the page with ideas and visuals, and when one page is full I just move onto the next until the well runs dry.

It's not that I design at break neck speeds on purpose, I just don't have the patience to wait for others to keep up with me. The best way to describe it is to say I'm like a kid on Christmas morning, each piece I design is like a present and I want to see it completed so badly that I'm like a child ripping of the wrapping paper to see what lies beneath.

I think it's taken me a while to really put my finger on it. Fact is, I'm impatient. There it is folks, the reason I design so fast is because I lack patience. I do not want to wait days to see what is in my head now, I want to see it now, and if that means skipping lunch and bathroom breaks so be it. I am the Veruca Salt of Design - I want it and I want it NOW!