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We’re Back! | Creative People Are Weird

by | Aug 21, 2014 | Uncategorized | 4 comments

Holy cow, what a summer!

It’s been crazy, busy and exciting and I dropped the ball on #CreativePeopleAreWeird.

Well, I’m back and with this little update comes a big message:

Don’t Retreat!

Don’t let The Resistance or your fear or your insecurity prevent you from doing good work (and communicating openly and honestly).

Don’t do it.

Got it?

4 Comments

  1. niftysmith

    What are your new cast iron toys??? How fun!

    I’m not really good at being detached from my work, either. I definitely feel you on the “pleasing the client” bit, and when things go south, I’d rather not do anything at all. Yeah. That’s totally my creative struggle, too. Keep pushing forward!

    • afinepress

      There’s a windmill and a Miehle V50 in there now!

      Sometimes it all feels so silly and I feel like a baby. Keep pressing on!

      • niftysmith

        Oooh! Nice additions. I do like the printed results Windmill’s produce; the registration you can get with ’em seems ridiculously amazing. I don’t know much about the Miehle, but I’ve seen one or two. You’ve got a good mix now, I’d say.

        It feels silly, but at the same time, I think it’s somewhat the curse/blessing of a creative person. We are very mentally/emotionally involved in our work, and a lot of what we do involves so much process. We’re always doing, so it’s just part of who we are. When there’s a difficulty, it’s hard to step back and disentangle our inner selves from the product we are making, no matter what it is, just because we’re the ones making it. It’s also really, really hard to explain that to a client who has already spent time thinking about and imagining a product, their product, that they are also emotionally invested in. So, we’ve got these two separate things going on and we have to meet in the middle. It can be intimidating, and I’m also of the personality to just shut down instead of deal with the hard work of separating myself from my project in order to deal with it rationally. Critiques in art school were so hard because of that, but I’m thankful that I endured and came out on the other side with some notches in my belt. I just have to remind myself that it’s okay and that it’s totally worth it to press through the hard stuff and open communication with the client. No, they won’t always understand, but it’s my job as a designer/creative to help the communication flow smoothly.

        Ha. It’s not silly. It’s just the way things are sometimes. Hang in there! Can’t wait to see what you’ve got going on. 🙂

        • afinepress

          Thanks for this wonderful, thoughtful response!

          Can’t wait to show you what’s coming!

4 Comments

  1. niftysmith

    What are your new cast iron toys??? How fun!

    I’m not really good at being detached from my work, either. I definitely feel you on the “pleasing the client” bit, and when things go south, I’d rather not do anything at all. Yeah. That’s totally my creative struggle, too. Keep pushing forward!

    • afinepress

      There’s a windmill and a Miehle V50 in there now!

      Sometimes it all feels so silly and I feel like a baby. Keep pressing on!

      • niftysmith

        Oooh! Nice additions. I do like the printed results Windmill’s produce; the registration you can get with ’em seems ridiculously amazing. I don’t know much about the Miehle, but I’ve seen one or two. You’ve got a good mix now, I’d say.

        It feels silly, but at the same time, I think it’s somewhat the curse/blessing of a creative person. We are very mentally/emotionally involved in our work, and a lot of what we do involves so much process. We’re always doing, so it’s just part of who we are. When there’s a difficulty, it’s hard to step back and disentangle our inner selves from the product we are making, no matter what it is, just because we’re the ones making it. It’s also really, really hard to explain that to a client who has already spent time thinking about and imagining a product, their product, that they are also emotionally invested in. So, we’ve got these two separate things going on and we have to meet in the middle. It can be intimidating, and I’m also of the personality to just shut down instead of deal with the hard work of separating myself from my project in order to deal with it rationally. Critiques in art school were so hard because of that, but I’m thankful that I endured and came out on the other side with some notches in my belt. I just have to remind myself that it’s okay and that it’s totally worth it to press through the hard stuff and open communication with the client. No, they won’t always understand, but it’s my job as a designer/creative to help the communication flow smoothly.

        Ha. It’s not silly. It’s just the way things are sometimes. Hang in there! Can’t wait to see what you’ve got going on. 🙂

        • afinepress

          Thanks for this wonderful, thoughtful response!

          Can’t wait to show you what’s coming!

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