This is the last ever episode of AADA. Today I explain what's next, and how to find it. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes Why this is the last ever episode What’s next Upper Limit Beliefs (The Big Leap book) I’m not just a designer The reason for a new name and new domain Different audience Different people will listen to it I want to talk about more stuff, but not delete this podcast Introducing GET DOING THINGS Mindset Marketing Design How all 3 connect together, and how 1 doesn’t work without the others I still haven’t recorded the first episode… Or made the website… Tomorrow is episode 1 of GET DOING THINGS You’ll have to resubscribe to a new podcast It’s called Get Doing Things New domain: getdoingthings.com Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

This is the last ever episode of AADA. Today I explain what's next, and how to find it. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes Why this is the last ever episode What’s next Upper Limit Beliefs (The Big Leap book) I’m not just a designer The reason for a new name and new domain Different audience Different people will listen to it I want to talk about more stuff, but not delete this podcast Introducing GET DOING THINGS Mindset Marketing Design How all 3 connect together, and how 1 doesn’t work without the others I still haven’t recorded the first episode… Or made the website… Tomorrow is episode 1 of GET DOING THINGS You’ll have to resubscribe to a new podcast It’s called Get Doing Things New domain: getdoingthings.com Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

Batching your social media is a great tactic...but you have to be careful. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes Automating and batching your social media can be a useful way to save lots of time Mostly, I recommend it The problem comes when it’s too automated Has to still seem relevant Not repeat itself: Rise of people using Meet Edgar to repeat content It means you see people’s Twitter timelines and they just say the same things over and over Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

I'm going to be negative today and tell you why you shouldn't start a podcast. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes Back in #227 I spoke about starting a podcast Today, this is 7 reasons NOT to start a podcast I’m going to be negative 7 Reasons LOTS of people do podcasts. Rather too many do: it’s a crowded market People still don’t get podcasting If you’re not a natural speaker, it might harm you It isn’t the easiest way to build an audience - it takes lots of time It’s hard to work out the size of your audience - no real stats means no real insights I can’t make people take action: linking to stuff is hard They take a lot of time and you have to be passionate about it Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

Yes, The Faceless Man is from Game of Thrones and it's nice to include it in my podcast title. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes Lots of companies get content marketing wrong They get marketing wrong too They try to market their business And they try to get people to engage with their business The problem is: PEOPLE ENGAGE WITH PEOPLE Look at Apple: Steve Jobs, Jony Ive, Tim Cook Why do they put spokespeople out for a massive company? Because people don’t engage with brands, even ones as powerful as Apple I’m interested in Apple, but I don’t follow Apple on Twitter Stop trying to make your business into a thing people want to engage with Make your people the thing that people will engage with Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

Yes, The Faceless Man is from Game of Thrones and it's nice to include it in my podcast title. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes Lots of companies get content marketing wrong They get marketing wrong too They try to market their business And they try to get people to engage with their business The problem is: PEOPLE ENGAGE WITH PEOPLE Look at Apple: Steve Jobs, Jony Ive, Tim Cook Why do they put spokespeople out for a massive company? Because people don’t engage with brands, even ones as powerful as Apple I’m interested in Apple, but I don’t follow Apple on Twitter Stop trying to make your business into a thing people want to engage with Make your people the thing that people will engage with Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

Yes you're making a podcast or a blog. But WHY are you doing it and what do you want to achieve? Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes I listened to a great episode of Cliff Ravencraft’s podcast the other day where he spoke about making a podcast He said a lot of people that come to him have got it the wrong way around They made a podcast, but didn’t do it for a reason There was nothing for a listener to then jump off to afterwards This is fine for for-fun podcasts, but what about the marketing ones? Why are you doing your content marketing? What are you ultimately trying to market?   My personal reasons for doing a podcast You all know: I started my podcast in January as a challenge and “marketing experiment” I didn’t have anything to sell though I enjoy it and that’s one of the most important things A new goal of mine is to freely share everything I learn It helps me build an audience - 1000 Fans by Kevin Kelly   Let’s flip the question around But let me turn the question to you: why are YOU doing these things? Or why are you NOT doing? A reason is important For years, I didn’t have a reason, so I didn’t do it Now I want to share, I have a reason Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

Yes you're making a podcast or a blog. But WHY are you doing it and what do you want to achieve? Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes I listened to a great episode of Cliff Ravencraft’s podcast the other day where he spoke about making a podcast He said a lot of people that come to him have got it the wrong way around They made a podcast, but didn’t do it for a reason There was nothing for a listener to then jump off to afterwards This is fine for for-fun podcasts, but what about the marketing ones? Why are you doing your content marketing? What are you ultimately trying to market?   My personal reasons for doing a podcast You all know: I started my podcast in January as a challenge and “marketing experiment” I didn’t have anything to sell though I enjoy it and that’s one of the most important things A new goal of mine is to freely share everything I learn It helps me build an audience - 1000 Fans by Kevin Kelly   Let’s flip the question around But let me turn the question to you: why are YOU doing these things? Or why are you NOT doing? A reason is important For years, I didn’t have a reason, so I didn’t do it Now I want to share, I have a reason Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

I believe in self-development, and today I explain why. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes The Miracle Morning by Hal Elrod You're can only become as good as your level of self development If you're not self aware or capable of being a leader you can't be a leader If you're not capable of taking on the attitudes of successful people you can't be successful Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

What is it that successful people do differently that you can do too? Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes I read a lot of books about successful people Both traditional success and weirder success The common denominator between them all is a persistence in their attitude They'll work longer and harder than everybody else And they'll carry on when everybody else has quit Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

I explain why evergreen content is important for your marketing. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes Content that you can use for years that doesn't go out of date Focused on long standing topics  Doesn't focus on technologies Focused on mindset or something else Important to make sure your articles aren't too topical But topical can also be good at the same time Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

I explain why evergreen content is important for your marketing. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes Content that you can use for years that doesn't go out of date Focused on long standing topics  Doesn't focus on technologies Focused on mindset or something else Important to make sure your articles aren't too topical But topical can also be good at the same time Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

I've been wanting to talk about this for a while: what would I do differently if I started again if I knew what I know now? Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes The easy answer - nothing The real answer 100 Fans Article I'd would've created a product I would've created a useful blog and kept it up to date I would have paid more attention to the importance of marketing straight away I would have read a book a week I would have started with a niche agency instead of one that appeals to everybody I would have focused on clients that already made a lot of money through their website as it's easier to see the direct benefit that way   Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

I've been wanting to talk about this for a while: what would I do differently if I started again if I knew what I know now? Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes The easy answer - nothing The real answer 100 Fans Article I'd would've created a product I would've created a useful blog and kept it up to date I would have paid more attention to the importance of marketing straight away I would have read a book a week I would have started with a niche agency instead of one that appeals to everybody I would have focused on clients that already made a lot of money through their website as it's easier to see the direct benefit that way   Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

I share how I used to feel about marketing, and how many people still feel about marketing. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes The British attitude to advertising and marketing Promoting yourself is important Most people want to see you doing well The people that don't don't matter Marketing is the only way to differentiate yourself in the marketplace Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

It's a title that's a bit clickbaity today, but it's true. Let me explain. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes It's taken me a lot of years to realise this.  Before I took marketing seriously After I took marketing seriously Your level of marketing dictates your quality of clients No marketing: anybody Some marketing: some people you want Lots of marketing done properly: pick and choose the ones you want to work with Marketing is more important than your clients because eventually marketing becomes the way you choose your clients  Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

It's a title that's a bit clickbaity today, but it's true. Let me explain. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes It's taken me a lot of years to realise this.  Before I took marketing seriously After I took marketing seriously Your level of marketing dictates your quality of clients No marketing: anybody Some marketing: some people you want Lots of marketing done properly: pick and choose the ones you want to work with Marketing is more important than your clients because eventually marketing becomes the way you choose your clients  Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

I do a lot of stuff. Because I do a lot of stuff people always ask me "How do you find the time?".  Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes Lots of people ask me this question. I usually just answer "I just do", or shrug my shoulders Today I decided to try and get to the bottom of it a bit more. Passion Having a plan and a vision Enjoying what a do Being the kind of person that wants to be the hardest worker in the room all the time Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

I do a lot of stuff. Because I do a lot of stuff people always ask me "How do you find the time?".  Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes Lots of people ask me this question. I usually just answer "I just do", or shrug my shoulders Today I decided to try and get to the bottom of it a bit more. Passion Having a plan and a vision Enjoying what a do Being the kind of person that wants to be the hardest worker in the room all the time Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

Design inspiration isn't about copying other people, no matter what other designers do. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes Design inspiration doesn't mean finding similar stuff and copying it Design inspiration means getting into the mood of a piece, looking st similar things to what you'd like to achieve Think about what you want to achieve first and come up with idea first Don't rush to looking for inspiration Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

I get a bit serious today, and talk about why I think the creative industry needs a governing body. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes No standardisation No barrier to entry No expectation of professionalism No way of a new employee knowing what to expect No way for a client to know what to expect It makes us look like a bunch of con artists Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

I get a bit serious today, and talk about why I think the creative industry needs a governing body. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes No standardisation No barrier to entry No expectation of professionalism No way of a new employee knowing what to expect No way for a client to know what to expect It makes us look like a bunch of con artists Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

I'm talking about a topic I touch upon a lot: how to become a better designer. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes Read Listen Read Do a LOT of design work Don’t just do work in work time, and don’t just do it for clients Do work that you hate The tools are the least important thing The ideas are the most important Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

I talk about Quora, and share a recent case study where I managed to achieve 1000 views a day for 1 piece of content. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes Today I’m rounding off my content series to talk about Quora What is Quora? Let’s talk about some real life stats of Quora  Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

I talk about a thing a lot of people don't think about: how to design your content. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes Designing your content isn’t something many people think about They think of content as writing, or blogs, or audio files. The design of your content is probably more important than your actual content If it’s boring, people won’t consume If it’s too long, people won’t consume If it doesn’t work or looks rubbish, people won’t consume it Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

I talk about a thing a lot of people don't think about: how to design your content. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes Designing your content isn’t something many people think about They think of content as writing, or blogs, or audio files. The design of your content is probably more important than your actual content If it’s boring, people won’t consume If it’s too long, people won’t consume If it doesn’t work or looks rubbish, people won’t consume it Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

I talk about an interesting idea today: the idea that you might be able to sell your content. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes If your content is really special, or super helpful, you might be able to sell it There’s lots of ways to do that: Guest blog for other websites/publications Setup a subscription website Sell access to articles or research Do you know things that others don’t know? OR, do you know things that SOME people don’t know and would like to know? Everything is on the internet, but it’s hard to decipher which is good Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

I'm not talking about sleazy tactics. I mean: why should you be giving away all your content for free? Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes I don’t like talking about making money on the internet, because it feels dirty to say it Some people will get the wrong impression, and think I’m talking about dodgy methods But that’s not what I’m talking about today I’m talking about creating content I’ve spoken about this this week a lot, as it’s what I’m focusing on this week The simplest and most effective tactic is this Give away all your secrets and content for free, and charge to implement it It works for nearly every business And if it doesn’t work for your business, a BIT of it will Give away SOME of your content and secrets Give away insane amounts of value Make people WANT to come back to your website for more free stuff Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

Today I bang the content drum (again), and try to inspire you to write some. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes Everybody has got an interest, a hobby or a passion. Sometimes they cross over and you get paid for them. Whatever your hobby is, they’ll be a website for it. If there’s not a website for it, you could create it. When you start producing content, people start to know you for that content. Creating regular content keeps you active in people’s minds.  They’ll remember you when they need the thing you’re promoting. You could make a job from your hobby! Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

I don't think designers should have a style. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes The tweet I mention in this episode: https://twitter.com/CD_and_Co/status/895396505342705664 Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

I'm talking about creativity, and exactly what it means. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes Creativity is the act of creating something  It's not a superpower or something that special people have Anything is creative  Playing guitar, doodling, making stuff  It's all creative  Often designers are called "a creative" But we don't have the monopoly on the term.  Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

2 episodes in the same day! I played with an Oculus Rift. This is what I thought of it. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

I played with an Oculus Rift. This is what I expected it to be. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

I'm talking directly to young designers today: these are the things you need to know. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes Use a sketchbook! Use a sketchbook! Create WAY more work than your teachers or lecturers actually do Seek out criticism. Learn what’s wrong with your work. Do work for clients and let them tell you how bad it is. Nothing beats hard work. Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

I rant a little bit about people who are afraid of their website. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes So many people aren’t technical, and I get that. So many people are scared of their website, rather than seeing the potential for having an online presence anybody around the globe can see instantly Start learning how to blog Start learning how to update your website Start learning the basics of SEO YOU ARE THE BEST PERSON TO DO ALL OF THIS. NOT A MARKETING COMPANY. Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

I've just finished reading Oversubscribed. This is what I learned. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes Buy the awesome book: Oversubscribed by Daniel Priestley In the fantastic book Oversubscribed by Daniel Priestley, Daniel talks about how to become oversubscribed. I’m not talking about how to become oversubscribed, but he does suggest a very good way of running your design and marketing in your business. Become a Campaign Driven Enterprise. Stop thinking about individual marketing activities A single blog A single email A brochure Think about a theme What are we doing in December?  What campaign are doing for Valentine's Day? What is the ultimate thing we're promoting? Start with 1 campaign What things can we tie into? Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

Today I get a bit ranty about the regular design mistakes I see made. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes No logo. At all. The Noun Project is good for cheap logos if you're stuck. A generic name for a business, or an acronym name. Horrible colour choices. Find out what colours clash and don’t use them. Overcomplicating the design of a website/business card/leaflet/anything. Poorly written text. Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

Today I talk about feeling uninspired and wanting to give up. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes Throughout my 211 episodes, I’ve talked sporadically about inspiration and motivation In episode 95 I discussed the idea of inspiration, or at least how designers understand the phrase. I’ve spoken variously in other episodes about the idea of motivation, and how we shouldn’t wait for it or seek it before we do something. Discipline wins out every time when motivation isn’t there, and that’s something I ranted about in episode 183. Feeling uninspired happens. A couple of weeks ago I went through a period of not wanting to make my podcast. I’d got bored of the format, the things I was talking about, and how it was progressing. One week later, I was happy again. Feeling uninspired is like any other feeling: it’s fleeting. Just ride it out with a bit of discipline and just get to work. Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

Today I look at the difference between Trump and Obama. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes Now Trump is a bit of a way into his presidency, I thought it’d be fun to compare him to Obama in terms of his design and marketing strategy It’s fair to say Trump’s strategy has been mostly a car crash, but there’s some interesting comparisons when compared to Obama The two different markets: the “right” market, and the “left” market One uses words like “change we can believe in”, “belief”, “truth”, “change" The other uses things like “fake news”, “the swamp”, ‘things need to change” Obama’s design strategy https://www.obama.org/ Trump’s design strategy  https://www.donaldjtrump.com/ Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

Let's talk about how design careers usually go. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes Nearly all design careers follow a predictable trajectory  Young plucky arrogant designer working for somebody else Young plucky arrogant designer takes up freelance work A bit wiser young designer loses the arrogance and decides to try an in house designer role for a bit  Then you go back to a design agency because it's more rewarding work Then you make a choice, you either go into management or you hone your craft  I know a lot of designers that baulk against management and that's good Because a good designer doesn't make a good manager  Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

Today I discuss why being a jack-of-all-trades isn't a bad thing. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes I covered this a bit way back in #111 - Be Good At Lots Of Things Today I want to talk about me, or at least my approach to design The specialist designer The jack-of-all-trades designer The “designer" - The all round good designer  Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

I talk about my favourite kind of design again, for the third time. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes I’ve done this kind of episode twice before: #142 - Old Design and Alan Fletcher #122 - Graphic Design Today I’m back for part 3. I love talking about my favourite kind of design Wit in design Design with Easter Eggs Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

I talk about my first design job. Awww. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes I wrote an answer on Quora recently that I thought would also make a good podcast episode. I answered the question: What was your first graphic designer job like? I randomly decided to apply for this job and never expected to get it. I struggled to deal with criticism and I used to get too attached I wasn’t capable of understanding how to improve things I wasn’t a very good designer I was the only designer in the company I had to learn everything and do everything myself It was hard. Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

What does it mean to design a website for the coffee queue? Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes In episode 204, I touched on the importance of mobile I said a phrase that really caught my thinking, and I wanted to consider it more in-depth The coffee queue is just an analogy really to help you consider how people use websites in reality. People use their phones whilst: Killing time waiting for a friend Stood waiting for the traffic lights to change (in cars and outside of cars)  Waking up on a morning Going to bed on a night Waiting for an appointment  Bored at the dinner table Generally we use it as an all encompassing time waster  The idea of designing a website for the coffee queue The user isn’t fully engaged They want the content as quick as possible They’ll be on a mobile phone They’ll likely have a poor internet connection They want to find something out They want to be engaged, intrigued, interested, surprised They won’t do anything complicated, and likely will forget to complete anything that is It’s a powerful way of thinking about the next website you’re involved in. Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

Why mobile is SO important when you're designing things, or commissioning new design work. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes What I mean by mobile  The Consumption age The mobile brain and Short attention spans  Is somebody viewing your thing with intent or are they stood in a queue waiting for a coffee?  Chunking content  How to design for mobile and the mobile brain  Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

I talk about scheduling and batching things to make things more efficient. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes I've fallen out of love with schedules recently, as I discussed in episode 186 about planning my podcast  I wanted my podcast to feel more spontaneous, but I'd estimate it's making my podcast twice as difficult  Wherever possible, you should separate the ideas and thinking tasks from the production tasks.  If you plan upfront then produce later, you'll be faster at both tasks  Using trello to plan my personal content schedule All this stuff can be applied to anybody needs to write regular content  Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

Today I'm talking about design feedback. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes It's not about you and what shade of pink you like Design is hard, and don't forget that fact Be diplomatic with your opinions But also, be honest with your opinions If the designs match the brief, the job is a success You don't need to see multiple options of everything, trust your designer Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

Here's the final lessons I've learned from getting up early for two weeks. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes Yesterday, I got the episode numbers wrong. Tomorrow, I’ll talk about design. I promise. My last year of late mornings. There’s no such thing as a morning person or a night owl (sort of). You can force yourself to get up at any time you choose. Listen to your body. Getting up early does feel more productive, but is it? Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

It's stupidly easy to set up an online business. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes P.S. I semi-scripted today's episode: here's the script. When you’re stuck in a rut It’s easier to look and see that the grass is greener on the other side Today, I’m here to tell you that it is And I’m here to show you how easy How unbelievably, ridiculously easy it is To set up an online business Today, right now. Seriously, you’re not going to believe how easy this is. BREAK I don’t care how much you know right now Even if the only thing you can do is open your email Within a couple of hours, you could make a website If I look back 15 years ago to when I started this website stuff You used to have to make them yourself Well, sort of. I made my first website in something called Dreamweaver Which was really just an upgraded FrontPage And if you remember that, you’re an old sad geek like me. Back then, websites would take a couple of hours just to make something basic Now, you can go to something like WordPress.com Or squarespace Or Wix, or a million other things like that, and have a website online in 20 minutes No kidding, no exergerating. I could teach my dad to do this stuff. I could teach my dad to make a website in 20 minutes. And with a website, comes a business. Or at least, a potential business. There’s loads of ways to setup on online business. You’ve got the obvious ones like e-commerce Selling a product online, then shipping it and stuff like that Then you’ve got less obvious ones Like being an online personal assistant for people Which are sometimes called virtual assistants And then there’s things like SEO consultants Business coaching Social media And stuff like I do, selling websites We started Genius Division with nothing more than a couple of computers and desks And a website, obviously From that website we sold our services But we never really directly sold from the internet as such We sold through contacts we already knew and the network we’d built up But we did, and still do, sell websites And in some way, ours is an online business As I’ve been banging on all week, it pains me so much to see people not realising this Not realising the potential of the internet, and all the crazy different businesses you can setup on it SO EASILY If there’s any takeaway from this week of the power of the internet episodes its simply this The internet is massive And you could be making money from it as well If you’re stuck in a job you hate or you want to change I’ve got thousands of people who I could show you who make money purely through the internet At all levels, from making a couple of quid a month through to making millions The internet is really damn powerful And I hope you...

Today I talk about our period of making things, to now. The consumption age. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes From about 1760 onwards, lots of people discovered the power of machinery. People realised that hand production wasn’t as effective as machines doing the work. The textiles industry realised this the most. This was a huge turning point in our modern history, especially in Britain. Financial growth beyond all expectations began. Standards of living continued to grow The period of Industrialisation began Then, something similar happened in the 90s. The internet came along, and it started to get more commercialised. Savvy people realised the power of the internet, the dotcom crash came and went, and now we’ve settled in. Now, the internet is here to stay And it’s brought about an age of consumption YouTube, Netflix, Podcasts, Websites, Blogs, Training courses Everything is done on the internet But nobody is making enough on the internet Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

Sometimes, you just have to do what you want. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes No shownotes today. Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

Everything is on the internet, and you can use it to your advantage too. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes This episode was originally going to be negative about becoming how you need to be wary of internet experts Today though instead, I want to talk about the potential of the internet. This week is all about the power of the internet. And today I want to look at the power of becoming an expert. Anybody can setup a website, start publishing powerful articles, and become an expert over some years, or even months This isn’t an episode about the negatives, it's about the positives. Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

The social media like can be a powerful business tool, and not just the bane of existence. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes Although I hit pretty hard on social media likes yesterday, I don’t believe they’re inherently wrong Like anything, in moderation this is all fine If you can separate the meaning and understand it properly, it’s all good. And also, it’s a powerful business tool. Seeing the amount of likes and shares your business, products and content get can be free ways of seeing how good your stuff is. Content that gets more traction on social media is a good indication that it’s more appropriate for your audience Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

Today I rant a little bit about social media. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes Social media can be an amazing tool for bringing people together, but it has a darker side Our constant obsession with more likes for more recognition from strangers is changing our brains Social media affects our brains in the same way a hug does.  Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

It's unbelievable how much money some people are making with the internet. Let me introduce you to some. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes The internet isn’t just a consumption machine. It's not just a place to find funny cat pictures, youtube videos and blogs. The internet is the business playground for some many businesses that get it. asos.com - $1.4 billion airbnb.com - $1.7 billion TripAdvisor - $1.5 billion Amazon - $135 billion Facebook - $27 billion Google/Alphabet - $90 billion You aren’t going to start by making billions, but you have to sit up and take notice of these numbers. By comparison, Apple made $215 billion last year The biggest internet companies aren’t far off these numbers. What can you do online differently? Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

This week I've got a theme! Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes This week, I’m talking all about the power of the internet. I’ve decided to look more in-depth at a huge topic—the internet—and talk about my thoughts and feelings to do with lots of things. I won’t just be looking at the positive power of the internet, I’ll be looking at the negative side too. Here’s what I’ll be covering in the next 7 days: 194 - Internet-based businesses are making are killing and you should be paying attention 195 - The Social Media Like Is Ruining Our Lives... 196 - …But The Social Media Like Is A Powerful Business Tool 197 - Anybody can be an expert on the internet 198 - From The Industrial Revolution to The Consumption Regression 199 - How easy it can be to set up an online business with the right product 200 - How savvy businesses are using the internet to make their marketing easier Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED It's vital to your business that you find a good designer that you can trust. Scribbled Shownotes Good design is vital to any business IIt'sused to instil trust and credibility  It's used to command higher prices and make your look more professional  Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

How do you go about proving you're an expert designer? Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes Paul Boag does this stuff REALLY WELL. Why should somebody trust you that you're good at your job?  In the age of the Internet anybody can pretend they're good at anything  Oversubscribed talks about the idea of selling or giving away very small products Give away everything for free and charge for implementation  Show how good you are  Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

I try to explain why I'm constantly pushing myself to do new things. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes I do lots of random challenges. I’m doing a podcast a day right now, as you know. Yesterday, I decided to see how long I could wake up at 4.30am on a morning for. And I get asked: why? Why do you do these things to yourself? Let me explain. Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

Create a wall of noise around your brand and the effects can be huge. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes Recent estimates suggest that the average Brit spends almost nine hours on media devices every day. In that time, each of us is exposed to 5,000 marketing messages and more than 100,000 words trying to convince us to do something There's a concept in marketing called the wall of noise.  It's the idea that you push out so much stuff across different platforms that you can't be ignored.  Gary Vaynerchuk does it well. He puts out so much content that you can't ignore him.  It's a method for beating the algorithms of things like Facebook and Instagram, and increasingly Twitter that aren't chronological.  Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

I've completed day one. Let me tell you what happened. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes I’ve always been a night owl. I’m curious to find out if I can turn myself into a morning person. I managed to get up at 4.30am! This is already a massive achievement for me, and I could just go back to bed and be happy now I know I’ve managed to achieve this first step. But I’m not going to obviously. Going to bed early was the most difficult thing for me: I managed to get to sleep around 22.30, which meant 6 hours sleep (but my fitbit told me I only managed 5 hours) I’m not going to be doing one of these episodes every day about my sleeping habits, that would get boring. I’m just cataloguing this first day. Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

Let me walk you through my new challenge. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes No, I'm not going to reveal it in my shownotes. Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED In this really quick episode, I explain something about my podcast. Scribbled Shownotes No notes today! Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

You can't please everybody, and you need to stop trying. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes You can't please everyone, and nor should you try.  In fact, the less people you try to please, and the more you stay true to yourself, the More people you'll attract  The more people you try to please, the more vanilla you become And nobody likes vanilla Its all in the niche, and finding yours.  Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

I went to a hack day a few days ago in Barnsley where the attendees were all school kids. I have to tell you about this. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes I did a talk about creativity as a job at a local junior hack day event a few days ago in Barnsley  The event brought together school age kids, around 11-14 to answer problems with design thinking  The 3 ideas shown off were great, and more importantly the creativity was awesome A washing machine that did your washing and other household chores  A bluetooth alarm clock that could connect with other connected tech in your house like WiFi lights, kettles and curtains And an alarm that you have to step on to get it to stop. It was basically a mat you'd leave outside of your bed. The name was the best thing. Up N Mat Em There was a couple of activities as well, like making magnetic slime with Ruth Amos, who runs the YouTube channel Kids Invent Things Making solar panel cars with Kisha Bradley from My Bright Toys And Alison Buxton showed the kids how to make a simple circuit to make badges that light up (I didn't see the other things)  It was a great day and so good to see this kind of thing happening in Barnsley. And also it was great to introduce the kids to so many potential job opportunities that just let you be creative.  Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED I get very ranty tonight. It's all about discipline. Scribbled Shownotes A great quote by Henry Rollins - I don't have talent, I have tenacity  I walk past a guy every day at about 5.30pm Sat at home in his house. 5 days a week. He's watching telly. I explain what I mean by this. Henry Rollins YouTube video - The one thing that changed my life forever The Iron by Henry Rollins Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED An update on my portfolio AND my podcast. You lucky people. Scribbled Shownotes I talk about my portfolio, how I'm getting on, and some changes I'm making.  I talk about my podcast, and also about some potential changes I'm making. I mentioned a book called Oversubscribed by Daniel Priestley that I'm reading at the minute. It's brilliant. Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

In the tech-heavy world we live in now, is the role of the designer dying out? Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes I'm a designer Which makes me bias on the following topic a little bit I don't think the role of the designer is dying But it's definitely changing Design is so important  And as more and more digital products are made And more things like Facebook, Instagram and snapchat makes loads of money  We need more designers than ever But designers need to get more technical Because that's where the industry is going  We'll still always need good graphic designers  And good designers who can design brands But we need more technical designers more than ever So my bet right now for the next five years  Is to diversify your design skill And become more technical In another 10 years time everything will probably change back again So if you want to play the long game Ignore everything I've said Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED This is the episode where I show what I giant contradiction of experience I have. I talk about what I do for a living. P.S. I forget to mention podcasting... Scribbled Shownotes I'm a designer Which means I'm a graphic designer A branding guy A web designer  A UX designer  A UI designer I'm a developer I'm a creative I'm a marketer I'm a somewhat SEO person (basic stuff)  I'm a teacher  I'm an agency owner, and sort of a boss And a new business sort of guy And a director  I'm a fitness enthusiast and still trying to find a way to transfer this knowledge into a job I'm constantly reinventing myself and so is my industry.  Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED What do you do when you want to start something new? Scribbled Shownotes No notes for today. Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

Stop trying to attain perfection, and just get it launched. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes No notes for today. Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

Frankie Boyle thinks marketing is evil. But is it really? And is it a dirty word? Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes I remember watching a Frankie Boyle stand up DVD a few years ago. He asks people in the audience what they do for a living, and he gets the usual answers. Consultant. Builder. Doctor. Then he comes to one he doesn’t normally get. “I work in marketing” And Frankie Boyle calls him “an evil c**t” The crowd cheers. But is marketing really evil? Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

I ventured over to LinkedIn the other day, and this is what I discovered. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes I was looking at LinkedIn today, and you could argue this is the most business-focused social network It showed me that nearly nobody gets LinkedIn, and it reminded me of something I’ve been thinking a lot about this year It’s not my idea, I’ve read it in loads of books, article, etc. Stop pushing YOUR MESSAGE. Stop pushing out messages, and start interacting Start sharing USEFUL information. Make yourself indispensable. Stop "MARKETING" and start being useful. Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

Work/Life balance is a topic I think a lot about. Today I rant about it. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes I have no notes for this episode. I literally ranted for 10 minutes. Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

Content is your way to work out everything about yourself, and your marketing. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes It doesn't matter what industry you're in, you can't allow yourself to become paralysed by perfect. Nothing is perfect. Everything could have been better and tomorrow someone will make something better than you. There's over 7 billion of us, that's just a fact. The only thing you can control is your own output, and you need to start outputting things.  Even if you don't know what you want to do with your marketing, start producing content  Note I don't say creating content, because creating content means nothing If you create content and actually hit the button and publish it, it becomes another thing in that failed folder on your computer.  When you've got original content coming out and it's on your twitter feeds, websites, Facebook streams, people have a reason to be interested in you Any form of marketing is about getting people to care about you, your brand, your business, your products.  It all starts with them caring about you. If you've got fans of just you being you, you can market anything to them.  Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

The title says it all. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes Today's episode was a super-quick one done over lunch time. I spoke about the idea of showing more of your work instead of just talking about it. This has come from me realising this, after failing for 12 years to have a proper portfolio online. Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

So, what actually is a GOOD brand? Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes A good brand isn't automatically the prettiest A good brand isn't a good logo A good brand isn't one that wins lots of awards A good brand is one that properly represents your businesss or organisation It takes the personality and ethos of you and the other people in your business and distills it down into a logo, colour, font, van design, website It doesn't grate when you meet somebody behind the brand. It makes sense. Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED I'm not going to reveal anything here today. You'll have to listen to find out. Scribbled Shownotes Should you trust somebody who tells you everything you should do, but doesn't appear to have any outward evidence that they can do it? Take the example of a fat personal trainer. They might be the best personal trainer that's ever existed, but the fact that they're fat can't be ignored. Why, with all their knowledge and insight, would a personal trainer be unhealthy? Should it put you off? Would it put you off? I do a lot of preaching on my podcast about marketing, design, social media etc, but I actually don't do some of this either. Genius Division don't blog, rarely tweet or use Facebook. We have the luxury of getting 100% of our work from referrals, but it doesn't mean that's right. It's a hard decision to make, because even though outwardly a business may not be practicing what it preaches, that doesn't necessarily mean the advice they give should be any less quality. Something to think about. Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED There's so many ways to approach marketing and so many tips out there that people forget the one most important thing. Scribbled Shownotes It doesn't matter about being first to any platform. There's advantages with being first, but you've got to pick wisely. It's easier to pick a more reliable platform. It's more important than anything else to just be consistent. Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

I talk about the benefits of creating every day, and how it affects all parts of your life. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes Creating every day can be anything. But when you create something every day, it affects every part of your life. It gives you knock-on effects to everything from productivity to all the other stuff you're working on. I update a little bit on how my new super-portfolio is coming along. Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

I talk about making a design portfolio, and the one that I'm currently working on. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes What is the point of a portfolio as a designer? Should we make one before we need one? I believe we should make a catalogue of our design work, and keep it up to date. This is something I've always struggled with in the past, but I think I've finally worked out a way to do it. Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

I'm back today after being ill. That's mainly what I talk about today. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes I've been ill for a few days, so I've had to take a few days off.  Today's episode is mostly about that, but I also discuss a little bit about doing things.  Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

The idea that your competitors are your enemy is just ridiculous. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes This idea has been bugging me for a while and I've been figuring out a way to weave it into a podcast.  The idea that all your competitors are your enemies is just stupid, and at worst self limiting or damaging.  I express some thoughts on this today.  Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED I consider some of the most important things to think about as a designer. Scribbled Shownotes These points have been taken from Irving Younger’s fantastic YouTube video about the 10 commandments of cross-examination.  I took them, and fashioned them for design, because amazingly a lot of them cross over. Yesterday: Be brief. Be straightforward. Use as little design as possible like Dieter Rams said.  Use plain words. Don’t try to get too clever. Use only leading questions. Know what you want to communicate and communicate it.  Be prepared. Be prepared.  Listen. Listen.  Today: Do not quarrel. Sometimes quarrel. Don’t be a Yes Designer. The best ideas are hidden behind the average ones.  Never stop learning. Don’t rely on inspiration. It makes you a weaker designer. Work hard and be nice to people. Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

I consider some of the most important things to think about as a designer. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes These points have been taken from Irving Younger’s fantastic YouTube video about the 10 commandments of cross-examination.  I took them, and fashioned them for design, because amazingly a lot of them cross over. Be brief. Be straightforward. Use as little design as possible like Dieter Rams said.  Use plain words. Don’t try to get too clever. Use only leading questions. Know what you want to communicate and communicate it.  Be prepared. Be prepared.  Listen. Listen.  Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Content is more important than presentation. Full stop. Scribbled Shownotes It pains me to make this episode, as a man who spends his life making things look nice But it’s true: the content is WAAAY more important than what it looks like. That’s not to say good content can’t be enhanced with amazing design, because it can. In an ideal world, good content sits side by side with good design Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Why is it so important that you do stuff you're rubbish at? Scribbled Shownotes When we first turn up on this earth, we’re rubbish at everything. When we get older, we get good at some stuff. When we get a little bit older, we get good at quite a few things, and we get used to that feeling. We get to a point where we don’t really like feeling inadequate at something anymore, and that’s really bad. We actually forget what it feels like to learn something new. To be humble. To get those synapses firing again. Today I talk about a couple of things I’m doing that I’m bad at, like podcasting and BJJ. Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Like other designers, I'm hopeless at making design for myself. I explore why in this episode. Scribbled Shownotes Today I spoke about why I'm rubbish at designing stuff for myself. This isn't unique, loads of designers suffer from it. I suggested some tips that might help you to get over the hump (20 minute rule/treat it like a client job) Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

Tonight I talk about the power of making things that you want to make. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes Tonight should have been quiz night, but I didn't go to the pub quiz. I stayed at home and played Zelda instead. I'm covering some old ground with these new podcasts, because I think I have loads more to say about some of the topics I covered this topic a bit in episode 131, and I think 80 It's all about side projects, and doing stuff you enjoy as well as stuff you need to do to get paid You can't survive without both of them Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

Lifting weights builds a mental resilience that's really useful to a designer. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes I'm watching Betting on Zero so I had to tear myself away from that to do this podcast Also, I watched an ace YouTube video yesterday Irving Youngers 10 commandments of cross examination that's inspired a future podcast for me Today I'm talking about lifting weights Lifting weights is all about persistence And it's about persisting past what everybody else is willing to persist past To make your muscles stronger, you need to effectively damage your muscle fibres You only do that by putting them under increasingly more stress And by persisting longer than anybody else Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

Lifting weights builds a mental resilience that's really useful to a designer. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes I'm watching Betting on Zero so I had to tear myself away from that to do this podcast Also, I watched an ace YouTube video yesterday Irving Youngers 10 commandments of cross examination that's inspired a future podcast for me Today I'm talking about lifting weights Lifting weights is all about persistence And it's about persisting past what everybody else is willing to persist past To make your muscles stronger, you need to effectively damage your muscle fibres You only do that by putting them under increasingly more stress And by persisting longer than anybody else Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

I talk a bit about how being you is SO damn important in marketing and actually, in life as well. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes I recorded this episode after thinking a lot about my journey as a podcaster. I thought a lot about how I’ve gone from being none of myself in Episode 1, to today’s episode, where all I am is myself. I reflected on how important that is to really make an impact on anything, and how much better it comes across when you do that. I’ve endlessly hunted for a unique idea for a podcast, not realising that was all wrong The unique thing about my podcast, and any other podcast, is the person doing it The unique thing is YOU The idea doesn’t have to be unique Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

I talk a bit about how being you is SO damn important in marketing and actually, in life as well. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes I recorded this episode after thinking a lot about my journey as a podcaster. I thought a lot about how I’ve gone from being none of myself in Episode 1, to today’s episode, where all I am is myself. I reflected on how important that is to really make an impact on anything, and how much better it comes across when you do that. I’ve endlessly hunted for a unique idea for a podcast, not realising that was all wrong The unique thing about my podcast, and any other podcast, is the person doing it The unique thing is YOU The idea doesn’t have to be unique Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

I'm changing my podcast again. Here's why. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes I feel like I'm going through an existential crisis. What do I want my podcast to be? Last episode, I cut out a big chunk talking about this because I wasn't sure I was ready to say it, and I think it was boring too. I spoke about my shifting mindset towards podcasting My rising desire to do more conversation podcasts And how I've been getting more like an audio diary lately and enjoying the format I've started to see AADA as my podcast. I'm not doing it for anybody else I'm not brave enough to call it The Craig Burgess Podcast So far in my eyes I've done two seasons The first season, episode 1-80, was all about information to help people with their marketing The second season,episode 81-now, is all about doing my podcast my way, a heavily produced thing And now, I've got the desire to do season 3, an audio diary of sorts From probably tomorrow, I'll be switching to season 3 Ill be talking about design still, but no scripts No music No promotion, just me and the mic Talking about stuff I'm interested to find out if it makes my download numbers go down or up And to see if you find it more interesting or more boring Let's see. Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

I'm changing my podcast again. Here's why. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Scribbled Shownotes I feel like I'm going through an existential crisis. What do I want my podcast to be? Last episode, I cut out a big chunk talking about this because I wasn't sure I was ready to say it, and I think it was boring too. I spoke about my shifting mindset towards podcasting My rising desire to do more conversation podcasts And how I've been getting more like an audio diary lately and enjoying the format I've started to see AADA as my podcast. I'm not doing it for anybody else I'm not brave enough to call it The Craig Burgess Podcast So far in my eyes I've done two seasons The first season, episode 1-80, was all about information to help people with their marketing The second season,episode 81-now, is all about doing my podcast my way, a heavily produced thing And now, I've got the desire to do season 3, an audio diary of sorts From probably tomorrow, I'll be switching to season 3 Ill be talking about design still, but no scripts No music No promotion, just me and the mic Talking about stuff I'm interested to find out if it makes my download numbers go down or up And to see if you find it more interesting or more boring Let's see. Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

Self-indulgence is vital as a designer.   Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED   Music and links from this episode Outro by Komiku The Life and Death of a Certain K. Zabriskie, Patriarch by Chris Zabriskie The Simulation Hypothesis by Revolution Void Line-by-line notes It’s easy as a designer To get bogged down in the day to day humdrum Of things like client amends Projects not going your way Or you just not being able to produce your best work That’s why it’s OK sometimes To give into self-indulgence And indulge yourself in some side projects This is AADA, and I’m Craig Burgess Peaks and troughs are natural in anything you do Something can’t be amazing without there being something bad to compare it against after all And even today, I go through times where the work I produce isn’t my best Or I don’t feel its my best Even today, I still doubt my abilities And question whether I’m a good designer or not And wonder endlessly whether I’m good at my job It’s natural It’s self doubt It’s what we all do. I don’t seek to remove self doubt in my life though Because I see self doubt as a positive thing When I’m doubting myself, I know it’s usually for two reasons I’m doing something new or challenging And I care about doing a good job And neither of those things are things to avoid Obviously I know I care about doing a good job But even when my subconscious is doubting I know even in my subconscious I care about doing a good job That was a weird meta-tangent Anyway The reason I say this is to make a point that everything we do won’t be great Every design you knock out isn’t going to be your best work But there is a place where you can always do your best work And if it doesn’t turn out to be your best work, you can just scrap it and try again In side projects, you can always try and do your best work There’s no restrictions on time, effort, feedback You just do the work you want to do, when you want to do it That’s self-indulgence And whilst the word indulgence is often seen as a perjorative I don’t see it like that at all To get better as a designer you need to be indulgent If you stick to the sometimes tight confines of a client brief You’ll never push past and do your best work Often...

Self-indulgence is vital as a designer.   Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED   Music and links from this episode Outro by Komiku The Life and Death of a Certain K. Zabriskie, Patriarch by Chris Zabriskie The Simulation Hypothesis by Revolution Void Line-by-line notes It’s easy as a designer To get bogged down in the day to day humdrum Of things like client amends Projects not going your way Or you just not being able to produce your best work That’s why it’s OK sometimes To give into self-indulgence And indulge yourself in some side projects This is AADA, and I’m Craig Burgess Peaks and troughs are natural in anything you do Something can’t be amazing without there being something bad to compare it against after all And even today, I go through times where the work I produce isn’t my best Or I don’t feel its my best Even today, I still doubt my abilities And question whether I’m a good designer or not And wonder endlessly whether I’m good at my job It’s natural It’s self doubt It’s what we all do. I don’t seek to remove self doubt in my life though Because I see self doubt as a positive thing When I’m doubting myself, I know it’s usually for two reasons I’m doing something new or challenging And I care about doing a good job And neither of those things are things to avoid Obviously I know I care about doing a good job But even when my subconscious is doubting I know even in my subconscious I care about doing a good job That was a weird meta-tangent Anyway The reason I say this is to make a point that everything we do won’t be great Every design you knock out isn’t going to be your best work But there is a place where you can always do your best work And if it doesn’t turn out to be your best work, you can just scrap it and try again In side projects, you can always try and do your best work There’s no restrictions on time, effort, feedback You just do the work you want to do, when you want to do it That’s self-indulgence And whilst the word indulgence is often seen as a perjorative I don’t see it like that at all To get better as a designer you need to be indulgent If you stick to the sometimes tight confines of a client brief You’ll never push past and do your best work Often...

Introducing a new weekly format: Quiz Night. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Questions Answered on Today's Episode How often do you sneak dick drawings into paid work? You seen the unveiling of the new Juve kit? I think the word is 'bland' - thoughts? https://t.co/z96dCNf5Vq How much wood would a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood? Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

Introducing a new weekly format: Quiz Night. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Questions Answered on Today's Episode How often do you sneak dick drawings into paid work? You seen the unveiling of the new Juve kit? I think the word is 'bland' - thoughts? https://t.co/z96dCNf5Vq How much wood would a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood? Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

The web is getting more and more complicated, but where does that leave people trying to learn the trade? Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Music and links from this episode A Walk by Mystery Mammal Lonely Satellite by Mystery Mammal Conviction by Little Glass Men Line-by-line notes I don't like making this podcast a look back on the golden days But today warrants a revisit When I first started making websites An embarrassingly long time ago now Some 16 years ago There were really only 2 things you needed to make one HTML And CSS Some people were still using tables for layout, but that's a different story for a different day And now, in 2017, you need way more than that Git, terminal, grunt, gulp, npm, package managers, jquery, JavaScript, Vue.js, deployment commands It isn't simple to make a website anymore This episode is all about my belief that the web is getting too complicated This is AADA, and I'm Craig Burgess MUSIC Yes, before you say it, you COULD still make a website out of just HTML and CSS these days When I make a website for myself, I usually like sticking to just these two simple things But if you rocked up to a web agency up and down the land tomorrow looking for a job And they asked you what you knew And you replied with HTML, CSS, and I know FTP to upload it They wouldn't be very impressed, and you'd be unlikely to get a job Let's get this straight,  for most agencies, they now expect more From graduates, they expect a lot of complicated technical knowledge Things like Git, task runners, setting up Terminal and using the Terminal are just the tip of the iceberg And I'd argue that this knowledge is expected And honestly, we've done this to ourselves The web industries desire to continue to push the boundaries, and to continue to get better To use faster and more efficient technologies To use better methodologies Has brought about a massive technological barrier to the web design game The rise of the role of a "front end developer" has lead to the development of lots of obscure and difficult to learn technologies I know all this, because I've tried to teach this stuff I've kept it simple too Things like basic Git commands, basic Grunt stuff, basic terminal commands And all of this goes of the head of nearly everybody I've tried teaching this to We're in this industry every day, and I don't think we've realised how complicated we've made things I genuinely don't think we've realised it Even responsive web design is difficult to teach people, and a difficult concept for a young designer and a young web developer to understand Over the past

The web is getting more and more complicated, but where does that leave people trying to learn the trade? Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Music and links from this episode A Walk by Mystery Mammal Lonely Satellite by Mystery Mammal Conviction by Little Glass Men Line-by-line notes I don't like making this podcast a look back on the golden days But today warrants a revisit When I first started making websites An embarrassingly long time ago now Some 16 years ago There were really only 2 things you needed to make one HTML And CSS Some people were still using tables for layout, but that's a different story for a different day And now, in 2017, you need way more than that Git, terminal, grunt, gulp, npm, package managers, jquery, JavaScript, Vue.js, deployment commands It isn't simple to make a website anymore This episode is all about my belief that the web is getting too complicated This is AADA, and I'm Craig Burgess MUSIC Yes, before you say it, you COULD still make a website out of just HTML and CSS these days When I make a website for myself, I usually like sticking to just these two simple things But if you rocked up to a web agency up and down the land tomorrow looking for a job And they asked you what you knew And you replied with HTML, CSS, and I know FTP to upload it They wouldn't be very impressed, and you'd be unlikely to get a job Let's get this straight,  for most agencies, they now expect more From graduates, they expect a lot of complicated technical knowledge Things like Git, task runners, setting up Terminal and using the Terminal are just the tip of the iceberg And I'd argue that this knowledge is expected And honestly, we've done this to ourselves The web industries desire to continue to push the boundaries, and to continue to get better To use faster and more efficient technologies To use better methodologies Has brought about a massive technological barrier to the web design game The rise of the role of a "front end developer" has lead to the development of lots of obscure and difficult to learn technologies I know all this, because I've tried to teach this stuff I've kept it simple too Things like basic Git commands, basic Grunt stuff, basic terminal commands And all of this goes of the head of nearly everybody I've tried teaching this to We're in this industry every day, and I don't think we've realised how complicated we've made things I genuinely don't think we've realised it Even responsive web design is difficult to teach people, and a difficult concept for a young designer and a young web developer to understand Over the past

I've been thinking about this a lot lately: what's the future of the web? Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Music and links from this episode где она мера? by Kosta T Through The Storm by P C III Open Door by Little Glass Men Line-by-line notes The web used to be like a weird piece of avant garde music Nobody understood it, and nobody could work out how to apply it to anything Until Tim Berners-Lee In 1980 there was a man called Tim Berners-Lee Tim still exists today too by the way, he hasn't vanished or anything But in 1980, he was working on something very special at CERN. He'd previously made a prototype of his information sharing network, that at the time he called ENQUIRE He'd been working on the idea of hypertext: interlinking documents and pages and sharing information When he became a fellow at CERN in 1984, he saw the opportunity to take this idea further Tim created something called the World Wide Web, by pulling together lots of different technologies like the Internet, and hypertext The first website went online on 6th August 1991. It's still online today. From there, the rest is history. And today, I want to speculate on the future. This is AADA, and I'm Craig Burgess Music 27 years later, the world wide web is more powerful and all encompassing than ever It's used for everything, from just plain old boring websites, to replacing government services, to allowing you to book holidays online To actually providing people jobs, like me I think few people would argue with me when I say that the world wide Web and the Internet are the two most important inventions of the last 30 years, And a strong argument could be made for the most important invention of all time too Think for a second You could probably just about imagine life without some of the other greatest inventions If they were gone tomorrow, you could get by without a TV Without a car Without a microwave Without maybe even a phone But try and imagine a life without the internet And that's nearly impossible On a daily basis, I communicate with people Pay bills Book cinema tickets Sometimes book holidays Upload a podcast to let you listen to it Check my bank balance Update websites and get paid to do it Make people websites and get paid to do it Doing all that without the Internet Is either really hard or impossible So that's the Web now, but what is the future? I think about this a lot Especially when I think how far the Web has come in 27 years What will it look like in another 27 years? That’s a really tough question to...

I've been thinking about this a lot lately: what's the future of the web? Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Music and links from this episode где она мера? by Kosta T Through The Storm by P C III Open Door by Little Glass Men Line-by-line notes The web used to be like a weird piece of avant garde music Nobody understood it, and nobody could work out how to apply it to anything Until Tim Berners-Lee In 1980 there was a man called Tim Berners-Lee Tim still exists today too by the way, he hasn't vanished or anything But in 1980, he was working on something very special at CERN. He'd previously made a prototype of his information sharing network, that at the time he called ENQUIRE He'd been working on the idea of hypertext: interlinking documents and pages and sharing information When he became a fellow at CERN in 1984, he saw the opportunity to take this idea further Tim created something called the World Wide Web, by pulling together lots of different technologies like the Internet, and hypertext The first website went online on 6th August 1991. It's still online today. From there, the rest is history. And today, I want to speculate on the future. This is AADA, and I'm Craig Burgess Music 27 years later, the world wide web is more powerful and all encompassing than ever It's used for everything, from just plain old boring websites, to replacing government services, to allowing you to book holidays online To actually providing people jobs, like me I think few people would argue with me when I say that the world wide Web and the Internet are the two most important inventions of the last 30 years, And a strong argument could be made for the most important invention of all time too Think for a second You could probably just about imagine life without some of the other greatest inventions If they were gone tomorrow, you could get by without a TV Without a car Without a microwave Without maybe even a phone But try and imagine a life without the internet And that's nearly impossible On a daily basis, I communicate with people Pay bills Book cinema tickets Sometimes book holidays Upload a podcast to let you listen to it Check my bank balance Update websites and get paid to do it Make people websites and get paid to do it Doing all that without the Internet Is either really hard or impossible So that's the Web now, but what is the future? I think about this a lot Especially when I think how far the Web has come in 27 years What will it look like in another 27 years? That’s a really tough question to...

In 150 episodes, I'm about to do something I've never done. Go uncut and unscripted.   Each episode I normally record of AADA is carefully planned and written. Then I go out and find some music to fit that episode. Then I cut out the bits where I mess up. It takes a long time.   I've been plotting this episode for a long time. I've spent a long time thinking about my 11 best things I've learned in the first 11 years of my career as a designer.   This episode didn't feel like it deserved to be carefully edited. I turned on my recorder, and started talking. What you're listening to is the result of that.   For anybody that this episode might interest, I felt they deserved to hear me being honest, and talking from the heart. You don't know everything when you're 18 You're not good at something when you first start it Side projects are probably the most important thing in your career Building a network of friends is really important too Every agency does things differently You've got to adapt Everything isn't always fun, or perfect, or all roses Find enjoyable work, even if your job isn't always fun Don't rely on motivation, rely on discipline Read everything Never stop learning Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

In 150 episodes, I'm about to do something I've never done. Go uncut and unscripted.   Each episode I normally record of AADA is carefully planned and written. Then I go out and find some music to fit that episode. Then I cut out the bits where I mess up. It takes a long time.   I've been plotting this episode for a long time. I've spent a long time thinking about my 11 best things I've learned in the first 11 years of my career as a designer.   This episode didn't feel like it deserved to be carefully edited. I turned on my recorder, and started talking. What you're listening to is the result of that.   For anybody that this episode might interest, I felt they deserved to hear me being honest, and talking from the heart. You don't know everything when you're 18 You're not good at something when you first start it Side projects are probably the most important thing in your career Building a network of friends is really important too Every agency does things differently You've got to adapt Everything isn't always fun, or perfect, or all roses Find enjoyable work, even if your job isn't always fun Don't rely on motivation, rely on discipline Read everything Never stop learning Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

In 150 episodes, I'm about to do something I've never done. Go uncut and unscripted.  Each episode I normally record of AADA is carefully planned and written. Then I go out and find some music to fit that episode. Then I cut out the bits where I mess up. It takes a long time.    I've been plotting this episode for a long time. I've spent a long time thinking about my 11 best things I've learned in the first 11 years of my career as a designer.    This episode didn't feel like it deserved to be carefully edited. I turned on my recorder, and started talking. What you're listening to is the result of that.    For anybody that this episode might interest, I felt they deserved to hear me being honest, and talking from the heart.  You don't know everything when you're 18 You're not good at something when you first start it Side projects are probably the most important thing in your career Building a network of friends is really important too Every agency does things differently  Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

In 150 episodes, I'm about to do something I've never done. Go uncut and unscripted.  Each episode I normally record of AADA is carefully planned and written. Then I go out and find some music to fit that episode. Then I cut out the bits where I mess up. It takes a long time.    I've been plotting this episode for a long time. I've spent a long time thinking about my 11 best things I've learned in the first 11 years of my career as a designer.    This episode didn't feel like it deserved to be carefully edited. I turned on my recorder, and started talking. What you're listening to is the result of that.    For anybody that this episode might interest, I felt they deserved to hear me being honest, and talking from the heart.  You don't know everything when you're 18 You're not good at something when you first start it Side projects are probably the most important thing in your career Building a network of friends is really important too Every agency does things differently  Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Support Ask a Designer Anything Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes

Once you start to appreciate that nothing is ever finished, you'll live a little easier.   Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED   Music and links from this episode Mayr Hayastan/Dilijan feat. Flower Gear (VDCJ Mix part 1) by Diezel Tea I hate mashed potatoes by Pousse Mousse Drift Away (instrumental) by Pachyderm Line-by-line notes As designers We have a habit of being hyper critical It’s natural to look back at a thing you’ve made And think Well, that could have been better And maybe I could have tweaked that a bit It’s normal to think like this And once you accept one thing, it’s easier to deal with it too. Everything is a work in progress. Fast food This is AADA, and I’m Craig Burgess I’ve got something to admit to I’m the worst finisher in the world Now before you start giggling I mean I’m rubbish at finishing anything I’m an ideas person through and through I think of an idea, and I can see it all the way through to completion … In my mind I’m an amazing thinker And I’m amazing at getting excited about new ideas too And then I’m amazing at staying up until 3am to get started on it Because of the way I think, I always start with the names Then the branding In fact, I was doing this only last night until about 12.30am Way past my bed time on a school night Being able to start a million projects and finish none of them used to really annoy me I used to inwardly shout at myself Why can’t you finish anything? In fact, the only thing I’m good at finishing is 365 days challenges And some of them I’ve failed at too I used to think like this a lot, and it started to get me down I decided the only way to get out of it, was to take a break from producing so much stuff So a couple of years ago, I took a while off As you can probably guess, it didn’t work I was approaching this all wrong And then it clicked what was so wrong I never realised, everything is a work in progress And you should be looking at doing lots of little things, often I was looking at all the things I wanted to do All the ideas I had All the projects I wanted to complete I want to learn guitar I want to lift this much weight Run this far Do this thing or that I was always looking at the end goal...

Once you start to appreciate that nothing is ever finished, you'll live a little easier.   Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED   Music and links from this episode Mayr Hayastan/Dilijan feat. Flower Gear (VDCJ Mix part 1) by Diezel Tea I hate mashed potatoes by Pousse Mousse Drift Away (instrumental) by Pachyderm Line-by-line notes As designers We have a habit of being hyper critical It’s natural to look back at a thing you’ve made And think Well, that could have been better And maybe I could have tweaked that a bit It’s normal to think like this And once you accept one thing, it’s easier to deal with it too. Everything is a work in progress. Fast food This is AADA, and I’m Craig Burgess I’ve got something to admit to I’m the worst finisher in the world Now before you start giggling I mean I’m rubbish at finishing anything I’m an ideas person through and through I think of an idea, and I can see it all the way through to completion … In my mind I’m an amazing thinker And I’m amazing at getting excited about new ideas too And then I’m amazing at staying up until 3am to get started on it Because of the way I think, I always start with the names Then the branding In fact, I was doing this only last night until about 12.30am Way past my bed time on a school night Being able to start a million projects and finish none of them used to really annoy me I used to inwardly shout at myself Why can’t you finish anything? In fact, the only thing I’m good at finishing is 365 days challenges And some of them I’ve failed at too I used to think like this a lot, and it started to get me down I decided the only way to get out of it, was to take a break from producing so much stuff So a couple of years ago, I took a while off As you can probably guess, it didn’t work I was approaching this all wrong And then it clicked what was so wrong I never realised, everything is a work in progress And you should be looking at doing lots of little things, often I was looking at all the things I wanted to do All the ideas I had All the projects I wanted to complete I want to learn guitar I want to lift this much weight Run this far Do this thing or that I was always looking at the end goal...

The colours in fast food restaurants isn't all as it seems.   Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Music and links from this episode 7-La hache et le canoë by Pousse Mousse 4-Roulé-boulé-boulé by Pousse Mousse Dans la batterie solo by Frederic Lardon feat Laura Palmée Line-by-line notes As I’m in the marketing game I see lots of things in a different way When you’re in marketing Or when you’re a designer You don’t take anything at face value My episode yesterday about Photoshop discussed that a little bit But today, I want to focus on something else that has hidden meanings Fast food This is AADA, and I’m Craig Burgess Let’s start with something really basic And something that you won’t even think about consciously That’s colour Obviously, everything has a particular colour When I spoke about political parties in episodes 145 and 144, I talked about colour a lot And the meaning of colour In politics, red means a socialist/left leaning party, almost exclusively around the world And blue means the opposite I think Those two things, just taken by themselves, Are pretty fascinating Before you even see anything else, a logo, words, anything The colour of something is already influencing you And beyond politics, the psychology behind colour goes even deeper than that Believe or not When you see a colour Just the simple act of a colour bouncing off of your retina The it being processed by your brain This still starts to influence you, and do all kinds of things to your mood, your hunger levels, your priorities It’s really quite crazy when you think about it And maybe just a little bit creepy Fast food companies are the absolute masters at using colour to great influencing effect Let’s take the colour red again It’s been proven that the colour red stimulates appetite That’s why so many fast food logos Burger King, McDonalds, KFC Are all predominantly red And you have not a single say on how the colour red influences you Because it’s programmed into your brain already And it’s programmed to instinctually think things when presented with stimuli Red and yellow used together, as they so often are in fast food restaurants, represents speed And also, yellow is one of the most visible colours you can choose at any time of day, but especially in daylight, which is why McDonalds chose it for their giant M arches all...

The colours in fast food restaurants isn't all as it seems.   Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Music and links from this episode 7-La hache et le canoë by Pousse Mousse 4-Roulé-boulé-boulé by Pousse Mousse Dans la batterie solo by Frederic Lardon feat Laura Palmée Line-by-line notes As I’m in the marketing game I see lots of things in a different way When you’re in marketing Or when you’re a designer You don’t take anything at face value My episode yesterday about Photoshop discussed that a little bit But today, I want to focus on something else that has hidden meanings Fast food This is AADA, and I’m Craig Burgess Let’s start with something really basic And something that you won’t even think about consciously That’s colour Obviously, everything has a particular colour When I spoke about political parties in episodes 145 and 144, I talked about colour a lot And the meaning of colour In politics, red means a socialist/left leaning party, almost exclusively around the world And blue means the opposite I think Those two things, just taken by themselves, Are pretty fascinating Before you even see anything else, a logo, words, anything The colour of something is already influencing you And beyond politics, the psychology behind colour goes even deeper than that Believe or not When you see a colour Just the simple act of a colour bouncing off of your retina The it being processed by your brain This still starts to influence you, and do all kinds of things to your mood, your hunger levels, your priorities It’s really quite crazy when you think about it And maybe just a little bit creepy Fast food companies are the absolute masters at using colour to great influencing effect Let’s take the colour red again It’s been proven that the colour red stimulates appetite That’s why so many fast food logos Burger King, McDonalds, KFC Are all predominantly red And you have not a single say on how the colour red influences you Because it’s programmed into your brain already And it’s programmed to instinctually think things when presented with stimuli Red and yellow used together, as they so often are in fast food restaurants, represents speed And also, yellow is one of the most visible colours you can choose at any time of day, but especially in daylight, which is why McDonalds chose it for their giant M arches all...

With Photoshop, and CGI, none of what you see is real anymore. I explain why. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Music and links from this episode Air Hockey Saloon by Chris Zabriskie Nothing Like Captain Crunch by Broke For Free The Wrong Way by Jazzer Line-by-line notes I recently watched a YouTube video about David Fincher If you dont know him, he's a film director  He's a pretty big deal  He's directed things like Seven, Fight Club, The Social Network, and he was very influential in the making of Netflixs House of Cards As I said, he's a big deal The video I watched was about Fincher use of CGI in films for things that seemed, well, pointless He'd use CGI for putting stuff on Cork boards in detective's rooms And CGI for most of the blood spatters He does it so he has absolute control over how the blood spatter looks He doesn't have to rely on anything as boring as gravity and physics to ruin his shot It got me thinking of the comparison in design Or at least, Photoshopping things And how nearly any photo you see these days Just isn't real This is AADA, and I'm Craig Burgess  MUSIC Let me ask you a question  When you see a photo in a magazine or on a billboard, do you think it's real?  It's a question you probably haven't considered much What is real anyway?  You'll see it, and see its a real human, so yeah, you probably think it's real Or it's a real country side, so yeah, it's real After all, why would anybody bother to fake it rather than just take a photo?  It's sound logic Surely it's easier to send a photographer to a location and take the photo?  Because I'm a designer, I see these things differently.  I know how hard it can be to get a perfect photo I know how much some photos are altered, and sometimes completely changed It isn't often you see a side by side comparison  Between an original photo and the retouched one Just like David Fincher using CGI for surprisingly small things, you'd be surprised how often photos are retouched or photoshopped as most people say I've seen everything from composite photos made Which is where an entirely new image is made from several other images This is usually done for things like movie posters and car advertisements  And everything down to using it for things swapping out skies Or making the sun brighter, or darker  Photoshop is a stupidly powerful tool And it isn't always used for innocent purposee I can't do an episode about photoshop without talking

How do you use design to improve your business? Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Music and links from this episode World Take by Drake Stafford All Your Organs Get A Laugh by Mystery Mammal Good Grief by Mystery Mammal Line-by-line notes After my last couple of episodes about politics I’m leaving all that alone for a couple of episodes now And I’m going to return to talking about some less controversial topics Although…some people might see this one as a bit controversial Especially if you’re in business And you don’t really appreciate the value of design and design thinking By the end of this episode, I think you might appreciate design a little bit more Today I’m talking about how design can improve businesses And the power that having a design first mentality can bring This is AADA, and I’m Craig Burgess MUSIC I’m going to start with a really overworked example of how design is used in business But as much as it’s overworked, and overused to explain how powerful design and business can be It’s a great example Throughout the years, there’s been lots of businesses that have put design at the heart of their company, and made a lot of money from it Think Braun, Dyson, Airbnb, and the king of it all, Apple Apple is the example I want to start with But first, let me explain what I mean by a business that puts design first Essentially, they design amazing products, be them digital or physical, and spend all their effort designing those products Or at least, outwardly to the public they appear to be doing this They value design inside their business above almost everything else And no how valuable a well-designed product is To return to the Apple example Think about the difference between a £300 Windows laptop, and a £1200 MacBook The Windows laptop will feel cheap, usually made of plastic It’ll start breaking away almost as soon as you buy it And it’ll be full of bloatware and software you just don’t need Compare that with the MacBook As soon a you see the packaging, you know it’s a quality product Apple even spend stupid amounts of care and attention on their packaging, to give you the exact impression they want you to feel Quality And then when you open it up, and feel that MacBook, you know you’re handling a quality product It’s made of aluminium, feels premium, and you instantly know you’ve made the right choice Even when you boot up the MacBook for the first time, the software is easy to use It’s clean, functional, and guides you through the entire process This has...

In the lead up to the general election in the UK on June 8th, I'm doing a series of episodes about the design of UK political parties. Today's is about The Conservatives. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Music and links from this episode Siamo Tutti Antifascisti by Monplaisir Radiasiya by Mystery Mammal Line-by-line notes Yesterday I spoke about the design and branding of the Labour party I spoke about how they use the colour red, and where the red came from And I went through their logos, and spoke about some of their reasoning behind their logos I enjoyed doing it actually, a lot And in the lead up to the june 8th general election in the UK I’m doing a series of episodes analysing the history of the design and branding of the major UK political parties There’s something I didn’t mention yesterday that I want to mention today I’m trying to be as objective as I can with these episodes, as I’m not trying to influence your political opinion in any way I’m purely looking at the political parties because their interesting, and not for any other reason The only other reason I’m doing these episodes is so I can try and influence you to vote It doesn’t matter who you vote for, but if you’re a UK citizen over 18 it’s really important you vote Anyway, enough of that. Let’s get to looking at The Conservatives design and branding throughout the years This is AADA, and I’m Craig Burgess MUSIC Let’s start like we started last time, by looking at colour As Labour is red, the Conservatives are almost the exact opposite: they’re blue In really crude, childish terms, just the colour difference shows how different they are to other parties like Labour It’s a little bit like when the bad guy and the good guy in a cartoon always wear different coloured clothes It immediately and very obviously sets up a point of difference between the parties And that colour… blue… you can’t really go wrong with that You’ll see a million companies out there using the colour blue, because it’s a very safe colour It’s a very popular colour with banks and other things to do with money, because it means safety, and security It’s a colour that makes a lot of sense for a political party to use Because it’s used extensively throughout businesses that you tend to trust It almost automatically sets you up to trust a political party that is blue Blue also, is nearly always used to indicate a political party with conservative views But not always, because in america—as is a lot of other things—it’s the complete opposite In America, the democrats are blue, and the republicans (the conservative party equivalent) are red But america is...

In the lead up to the general election in the UK on June 8th, I'm doing a series of episodes about the design of UK political parties. Today's is about The Conservatives. Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Music and links from this episode Siamo Tutti Antifascisti by Monplaisir Radiasiya by Mystery Mammal Line-by-line notes Yesterday I spoke about the design and branding of the Labour party I spoke about how they use the colour red, and where the red came from And I went through their logos, and spoke about some of their reasoning behind their logos I enjoyed doing it actually, a lot And in the lead up to the june 8th general election in the UK I’m doing a series of episodes analysing the history of the design and branding of the major UK political parties There’s something I didn’t mention yesterday that I want to mention today I’m trying to be as objective as I can with these episodes, as I’m not trying to influence your political opinion in any way I’m purely looking at the political parties because their interesting, and not for any other reason The only other reason I’m doing these episodes is so I can try and influence you to vote It doesn’t matter who you vote for, but if you’re a UK citizen over 18 it’s really important you vote Anyway, enough of that. Let’s get to looking at The Conservatives design and branding throughout the years This is AADA, and I’m Craig Burgess MUSIC Let’s start like we started last time, by looking at colour As Labour is red, the Conservatives are almost the exact opposite: they’re blue In really crude, childish terms, just the colour difference shows how different they are to other parties like Labour It’s a little bit like when the bad guy and the good guy in a cartoon always wear different coloured clothes It immediately and very obviously sets up a point of difference between the parties And that colour… blue… you can’t really go wrong with that You’ll see a million companies out there using the colour blue, because it’s a very safe colour It’s a very popular colour with banks and other things to do with money, because it means safety, and security It’s a colour that makes a lot of sense for a political party to use Because it’s used extensively throughout businesses that you tend to trust It almost automatically sets you up to trust a political party that is blue Blue also, is nearly always used to indicate a political party with conservative views But not always, because in america—as is a lot of other things—it’s the complete opposite In America, the democrats are blue, and the republicans (the conservative party equivalent) are red But america is...

In the lead up to the general election in the UK on June 8th, I'm doing a series of episodes about the design of UK political parties. Today's is about Labour.   Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Music and links from this episode Simple Hop by Broke For Free Let me be by Soft and Furious Line-by-line notes When it comes to design And branding, and visual stuff Basically, the thing I do for a job every day Political parties are really interesting No matter what country we look at Be it American politics, French politics, UK politics, They all make really fascinating choices when it comes to design In the lead up to the UK general election on June 8 I’m going to be doing a series of episodes of my podcast looking at the branding of UK political parties Today, let’s talk about the design and branding of the Labour party Just a quick note: In this episode I talk about some visual stuff that you won’t be able to see If you want to see what I’m talking about, I’ve linked to any images that I’ve mentioned in the show notes This is AADA, and I’m Craig Burgess MUSIC Let’s start by talking about colours Each political party all around the world have a particular identifying colour In the UK, UKIP is purple, Conservatives are Blue, Liberal Democrats are yellow,  And Labour is red You’ll notice they’re all really simple colours that are easy to differentiate For example, Labour isn’t lime green and Conservatives aren’t a dark green It’s important that each party picks a strong colour If you don’t know your colour theory, it’s also interesting to note that each major party has what’s called a primary colour as their main party colour Primary colours are the core colours on the colour wheel, and they’re the base colours that everything else is made from They’ve all picked these colours because they’re the strongest, and the most easily identifiable by pretty much anybody What’s particularly interesting about the colour red for Labour in the UK though Is that the left leaning party in America—the democrats—is actually blue Red is a very interesting choice for Labour in the UK Red, on its own, has all sorts of connotations around the globe It strongly means things like danger, or blood, but it also strongly means passion, and love In the political landscape though, red tends to mean different things It’s usually used to symbolise left wing ideologies The most famous being communism and socialism The oldest symbol of communism in fact is the red flag, which dates back to 1848 So red is really old, and its...

In the lead up to the general election in the UK on June 8th, I'm doing a series of episodes about the design of UK political parties. Today's is about Labour.   Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Music and links from this episode Simple Hop by Broke For Free Let me be by Soft and Furious Line-by-line notes When it comes to design And branding, and visual stuff Basically, the thing I do for a job every day Political parties are really interesting No matter what country we look at Be it American politics, French politics, UK politics, They all make really fascinating choices when it comes to design In the lead up to the UK general election on June 8 I’m going to be doing a series of episodes of my podcast looking at the branding of UK political parties Today, let’s talk about the design and branding of the Labour party Just a quick note: In this episode I talk about some visual stuff that you won’t be able to see If you want to see what I’m talking about, I’ve linked to any images that I’ve mentioned in the show notes This is AADA, and I’m Craig Burgess MUSIC Let’s start by talking about colours Each political party all around the world have a particular identifying colour In the UK, UKIP is purple, Conservatives are Blue, Liberal Democrats are yellow,  And Labour is red You’ll notice they’re all really simple colours that are easy to differentiate For example, Labour isn’t lime green and Conservatives aren’t a dark green It’s important that each party picks a strong colour If you don’t know your colour theory, it’s also interesting to note that each major party has what’s called a primary colour as their main party colour Primary colours are the core colours on the colour wheel, and they’re the base colours that everything else is made from They’ve all picked these colours because they’re the strongest, and the most easily identifiable by pretty much anybody What’s particularly interesting about the colour red for Labour in the UK though Is that the left leaning party in America—the democrats—is actually blue Red is a very interesting choice for Labour in the UK Red, on its own, has all sorts of connotations around the globe It strongly means things like danger, or blood, but it also strongly means passion, and love In the political landscape though, red tends to mean different things It’s usually used to symbolise left wing ideologies The most famous being communism and socialism The oldest symbol of communism in fact is the red flag, which dates back to 1848 So red is really old, and its...

Is the art of conversation dying, or is it just different? Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Music and links from this episode Comfortably loved by Soft and Furious When the blood driving the self by Soft and Furious Empowered Ending by Soft and Furious Line-by-line notes It’s funny Talking about the dying art of conversation to a medium of listeners that’s all about conversation But it’s a topic I talk about a lot to my friends about And it’s an important topic to designers The reason it’s important to designers is because so much of what we do is about conversing We have to have a conversation to sell our design work To discuss projects, goals and briefs And countless other parts of our job that require designers to be masters of the art of conversation But how does this change our job, if the art of conversation is dying This is AADA, and I’m Craig Burgess MUSIC On April the 21st, 2006, the BBC ran an article about the dying art of conversation In it they spoke to two self styled expert conversationalists about how conversation is changing They talk about time being a factor, that everybody is busier now And they talk about old TV talk shows, where they used to have one guest on for an hour,  and now the same talk shows have five guests in the same time They talk about how our attention spans are shorter, that we have less patience for chit chat, and that we’re not good listeners All of which I agree with, but this article is from 2006, 11 years ago Now, in 2017, the situation is even worse The rise of so many text-based chat apps: WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, iMessage, Twitter and all the rest, mean we’re even more text-baed now, and not conversation based We’re conversing with each other, but less and less, we’re actually talking to each other You know, actually looking each other in the eye and saying words Let’s talk about one final example In the UK The good old British Public House used to be the place to find a conversation, every night of the week Often called Pubs, pubs used to be everywhere across the UK Any night, you could turn up to your local pub, and talk with people over a pint of beer They’re used to be 3 pubs within 2 minutes walking distance from my house about 10 years ago And now there’s 0 Pubs are dying too, and they were one of the last bastions of the good old art of conversation

Is the art of conversation dying, or is it just different? Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED Music and links from this episode Comfortably loved by Soft and Furious When the blood driving the self by Soft and Furious Empowered Ending by Soft and Furious Line-by-line notes It’s funny Talking about the dying art of conversation to a medium of listeners that’s all about conversation But it’s a topic I talk about a lot to my friends about And it’s an important topic to designers The reason it’s important to designers is because so much of what we do is about conversing We have to have a conversation to sell our design work To discuss projects, goals and briefs And countless other parts of our job that require designers to be masters of the art of conversation But how does this change our job, if the art of conversation is dying This is AADA, and I’m Craig Burgess MUSIC On April the 21st, 2006, the BBC ran an article about the dying art of conversation In it they spoke to two self styled expert conversationalists about how conversation is changing They talk about time being a factor, that everybody is busier now And they talk about old TV talk shows, where they used to have one guest on for an hour,  and now the same talk shows have five guests in the same time They talk about how our attention spans are shorter, that we have less patience for chit chat, and that we’re not good listeners All of which I agree with, but this article is from 2006, 11 years ago Now, in 2017, the situation is even worse The rise of so many text-based chat apps: WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, iMessage, Twitter and all the rest, mean we’re even more text-baed now, and not conversation based We’re conversing with each other, but less and less, we’re actually talking to each other You know, actually looking each other in the eye and saying words Let’s talk about one final example In the UK The good old British Public House used to be the place to find a conversation, every night of the week Often called Pubs, pubs used to be everywhere across the UK Any night, you could turn up to your local pub, and talk with people over a pint of beer They’re used to be 3 pubs within 2 minutes walking distance from my house about 10 years ago And now there’s 0 Pubs are dying too, and they were one of the last bastions of the good old art of conversation

Here's another episode where I gush about my favourite kind of design.   Subscribe: ITUNES | ANDROID | STITCHER | RSS FEED   Music and links from this episode Whiteout by Little Glass Men Clover by Little Glass Men Westside Chillers by Little Glass Men Line-by-line notes I was asked by Ian Moss What my favourite piece of design is And what areas, such as communication, graphic design, architecture I enjoyed answering the question so much back in episode 122 That I’m going to answer it again Let’s go for a second round This is all about my favourite kind of design This is AADA, and I’m Craig Burgess MUSIC When I think about design that I love I mean, really love Almost none of it is new design In episode 138 I spoke about designing logos And how all of my favourite logos were Paul Rand ones I love old graphic design especially, because it has something that I can’t quite put my finger on Lots of it has has an innocence that’s missing from modern graphic design Now, you can easily hide behind amazing technical ability You can hide behind how well you can command Illustrator or Photoshop to realise your pretty pictures Old graphic design didn’t allow for that You drew ideas on paper, then you drew them again properly, and somebody would use that as an actual logo Old graphic design was limited by the production methods available But because of that, the ideas behind so many of them are amazing You couldn’t rely on execution to hide behind You had to come up with an amazing idea, something witty or clever Witty and clever design is much rarer these days Maybe it’s because there’s so many more designers And anybody can be a designer with a laptop and the right applications So all the good stuff gets hidden under the dross Or maybe it’s just that modern design favours technically brilliant design over witty stuff I’m not really sure on that one But when it comes to designers that I’d love to even have 20% of their skill and intellect, Paul Rand is on the list, but Alan Fletcher is somebody I appreciate even more Paul Rand was just way more than just a designer, and he embodied what I see a “proper” designer should be His fascination about the world of design and art never faded throughout his whole career And his books, particularly The Art of Looking Sideways, are masterpieces The Art of Looking Sideways is an interesting read for anybody, whether you’re as much in love with design as me or not That book showed Alan Fletcher at his absolute best Curious about everything, and using

How do you gain respect as a designer, especially as a young designer? Subscribe:&nbsp;ITUNES&nbsp;|&nbsp;ANDROID&nbsp;|&nbsp;STITCHER&nbsp;|&nbsp;RSS FEED Music and links from this episode Indian Summer by Lobo Loco Electric Puppet by Mystery Mammal Line-by-line notes When you speak to anybody In any career really And you ask them one question What is it you really want from your career? People will say surface things Like money Fame Appreciation But everybody really wants one thing And especially designers And that&rsquo;s respect This is AADA, and I&rsquo;m Craig Burgess MUSIC I remember when I first started out a designer And I especially remember this when I first started out as a freelance designer I wanted respect I wanted clients and peers to respect me as a designer I knew I was right about some of the design decisions I&rsquo;d made But why were clients overruling me, or not believing that I was right? What was I doing wrong? I was like every other young designer I wanted my work to be respected&nbsp; And I wanted to be respected as a professional It&rsquo;s hard as a designer, and even more so when you&rsquo;re a young designer who might lack confidence or conviction Designers just starting out usually lack confidence in their skills And that&rsquo;s just natural, it&rsquo;s normal And because they lack confidence That shows in meetings with clients and people buying the design Then you go in a vicious circle of not being respected as a designer And add on top of that a simple fact&nbsp; That lots of people don&rsquo;t respect design as a profession And people just see graphic designers as people who just colour in Lots of people don&rsquo;t respect design as a profession Because they don&rsquo;t see it as a real profession, like a doctor or a lawyer The only way to gain respect as a designer Is to command respect as a designer Don&rsquo;t be a yes designer Don&rsquo;t just say yes to everybody all the time If you know you&rsquo;ve done something right Tell people it&rsquo;s been done right, and there&rsquo;s a reason it&rsquo;s been done that way Always command respect for your work Command respect by being confident about your work And confident that you&rsquo;ve done your job correctly as a professional Respect comes from confidence And confidence only comes from experience, and unfortunately, there&rsquo;s no shortcut to that MUSIC This was AADA and I&rsquo;m Craig Burgess Music featured in this episode was: Indian Summer by Lobo Loco <a...

How do you gain respect as a designer, especially as a young designer? Subscribe:&nbsp;ITUNES&nbsp;|&nbsp;ANDROID&nbsp;|&nbsp;STITCHER&nbsp;|&nbsp;RSS FEED Music and links from this episode Indian Summer by Lobo Loco Electric Puppet by Mystery Mammal Line-by-line notes When you speak to anybody In any career really And you ask them one question What is it you really want from your career? People will say surface things Like money Fame Appreciation But everybody really wants one thing And especially designers And that&rsquo;s respect This is AADA, and I&rsquo;m Craig Burgess MUSIC I remember when I first started out a designer And I especially remember this when I first started out as a freelance designer I wanted respect I wanted clients and peers to respect me as a designer I knew I was right about some of the design decisions I&rsquo;d made But why were clients overruling me, or not believing that I was right? What was I doing wrong? I was like every other young designer I wanted my work to be respected&nbsp; And I wanted to be respected as a professional It&rsquo;s hard as a designer, and even more so when you&rsquo;re a young designer who might lack confidence or conviction Designers just starting out usually lack confidence in their skills And that&rsquo;s just natural, it&rsquo;s normal And because they lack confidence That shows in meetings with clients and people buying the design Then you go in a vicious circle of not being respected as a designer And add on top of that a simple fact&nbsp; That lots of people don&rsquo;t respect design as a profession And people just see graphic designers as people who just colour in Lots of people don&rsquo;t respect design as a profession Because they don&rsquo;t see it as a real profession, like a doctor or a lawyer The only way to gain respect as a designer Is to command respect as a designer Don&rsquo;t be a yes designer Don&rsquo;t just say yes to everybody all the time If you know you&rsquo;ve done something right Tell people it&rsquo;s been done right, and there&rsquo;s a reason it&rsquo;s been done that way Always command respect for your work Command respect by being confident about your work And confident that you&rsquo;ve done your job correctly as a professional Respect comes from confidence And confidence only comes from experience, and unfortunately, there&rsquo;s no shortcut to that MUSIC This was AADA and I&rsquo;m Craig Burgess Music featured in this episode was: Indian Summer by Lobo Loco <a...

Subscribe:&nbsp;ITUNES&nbsp;|&nbsp;ANDROID&nbsp;|&nbsp;STITCHER&nbsp;|&nbsp;RSS FEED What happens when you do nothing? What really is the effect of inertia? Music and links from this episode Stop to Start Over by Artofescapism Some Bad Joke by Monplaisir Cherry Dump Cake by half cocked Line-by-line notes Yesterday&rsquo;s episode about doing nothing got me thinking Funnily enough, about doing nothing It got me thinking a little bit deeper about it doing nothing The effects of it And how it impacts your life Or, as the dictionary puts it, inertia. This is AADA, and I&rsquo;m Craig Burgess MUSIC As a designer Especially as a young designer, or a learning designer Doing just enough isn&rsquo;t anywhere near enough The competition is too large The amount of skills you need to learn is too lengthy Doing a design course, or just turning up 9-5 at your job Isn&rsquo;t going to cut it if you want to become an amazing designer, or even any more than an average one Really early on in my design education I realised this I read magazines like Creative Review and Grafik, and every day I was exposed to amazing design work I realised if I was going to compete with anybody in those magazines I had to work harder than them Or at least as hard as them And after reading interviews with these designers in those magazines I knew that they didn&rsquo;t turn up on a morning and leave at tea time, and never did anything else These people spoke of always thinking about design And if they got an idea in their head, no matter what time it was, they&rsquo;d pursue it, and see where it went That&rsquo;s why inertia is weird to me That&rsquo;s why doing nothing is weird to me Doing nothing has been the exact opposite of my personality for the last 12 years People might call me a workaholic But when you&rsquo;re a designer, or anything else for that matter If you really love what you do, and you do it as a hobby as well, does that make it a job? Sometimes I do design work that I don&rsquo;t like, or that doesn&rsquo;t turn out like I hoped We all have jobs like that, everything you do can&rsquo;t be a masterpiece after all But I&rsquo;m always working on my masterpiece in my spare time My next side project piece of design that will be absolutely amazing, honestly And that nobody else has a say in other than me I guess you could call that art, but lets not get into that argument today Maybe you&rsquo;re not the same, but I find inertia contagious I find if I do nothing for even an hour, I don&rsquo;t want to do anything for the rest of the day If I want to exercise on an...

Subscribe:&nbsp;ITUNES&nbsp;|&nbsp;ANDROID&nbsp;|&nbsp;STITCHER&nbsp;|&nbsp;RSS FEED What happens when you do nothing? What really is the effect of inertia? Music and links from this episode Stop to Start Over by Artofescapism Some Bad Joke by Monplaisir Cherry Dump Cake by half cocked Line-by-line notes Yesterday&rsquo;s episode about doing nothing got me thinking Funnily enough, about doing nothing It got me thinking a little bit deeper about it doing nothing The effects of it And how it impacts your life Or, as the dictionary puts it, inertia. This is AADA, and I&rsquo;m Craig Burgess MUSIC As a designer Especially as a young designer, or a learning designer Doing just enough isn&rsquo;t anywhere near enough The competition is too large The amount of skills you need to learn is too lengthy Doing a design course, or just turning up 9-5 at your job Isn&rsquo;t going to cut it if you want to become an amazing designer, or even any more than an average one Really early on in my design education I realised this I read magazines like Creative Review and Grafik, and every day I was exposed to amazing design work I realised if I was going to compete with anybody in those magazines I had to work harder than them Or at least as hard as them And after reading interviews with these designers in those magazines I knew that they didn&rsquo;t turn up on a morning and leave at tea time, and never did anything else These people spoke of always thinking about design And if they got an idea in their head, no matter what time it was, they&rsquo;d pursue it, and see where it went That&rsquo;s why inertia is weird to me That&rsquo;s why doing nothing is weird to me Doing nothing has been the exact opposite of my personality for the last 12 years People might call me a workaholic But when you&rsquo;re a designer, or anything else for that matter If you really love what you do, and you do it as a hobby as well, does that make it a job? Sometimes I do design work that I don&rsquo;t like, or that doesn&rsquo;t turn out like I hoped We all have jobs like that, everything you do can&rsquo;t be a masterpiece after all But I&rsquo;m always working on my masterpiece in my spare time My next side project piece of design that will be absolutely amazing, honestly And that nobody else has a say in other than me I guess you could call that art, but lets not get into that argument today Maybe you&rsquo;re not the same, but I find inertia contagious I find if I do nothing for even an hour, I don&rsquo;t want to do anything for the rest of the day If I want to exercise on an...

A follow up to yesterday: should developers learn to design things? Subscribe:&nbsp;ITUNES&nbsp;|&nbsp;ANDROID&nbsp;|&nbsp;STITCHER&nbsp;|&nbsp;RSS FEED Music and links from this episode Who Is Responsible for Design - Creative Review Article Eutrophic by Mystery Mammal Cart before the horse by Myriadar Where There Is No darkness by Nihilore Line-by-line notes Quite a few years ago I did a talk that was loosely about the designer/developer divide I argued that designers should be more developer And developers should be more designer Today, I&rsquo;m going to talk about developers being designers This is AADA, and I&rsquo;m Craig Burgess MUSIC I&rsquo;m a pretty positive person But there&rsquo;s certain things in the design industry that really bug me That I try not to let annoy me But they do anyway One of the big things that bug me Is...well&hellip;actually two things 1) When people say that developers aren&rsquo;t creative I&rsquo;m a designer myself But lots of designers like to put the technical people in a box As if their creativity is somehow less worthy than their creativity Programming is creative And it&rsquo;s problem solving In fact, it&rsquo;s one of the most direct forms of problem solving You&rsquo;re writing code, you&rsquo;re creating things, you&rsquo;re creative And the second thing that bugs me Is that developers either think they can&rsquo;t design or designers stop them from doing so Yesterday&rsquo;s episode was all about the opposite of this I spoke about designers coding, and argued whether they should code or not To reiterate, designers should code Designers should embrace any opportunity to learn more things and get better at their craft And the exact same rules apply to developers I hate the whole designer/developer design thing, full stop I hate that we feel we need to label ourselves as one or the other And we can&rsquo;t possibly be both Because if we&rsquo;re both people think we&rsquo;re worse at one of them After all, how could we possibly be good at both those things? On most projects, developers do way more design than you probably realise When designers design 3 pages of a website and none of the interactions The gap is left for the developer to fill in You could argue that in terms of websites, when a developer is building the website they design most of the website And developers are becoming more design savvy Because they have to There's too many new startups and not enough designers, so developers need to learn to...

Should designers code? Subscribe:&nbsp;ITUNES&nbsp;|&nbsp;ANDROID&nbsp;|&nbsp;STITCHER&nbsp;|&nbsp;RSS FEED Music and links from this episode Who Is Responsible for Design - Creative Review Article Eutrophic by Mystery Mammal Cart before the horse by Myriadar Where There Is No darkness by Nihilore Line-by-line notes There's several debates that are forever recurring in the design and tech worlds Is design art? Or is art design? Should a designer do multiple things? And the hottest topic and that comes around every week Should designers code? I probably going to get a bit offensive to designers in this episode. This is AADA, and I&rsquo;m Craig Burgess MUSIC Over the years I've lost count of how many times I've had this argument But I'm going to go at it again, becaause I like causing controversy And amazingly, I've not discussed it on this podcast before Let me lay out my stance straight away I have a dim view of designers who choose not to bother learning to code It's not just about designers though I have a dim view of anybody who actively chooses to stop learning things When it comes to designers, they actively choose not to bother learning how to code, or any of the technical side I'll try learning anything, because I love learning things And we should all love learning things, because it's the only way to grow as human beings, not just at our craft So I find it fascinating and maddening when I see anybody putting up a barrier to themselves and saying "No, I don't want to learn that and I don't want to know anymore about that" Knowing more about something makes you design it better, that is just a fact Not even technical stuff, the more you know about anything the better you'll design it So when it comes to websites, and especially now with responsive websites and there being so much changing so quickly You have to know how to build websites, to a point HTML and CSS isn't difficult to learn for anybody And I can't see a logical reason why somebody wouldn't want to learn it, or can't learn it The reasons for a designer designing websites to learn it are nothing but positive It helps you understand websites more It helps you design and make better websites And it makes you a better designer Why on earth would you not want those things? Who could argue against those points? We get too bogged down with titles&nbsp; And too caught up with labels I'm a designer, therefore I can't be anything else I'm a developer, so that means the design is left to somebody else These titles aren't...

In this episode, I say "haters gonna hate" quite a few times. Subscribe:&nbsp;ITUNES&nbsp;|&nbsp;ANDROID&nbsp;|&nbsp;STITCHER&nbsp;|&nbsp;RSS FEED Music and links from this episode So What by Soft and Furious Unity by Kevin MacLeod 5 Piece by Black Ant Line-by-line notes I think the biggest thing That stops anybody from doing anything Is people being afraid of what other people will think of them We&rsquo;re pack animals, and we want to please everybody Because of that, we&rsquo;re afraid that people will hate us But, sometimes, people like to hate people This is AADA, and I&rsquo;m Craig Burgess MUSIC As you can probably imagine Since I decided to start a podcast on January 1st I&rsquo;ve had a lot of conversations with people about podcasts They&rsquo;ve been varied Some people love podcasts Some people hate them And some people have never heard of them But inevitably, I always say to them &ldquo;Why don&rsquo;t you start a podcast?&rdquo; And they usually say &ldquo;ooo no, I couldn&rsquo;t do that&rdquo; At this point, I always love digging a bit deeper and finding out why Some people think they haven&rsquo;t got the ability to do one, which is understandable Some people think they aren&rsquo;t interesting enough But a lot of people just don&rsquo;t want to put themselves out there They&rsquo;re scared of what people will think of them And they&rsquo;re scared of the haters I always try to explain to them at this point that &ldquo;haters gonna hate&rdquo; That no matter what you do If somebody doesn&rsquo;t like you Or doesn&rsquo;t like what you&rsquo;re doing People will hate you no matter what You can&rsquo;t please everybody It&rsquo;s just impossible And if you try to please everybody, you just turn into somebody that nobody likes It took me a long time to appreciate this I&rsquo;ve always been a pretty outspoken kind of person But I do like pleasing people I don&rsquo;t want anybody to hate me I try to get on with everybody, and I&rsquo;m nice to anybody Because of that, I don&rsquo;t like thinking that there&rsquo;s people out there that just won&rsquo;t like me Just my personality, just me being me, will annoy some people, and there&rsquo;s nothing I can do about that That&rsquo;s exactly the same with starting a podcast, making videos, writing blog posts, or designing something Everything you do will not please everybody, and there&rsquo;s going to be haters out there There&rsquo;s people out there right now who hate you For no real reason, they just can&rsquo;t stand you for being you And there&rsquo;s nothing...

What does saying yes too often really lead to? Subscribe:&nbsp;ITUNES&nbsp;|&nbsp;ANDROID&nbsp;|&nbsp;STITCHER&nbsp;|&nbsp;RSS FEED Music and links from this episode Too Far Gone by Ryan Little Interstellar Export by The Insider Calm The Fuck Down by Broke For Free Line-by-line notes Over the next two episodes I want to present two sides of the coin as a designer There&rsquo;s the saying yes side That&rsquo;s saying yes to amends, or things you think you shouldn&rsquo;t say yes to Then there&rsquo;s the other side The saying no side The standing your ground, and not budging side Today is saying yes Let&rsquo;s explore saying yes This is AADA, and I&rsquo;m Craig Burgess MUSIC I&rsquo;ve said many times before Design is a weird profession There&rsquo;s no formal education required Every agency works differently And every designer works differently We all work with clients differently as well And say yes or no to different things When you first start out as a designer You say yes a lot When a client asks you to change something You just do it Often you don&rsquo;t even question it, because you don&rsquo;t know any better Or you might not have the confidence or the experience yet to say otherwise I think there&rsquo;s actually two types of designers There&rsquo;s the Yes Designers These kinds of designers will always do whatever the client wants to please them Clients like these kinds of designers for obvious reasons And some designers would argue that as a designer you should always be like this After all, the customer is always right, right? Well, wrong In the design world, the client is often wrong And it&rsquo;s our duty as a designer to make the client aware of that We should tell them when they&rsquo;re wrong, always Not in a nasty way And not in a combative way that ruins relationships And not even in a difficult way I just believe that before we say yes, it&rsquo;s our duty to explore the reasons behind a change If the changes that a client is asking for are sensible, go nuts. Just change it But if a client is suggesting stupid things Or things that will make your design work worse Challenge the request And don&rsquo;t automatically say yes Try and find out the underlying reasons for these changes Sometimes they&rsquo;re silly, and purely because a client wants to put their stamp on a project This is OK to a point But when those pointless changes start to affect the end product It isn&rsquo;t OK anymore, and you should start raising your concerns Automatically saying

What does saying yes too often really lead to? Subscribe:&nbsp;ITUNES&nbsp;|&nbsp;ANDROID&nbsp;|&nbsp;STITCHER&nbsp;|&nbsp;RSS FEED Music and links from this episode Too Far Gone by Ryan Little Interstellar Export by The Insider Calm The Fuck Down by Broke For Free Line-by-line notes Over the next two episodes I want to present two sides of the coin as a designer There&rsquo;s the saying yes side That&rsquo;s saying yes to amends, or things you think you shouldn&rsquo;t say yes to Then there&rsquo;s the other side The saying no side The standing your ground, and not budging side Today is saying yes Let&rsquo;s explore saying yes This is AADA, and I&rsquo;m Craig Burgess MUSIC I&rsquo;ve said many times before Design is a weird profession There&rsquo;s no formal education required Every agency works differently And every designer works differently We all work with clients differently as well And say yes or no to different things When you first start out as a designer You say yes a lot When a client asks you to change something You just do it Often you don&rsquo;t even question it, because you don&rsquo;t know any better Or you might not have the confidence or the experience yet to say otherwise I think there&rsquo;s actually two types of designers There&rsquo;s the Yes Designers These kinds of designers will always do whatever the client wants to please them Clients like these kinds of designers for obvious reasons And some designers would argue that as a designer you should always be like this After all, the customer is always right, right? Well, wrong In the design world, the client is often wrong And it&rsquo;s our duty as a designer to make the client aware of that We should tell them when they&rsquo;re wrong, always Not in a nasty way And not in a combative way that ruins relationships And not even in a difficult way I just believe that before we say yes, it&rsquo;s our duty to explore the reasons behind a change If the changes that a client is asking for are sensible, go nuts. Just change it But if a client is suggesting stupid things Or things that will make your design work worse Challenge the request And don&rsquo;t automatically say yes Try and find out the underlying reasons for these changes Sometimes they&rsquo;re silly, and purely because a client wants to put their stamp on a project This is OK to a point But when those pointless changes start to affect the end product It isn&rsquo;t OK anymore, and you should start raising your concerns Automatically saying

Is all designers really just for designers? Subscribe:&nbsp;ITUNES&nbsp;|&nbsp;ANDROID&nbsp;|&nbsp;STITCHER&nbsp;|&nbsp;RSS FEED Music and links from this episode Outsiders in Nome by Mystery Mammal Route of the Old West Convicts by Fields Ohio Arrythmia/ a lost battalion of conversationalists jumping down the stoops off fire escapes off Empire State out of the moon into vacant Ohio factories by The Fucked Up Beat Line-by-line notes You've already seen the title of this episode Design isn't for designers It's a controversial viewpoint And one I want to explore in a little more depth Designers deep down know that design not only isn't for designers It SHOULDN'T be for designers But still, we design things that only designers would get This is AADA, and I&rsquo;m Craig Burgess MUSIC As I said I'm presenting a controversial topic I think lots of designers will see this episode and think Well, I don't design things for designers But, I think you're wrong Often we all design clever logos Clever websites or clever bits of design And all that stuff, the majority of it only designers will get or appreciate Take the classic example, the FedEx logo How many times have you explained this logo to a non designer to show how clever and deep design can be? Non designers don't look at things like we do They don't look at the leading of a paragraph Or the kerning in a word They don't look at something and think it could have done with more space Or the colours are wrong Or even that the apostrophe is used incorrectly These are all things we care about as designers And rightly so, of course rightly so But the point I'm getting to Is that lots of this extra detail Beyond the stuff like proper spacing, leading and kerning Is all stuff a non designer won't even comprehend So why do we bother? If 90% of the intended target audience won't get that clever thing you did with that logo, Why did you bother? Now this is as much of a question directed at myself as it is at you Designers bother with those extra bits for lots of reasons But the main reason I think is pride It's my job as a designer to do the best job I can possibly do And that often means going far and above what a normal person would to care about something that most people won't see or even appreciate It's a little bit like Steve Job's stories about his dad, Paul Jobs He tells stories of his dad being a craftsman. And having the ability to make...

Subscribe:&nbsp;ITUNES&nbsp;|&nbsp;ANDROID&nbsp;|&nbsp;STITCHER&nbsp;|&nbsp;RSS FEED Comfort. It's comfortable. And deadly. Music and links from this episode Mystery Mammal&nbsp;from their great new album, Risk Society I featured the tracks: Ruin, Greenhorn, and All Your Organs Get a Laugh Line-by-line notes Today's episode was going to be an extended one But at the last minute I changed my mind Something has been nagging at me the last few days About comfort zones And how nobody likes to step out of them But really, the only way we get better as humans Is to step outside our comfort zones This is AADA, and I'm Craig Burgess MUSIC Design and the creative industries require very specific things from you that lots of other careers dont You have to adaptable, changing to variables that can appear at the drop of the hat You have to be consistently improving, because things move so fast&nbsp; And that is something that gets harder as time goes on When you first start in any career, everything is new Anything at all that you learn is an improvement&nbsp; Every small increment is an improvement But when you've been doing the design game for a while You feel like you've seen it all Or done everything&nbsp; Worst of all, lots of people feel like they know it all That there's nothing left to learn That's comfort And it's deadly in a fast moving industry&nbsp; You can't ever get comfortable&nbsp; Comfort breeds arrogsnce And cockiness And not only are those traits not nice to see in somebody They're self limiting When you think you know everything, you stop learning everything&nbsp; Ive spoken lots about lifting weights on this podcast&nbsp; And i don't just do it keep fit and get stronger I do it for the mental strength that it gives me Lifting heavy weights pushes you far out of your comfort zone When you've got a massive weight crushing your whole body and the only way to escape is to push it away You find mental strength you didn't know you possessed And finding that mental strength breeds more mental strength This is exactly the same reason why pushing yourself out of a realm of comfort is so important Progression isn't made by doing the same thing over and over The only way to progress with anything is to increase the chsllenge And as a designer, as you get better and better, that challenge needs to get bigger and bigger When you get past all the initial book learning&nbsp; And reading the magazines&nbsp; And doing all the design work over the years&nbsp; Then you have to start working really hard to get outside of your comfort zone I'm lucky in some ways I've always thought like this And I know that the only way to get better is through insane amounts of hard work I don't always do the hard work Sometimes I'm lazy...

How do you handle conflict in a design project? Subscribe:&nbsp;ITUNES&nbsp;|&nbsp;ANDROID&nbsp;|&nbsp;STITCHER&nbsp;|&nbsp;RSS FEED &nbsp; Music and links from this episode Zapomnie&ccedil; by Nonima Viscous by FRAIL Perfect Match by Kilyo Line-by-line notes Every designer has worked on frustrating projects Most design projects have little bumps in the road But sometimes, they turn into full on car crashes At some point in every designer&rsquo;s career They&rsquo;re going to have to handle conflict This is AADA, and I&rsquo;m Craig Burgess MUSIC Design projects can go wrong in a thousand ways If you&rsquo;re really unlucky, they&rsquo;ll go wrong in a thousand ways all at once The client can be wrong, the designer can be wrong, the research can be wrong Deadlines might get missed, emails might get missed, meetings might get missed People easily misunderstand things Seriously, there&rsquo;s so much that can go wrong It&rsquo;s no wonder then that experienced designers have to become conflict resolution experts Let&rsquo;s talk about one of the most common ways conflict arises in a project A client making lots of changes to a design You&rsquo;ve been working with a client You&rsquo;ve been designing them a new logo But you just can&rsquo;t seem to get it completed Every time you think you&rsquo;re nearly there The client makes another change And most of the changes the client is making seem pointless What do you do? When a client is making lots of changes to any kind of design work There&rsquo;s something deeper going wrong It could be the designer isn&rsquo;t good enough and the client feels like they need to improve it It could be that the client is being polite and that they don&rsquo;t really like the design but they&rsquo;re trying to improve it stealthily Finally, it could be the client thinks they&rsquo;re the designer And they merely see you as a facilitator of their ideas Whenever a design goes through more than a couple of changes And you don&rsquo;t feel like you&rsquo;re getting anywhere with the project You can&rsquo;t keep going and not saying anything At some point, for everybody&rsquo;s sanity, a conversation needs to be had The air needs to be cleared In a situation like this You need to ideally get to the problem before everybody gets pissed off Which is sometimes easier said than done, because people can be excellent at hiding when they&rsquo;re annoyed Then that conversation needs to be had These kind of conversations aren&rsquo;t easy for anybody Nobody likes talking about negative stuff Unless you&rsquo;re some kind of monster, or you&rsquo;re used to that kind of...

Ego is the enemy of any design project. Subscribe:&nbsp;ITUNES&nbsp;|&nbsp;ANDROID&nbsp;|&nbsp;STITCHER&nbsp;|&nbsp;RSS FEED Music and links from this episode Why I Can't Sleep With The Door Ajar by We Is Shore Dedicated Nothing (Bonus Track) by Kai Engel Mutations by Small Colin Line-by-line notes If we consider the task of making a website There&rsquo;s several stages a project goes through Most of those stages are black and white, especially actually building a website But when design gets involved The ego starts to get in the way This is AADA, and I&rsquo;m Craig Burgess MUSIC When you build something Like a wall for example There&rsquo;s no black and white to that A wall either works It stays stood up for years and functions as a wall Or it doesn&rsquo;t The wall falls down It&rsquo;s very clean when the wall isn&rsquo;t working, or doing its job There&rsquo;s no emotional intricacies to deal with here Design is the exact polar opposite of this When you&rsquo;re talking to somebody and telling them their logo will be green This can elicit a whole range of responses you can&rsquo;t begin to even comprehend Ranging from things that make sense like My customer base won&rsquo;t like the colour green To strange things like Green reminds me of grass and the countryside, and I don&rsquo;t like that No matter how hard we try to stop it from being so Design is an emotional thing It isn&rsquo;t as simple as a wall that either stands up or doesn&rsquo;t Or a website that either works or not Design isn&rsquo;t black and white, and it works on a thousand levels Most of all, design is subjective And that causes problems for everybody With subjectivity comes a much more insidious thing: ego The graveyard of failed design projects is full of gravestones that declare Ego was the problem And ego comes from everywhere It comes from the client thinking they know better than the professional designer they hired It comes from the marketing company thinking they know better than everybody else And worst of all, it comes from the designer thinking that they know better than everybody else in the world A designer with an ego is a useless designer That&rsquo;s a fact A designer who sees their work as precious pieces of art that have been perfectly crafted isn&rsquo;t a real designer Design is not art Design can be pretty, it can affect people&rsquo;s emotions and decisions, but it&rsquo;s not art Art is designed to affect an emotion Design is to communicate a message Art serves the...

Sorry. Every design you make isn't going to be amazing. Subscribe:&nbsp;ITUNES&nbsp;|&nbsp;ANDROID&nbsp;|&nbsp;STITCHER&nbsp;|&nbsp;RSS FEED Music and links from this episode Creative Destruction by Nihilore Slow Nights by Sro Synthetic Feels by Sro Line-by-line notes No matter what your job is When you do it every day of your life When you create stuff every day It's not always good In fact, most of what you do isn't good And&nbsp;every thing&nbsp;you do isn't solid gold This is AADA, and I'm Craig Burgess MUSIC Let me clarify what I mean when I say most of what you do isn't good Unless you're really lucky I mean,&nbsp;really lucky 90% of what you create isn't good It might be average It might be better than average And some of it that you never show anybody will be absolutely terrible Some of it will be good But most of it won't be solid gold It's hard making stuff that's good, and especially solid gold design work It's a sad and inevitable fact of design Sometimes Whether it's the client's fault, your&nbsp;fault,&nbsp;or you just run out of time The design work you make won't be amazing It'll be passable And sometimes&nbsp;good enough&nbsp;is...good enough Sometimes, and I don't want to sound snobby about this but I guess I'm going to Sometimes a company or a client deserves just good enough Not every company in the world should look amazing You wouldn't make a scrap yard look like a perfume brand A perfume brand should look elegant and usually high class But the same isn't true for a scrap yard, and it shouldn't look...amazing And yeah...I know that sounds snobbish But it's true Not every brand should look&nbsp;amazing,&nbsp;because&nbsp;it isn't appropriate As a designer, it's OK to sometimes be bad In my last episode, I spoke about creative block And learning to appreciate that it's OK to sometimes run out of ideas It's also OK to sometimes make bad design work So long as you have an internal barometer to know that you should never show it to a client Because I can guarantee that the client will pick your worst design if you show it My sketchbooks and my rough logo documents are full of things that look like they've been designed by a&nbsp;2 year old But nobody ever sees them You've got to get past all of the bad ideas before you can get to the good ones Sometimes you get lucky, and the first thing out of your brain is amazing But that's rare And it takes persistence and consistency to find that solid gold idea amongst all the dross Sometimes you can start to feel a little&nbsp;self conscious&nbsp;about this though If you go...

What do you do when you run out of ideas? &nbsp; Subscribe:&nbsp;ITUNES&nbsp;|&nbsp;ANDROID&nbsp;|&nbsp;STITCHER&nbsp;|&nbsp;RSS FEED &nbsp; Music and links from this episode Not Locrian by Captive Portal Beautiful Reciprocal (Half Mix) by Captive Portal Line-by-line notes Today&rsquo;s episode has a double-edged meaning On one instance I&rsquo;m discussing the idea of struggling to find ideas And in the other instance The reason I&rsquo;ve done this episode Is because I&rsquo;m struggling for ideas This is AADA, and I&rsquo;m Craig Burgess MUSIC No matter what kind of creative person you are An artist, a designer, a musician, a writer You&rsquo;re going to hit creative block You&rsquo;re going to hit a point where suddenly You can&rsquo;t think of any ideas You&rsquo;re going to go from being an absolute ideas machine Where they come freely and easily To a complete idea vacuum Where nothing exists anymore And that&hellip;is scary Different creative people react to this kind of thing differently Some relish the challenge And some get scared It&rsquo;s OK to feel like that When you trade on your ideas and suddenly your stock has vanished That&rsquo;s scary I think that a creative shouldn&rsquo;t be judged on their creative output Although that&rsquo;s important But a truly experienced creative should be judged on their ability to consistently come up with good ideas And also should be judged on their ability to recover from creative block An experienced creative knows that they&rsquo;ve not just become irrelevant They don&rsquo;t get scared by creative block And they have endless strategies on how to overcome such a situation Overcoming creative block isn&rsquo;t a skill you develop overnight as a creative I don&rsquo;t even think that&rsquo;s it&rsquo;s something that you could teach to a young creative It&rsquo;s just a thing you develop with experience And pressure And really, doing things wrong and running out of ideas I talk a lot about the creative muscle and needing to exercise it regularly If you&rsquo;re not regularly flexing that ideas muscle, your creative muscle It gets smaller and harder to use, and it burns out quicker Mood, anxiety and just generally being in a bad mood affects all this too If you&rsquo;re in a bad place, ideas are hard to come by And that can be a vicious circle that&rsquo;s hard to escape You&rsquo;re in a bad mood, you get creative block, it makes you in a worst mood, and so on So creative block is more complicated that it looks It&rsquo;s hard to combat and hard to come out of Sometimes the only way out Is just get doing Just start writing, designing, drawing,...

Self awareness. It's an important thing. Subscribe:&nbsp;ITUNES&nbsp;|&nbsp;ANDROID&nbsp;|&nbsp;STITCHER&nbsp;|&nbsp;RSS FEED &nbsp; Music and links from this episode Suspension by Jorge Mario Zuleta Effects of Elevation by Revolution Void Ahead Of The Curve by Creo Line-by-line notes Hello, it&rsquo;s me again, Craig Before we start the episode proper I&rsquo;m going being a dirty tease again Just a quick update on the whole interview podcast thing I&rsquo;ve got a couple of guests lined up And I&rsquo;m going to start recording some of the episodes soon I still don&rsquo;t have a name But the format will very likely be a couple of hour episode every 2 weeks I&rsquo;ve decided not to edit the episodes beyond just making them sound better So they&rsquo;ll sometimes be long conversations The first episode will likely be out within the next 2 months I really can&rsquo;t wait to release it&nbsp; And I think you&rsquo;re really going to love it Maybe even more than this podcast, if you prefer listening to conversations Anyway, back to this podcast. Cue the episode! INTRO I don&rsquo;t envy young designers All the stuff you have to learn can be overwhelming And especially now, where&rsquo;s there&rsquo;s so much new stuff ALL THE TIME You&rsquo;ve lots of stuff to learn, constantly And it&rsquo;s not easy Because you&rsquo;ve got to be good at everything as well But one thing a lot of young designers struggle with And young people in general really Is awareness This is AADA, and I&rsquo;m Craig Burgess MUSIC Self awareness is a tough one You won&rsquo;t find self awareness listed on any curriculum anywhere And you&rsquo;d probably even struggle to define it And if you went to any other seasoned designer They&rsquo;d probably never even mention self awareness But having said all that And after probably making you think this whole thing isn&rsquo;t even important I&rsquo;m going to tell you it is And it&rsquo;s probably one of the most important things designers need to know So, what is self awareness? Well, it&rsquo;s an awareness of yourself Obviously It means you&rsquo;re really aware of what you&rsquo;re good at And you&rsquo;re really aware of what you&rsquo;re bad at Basically, you&rsquo;re really aware of yourself Yes, I&rsquo;m aware I&rsquo;ve just turned the words self and awareness around a few times to explain the term self awareness Knowing what you&rsquo;re good at and what you&rsquo;re bad at is harder than you think though It&rsquo;s some parts confidence Confident in your abilities And it&rsquo;s some parts

Is a style for a designer a good thing to cultivate, or a bad thing? Subscribe:&nbsp;ITUNES&nbsp;|&nbsp;ANDROID&nbsp;|&nbsp;STITCHER&nbsp;|&nbsp;RSS FEED Music and links from this episode Trampled by P C III Waitng by Ars Sonor In curtains by J Hacha de Zola Line-by-line notes I&rsquo;ve always been heavily conflicted as a designer I&rsquo;ve never really thought I fit in with what lots of other designers think of themselves I love designing things, and I love coding things I love technical stuff as much as design stuff But I call myself a designer That puts me in a weird no mans land with lots of designers And the other thing I&rsquo;ve never had Is an outright style as a designer Let&rsquo;s talking about designer&rsquo;s styles for a bit This is AADA, and I&rsquo;m Craig Burgess MUSIC Style Having a style works for lots of things This podcast, has a style A model may have a particularl style And a singer usually sings in a certain way or style It&rsquo;s still a weird thing to me to associate with design though In design, you should be producing the work that&rsquo;s most appropriate for the situation Regardless of personal preference, and style Maybe I&rsquo;m being a little idealistic After all, we all have styles, whether they&rsquo;re carefully cultivated or not We all have go to typefaces, or colour combinations that we like We all have styles of photos that we like and layouts that we think work best All this stuff builds up a style And at first, this style is an unconscious thing for most people Eventually though, a designer twigs on and starts to make more work like their other work And this is where things get weird for me Because I genuinely don&rsquo;t understand this bit Why, as a designer, would you ever want to suddenly start making the same work using the same methods, over and over? I understand the idea of niches, and how you can make a lot of money if you stick to a niche I get all the commercial reasons I just don&rsquo;t get the personal reasons To me, once you&rsquo;ve settled on a style, that&rsquo;s it You&rsquo;re developing a designer as far and wide as you could be any more You&rsquo;ve decided you&rsquo;re going to sit in a very particular box And you&rsquo;ll continue to do your work from inside that box For me, I love making all sorts of things in all different styles I relish the challenge of producing a brand for something I&rsquo;ve never done before Or designing something in a style I&rsquo;ve never even considered They&rsquo;re all interesting challenges to me And as I take on things like that I become a better designer But if you suddenly develop your style, you...

Yes, video games are an art form. Today I give some love for the video games. Subscribe:&nbsp;ITUNES&nbsp;|&nbsp;ANDROID&nbsp;|&nbsp;STITCHER&nbsp;|&nbsp;RSS FEED Music and links from this episode To run in an elevator in a dream in a fiction in space by Monplaisir Simplify and&nbsp;Black Riders Anthem by Little Glass Men YFMIFY by Alpha Hydrae Line-by-line notes Videogames have been a part of my life for as long as I can remember I don&rsquo;t remember much of my youth Because I have a terrible memory for important things like that But I do remember pretty much all of my video game consoles And boy, did I have a lot of them Atari, Commodore 64, NES, SNES, Dreamcast, Mastersystem, N64, Playstation, XBOX&hellip; I&rsquo;ll stop there Today I want to talk about design in a different medium The video game This is AADA, and I&rsquo;m Craig Burgess MUSIC Video games are dismissed And they&rsquo;re dismissed a lot They&rsquo;re dismissed because they&rsquo;re dangerous, they&rsquo;re silly, they rot your brain they make you fat oh yeah, and they inspire you to kill people, rape people, or generally do harm you wouldn&rsquo;t normally do to people And finally, Games are for kids, right? Wrong Despite making a cool $91 billion per year globally And that&rsquo;s more than Hollywood by the way Video games still aren&rsquo;t taken seriously They&rsquo;re not considered a serious medium And they&rsquo;re still seen by lots of people as something for kids People don&rsquo;t say this about music, or books or films But they do still say it about video games And if I was to tell you that video games are art I&rsquo;d be laughed out of at least 50% of the rooms I walked into But, they ARE art And they&rsquo;re more engrossing than every other artistic medium that exists today Games have made me laugh, made me sad, made me scared, and made me question my entire existence Sometimes they&rsquo;re throwaway experiences and sometimes they&rsquo;re serious Every single one of them have affected me in a way no other traditional art form could do And it&rsquo;s all because video games have a secret trick up their sleeve It&rsquo;s because they're interactive And this is the power that video games has over any other medium Sure, some pieces of art can be interactive But a lot of it isn&rsquo;t And most pieces of music you listen to you can&rsquo;t affect with your actions...

Ian Moss asked me a question I just had to answer: what's your favourite kind of design? Subscribe:&nbsp;ITUNES&nbsp;|&nbsp;ANDROID&nbsp;|&nbsp;STITCHER&nbsp;|&nbsp;RSS FEED Music and links from this episode Follow An Ar Christ Rabbit by Fields Ohio Neon Hippies by Fields Ohio Wolf Dunes by Fields Ohio Line-by-line notes I was asked by Ian Moss Quite a long time ago now Sorry Ian What my favourite piece of design is And what areas, such as communication, graphic design, architecture This is new for this format of AADA Because I&rsquo;ve never answered somebody&rsquo;s question before But Ian is a good friend, and it&rsquo;s a good question So I&rsquo;m going to do my best to answer it Let&rsquo;s give it a try. This is AADA, and I&rsquo;m Craig Burgess MUSIC There&rsquo;s two things I remember distinctly when I first started realising I was into design One of them I only realised retrospectively And the second one was my first love of graphic design The retrospective one is something I&rsquo;ve spoken about way back in episode 81, the design disease I mentioned the WWF logo, the World Wrestling Federation At the time in my teens, I was mega into wrestling And I used to love reproducing their logo with a marker pen over and over It was the only logo I could draw, so I went nuts with it I got pretty good at drawing it too actually Looking back at this now, I wonder if the WWF&mdash;now WWE made their logo like that on purpose The two things I&rsquo;ve long since had in my head about logo design Is it should be simple enough so anybody can draw it And it should be able to fit on a postage stamp The WWF logo did both of those things And it was accessible It wasn&rsquo;t a great logo from any technical standpoint But it fit the bill, it fit the kind of audience they wanted to attract And it meant young teenagers like me could draw it easily and spread their message Logos have long since been a favourite part of design for me They are the perfect distilled version of graphic design It takes so much skill to create something that looks so simple And it&rsquo;s why I&rsquo;m constantly fascinated with logos It&rsquo;s my favourite part of design to produce, and admire And as for my favourite logos I&rsquo;m probably a bit predictable here I love Coca Cola&rsquo;s logo, not just because it looks nice, but because they&rsquo;ve had the balls to stick with it And whilst I&rsquo;m not a big fan of Apple as a business or company anymore, their logo through the ages and today is just perfect I...

No matter what you're designing, designers have a special code we all follow. It's called The Process. Subscribe:&nbsp;ITUNES&nbsp;|&nbsp;ANDROID&nbsp;|&nbsp;STITCHER&nbsp;|&nbsp;RSS FEED Music and links from this episode Gorgon by Jesse Spillane No sudden movements by rui Interstate 70 Rain Chants by Fields Ohio Line-by-line notes Buildings Bridges Roads Websites Restaurant menus They&rsquo;ll all made by following a set process This process, whilst usually similar for every designer Allows designers all over the world to make very special things This is AADA, and I&rsquo;m Craig Burgess MUSIC A problem Every design process Whether you&rsquo;re designing a city or designing a business card Begins with a problem Design only really has one purpose: to solve problems And if there&rsquo;s no problem to solve, there&rsquo;s no point designing anything These problems range from simple stuff like a problem of a business not looking professional enough To complicated problems like too many traffic jams on a particular road You can&rsquo;t find a solution, until you&rsquo;ve identified the problem And the design process is the only one that can solve such a problem After that, designers start to collect information to understand the problem This step is a mix of research and finding inspiration By seeing what others have done before, you can analyse what went wrong And of course, what went right and what you may want to emulate I&rsquo;ve been pretty vocal in some past episodes about the inspiration gathering step And being very careful not to cross the line of inspiration to downright copying other&rsquo;s work Now comes the fun part, ideas generation This is my favourite part of any design project Being alone with a sketchbook and working on ideas Younger designers too often skip this step, or go about it in the wrong way The point of the ideas step is to indiscriminately create ideas That is, to create ideas without thinking they&rsquo;re good, bad, or anything else At this step, it doesn&rsquo;t matter if your idea is bad Or if you think you&rsquo;ve found a solution to the design problem That is not the point here, it&rsquo;s just to let your brain be free And make ideas And then take those ideas, and turn them into solutions This is a really difficult step, because now you&rsquo;ve got so many ideas You need to analyse them, and work out which ones are good Or appropriate solutions Lots of designers...

It's not useful to think about originality. It is useful to think about infinity though. Subscribe:&nbsp;ITUNES&nbsp;|&nbsp;ANDROID&nbsp;|&nbsp;STITCHER&nbsp;|&nbsp;RSS FEED Music and links from this episode Man Alone Chimes the Hour by Nihilore Pineal Gland's Goodbye by Sro And the track playing right now, my new favourite track:&nbsp;Invisible by Camilla North x Jens East Line-by-line notes In episode 118 I spoke about the idea that ideas are infinite That, given enough pressure, we can squeeze out ideas forever We shouldn&rsquo;t believe the mantra that everything has already been done And nothing is original anymore Because that&rsquo;s just not true This is AADA, and I&rsquo;m Craig Burgess MUSIC In design, we&rsquo;re already setting ourselves up for a fall Most people on this planet today believe the mantra &ldquo;It&rsquo;s all been done before&rdquo; &ldquo;Nothing is original anymore&rdquo; I hate that mindset with every bone in my body It&rsquo;s destructive and just plain unhelpful It just sets your mind up for defeat before you&rsquo;ve even tried Why bother trying hard, if everything you&rsquo;re about to make has been done before? Why bother trying at all? Why don&rsquo;t I just copy somebody else? After all, it&rsquo;s all been done before right? This is not the attitude to take when it comes to idea generation It&rsquo;s a deeply destructive train of thought And just to confuse you more I don&rsquo;t think the direct opposite is a helpful stance either Trying to be original with everything you do is unhelpful too Thinking the complete opposite sets you up for equal failure If you&rsquo;re trying so hard to be original, you&rsquo;ll forget the original purpose of any design To communicate something effectively and efficiently I&rsquo;ve been there myself And this is why generally designers are so bad at doing things for themselves like their own portfolios Because they want it to be so original, and so perfect, it creates inaction I prefer to believe a much simpler thought That ideas are infinite Your mind and everybody else&rsquo;s mind are so full of ideas, you can never run out of them There might be days when you struggle to come up with a single one Those days where nothing works And they&rsquo;ll be lots of bad ideas Yes, LOTS of bad ideas But that doesn&rsquo;t matter Because ideas are infinite, you&rsquo;ll eventually, no, inevitably get to a good one This removes the idea of originality completely Originality is important Just as important as it is to develop your own designer&rsquo;s...

Everything isn't always great, and it's OK to admit that. Sometimes. Subscribe:&nbsp;ITUNES&nbsp;|&nbsp;ANDROID&nbsp;|&nbsp;STITCHER&nbsp;|&nbsp;RSS FEED Music and links from this episode Lunar Dunes by Spinning Clocks Anti-Saloon League Midnight Mystery by Fields Ohio Nothing Like Captain Crunch by Broke For Free Line-by-line notes Being British has its advantages We don't have the endless optimism of the Americans We're definitely more realists than optimists I think it's the dour weather That sours our mood Today's episode has a very melancholy mood And not because I'm in a melancholy mood either Everything isn't great all of the time And it's OK to admit that This AADA, and I'm Craig Burgess. MUSIC I will be honest though I really couldn't be bothered with this podcast today I spent all last night making a business idea, writing and building a website in 3 hours That's online now by the way if you want to check it out It's at whyismywebsiteslow.co.uk After last night's late night The last thing I want to do tonight is more things that require me to think hard But here I am Recording this podcast And speaking to you now Things aren't always perfect And I think it's OK to admit that It's more than OK to admit that Social media is definitely skewing this opinion that we always have to be great Facebook, Twitter and Instagram especially is a carefully edited edition of somebody's life It all looks good when somebody's life is reduced down to a couple of photos on the internet But when we sit flicking through that kind of thing And everybody else's life looks more perfect than ours It's hard not to feel a little bit ungrateful about your own life Why is my life not perfect like their perfect life on Instagram? The thing is though, it is Your life is just as perfect as theirs No matter how happy they look in that photo they just took when they got out of bed Five minutes before they were as miserable as sin and didn't want to get out of bed We all suffer from the same things The same highs and the same lows And today, I'm here to tell you that's OK This applies to everything in life, but especially with design When you're designer, you're constantly looking at other designer's work And it's hard to look at their work And not feel inferior to all the better designers out there I feel like this all of the time I wish I could be more like Michael Beirut And I wish I could draw properly like all the amazing...

Pressure is the secret to good ideas. Subscribe:&nbsp;ITUNES&nbsp;|&nbsp;ANDROID&nbsp;|&nbsp;STITCHER&nbsp;|&nbsp;RSS FEED Music and links from this episode The Ocean by MindsEye Post Yes by Soft and Furious in the garden of swine by alpha jaguar Line-by-line notes If you're a regular listener of this podcast You'll know I like setting stupid challenges I like testing the theory That ideas are infinite And if we put ourselves under enough pressure Ideas can pop out of anywhere. This is AADA, and I'm Craig Burgess MUSIC This podcast is a little bit different today Because I've got something else at the back of my mind Tonight, in a meeting, I accidentally set myself a challenge Yeah, that's on top of this daily challenge of a podcast a day I set myself a challenge to make a business by midnight As I record this podcast, it's now 8:15pm And after I've recorded this podcast I need to then edit it So easily, it'll be 9pm before I'm done with my podcast Which gives me 3 hours To invent a business where I can sell my skills through And be taking money by midnight It isn't an easy challenge But I set it up for 2 reasons Reason 1: I wanted to prove that it's possible with as little time as humanly possible to set up a business So nobody has an excuse for not doing something And 2: the idea that ideas themselves are infinite Ideas are a little bit like diamonds They start out as boring bits of earth that nobody cares about But as you add pressure to them And the more ridiculous the pressure The better the idea crystallises into a diamond of an idea That way of working definitely works for me The more pressure I put myself under The the more ideas flood out of my brain into a useful format The longer you have to think about an idea Not matter what it is That idea goes from an amazing one, to a good one, to a rubbish one And if you're lucky, back to an amazing one Our brains are fascinating pieces of kit They have an amazing ability to convince themselves Of anything No matter how ridiculous or otherwise it is And when you leave brains to ponder things They tend to get all realistic about stuff and a little bit more boring I try my best to seize ideas when they strike And ride that idea and find out where it takes me Sometimes, they end in a blaze of glory In fact most of them do But every single time I've decided to make some stupid idea That didn't go anywhere I've learned things larger than the idea I've learnt a new skill, a new piece of...

Every day is made up of choices. Subscribe:&nbsp;ITUNES&nbsp;|&nbsp;ANDROID&nbsp;|&nbsp;STITCHER&nbsp;|&nbsp;RSS FEED Music and links from this episode Welcome to the Grid, author unknown, YouTube Video Egg Zit Pay Pairs by Captive Portal Don't Tickle Me (feat. Benadiction) by Captive Portal Bruntleek by Myriadar Line-by-line notes Every minute of every hour of every day Is made up of choices Do this Don&rsquo;t do this Do that Don&rsquo;t do that Your biggest opponent in life is yourself And every minute is a battle against yourself This is AADA, and I&rsquo;m Craig Burgess PLAY WELCOME TO THE GRIND That&rsquo;s a clip from Welcome to the Grind, and amazing motivational speech I couldn&rsquo;t find the original author so I&rsquo;m sorry But It sums up the grind entirely And leaves me with little else to say Let&rsquo;s get back to choices Every day, we get to make a choice to do the work Or not do the work We get to choose to do that thing we don&rsquo;t want to do to reach that goal we really want Or we choose to put it off for another day and delay that goal we really want The people who are 60 years old and didn&rsquo;t do the work Look back, and wish they&rsquo;d made the better daily choices Grinding is not just for World of Warcraft It&rsquo;s a way to make yourself better every day of your life 5 times a week, I lift weights Some days, I look at that workout I have to do And I can&rsquo;t be bothered I&rsquo;d prefer to do anything other than lift a couple of weights But then I catch myself And break the task down It&rsquo;s just 45 minutes I tell myself It&rsquo;s 45 minutes today to make my life better for the rest of my life To make sure I have a strong body, strong bones, and a strong mind 45 minutes to give me a better life I enjoy lifting weights But sometimes I don&rsquo;t And I&rsquo;d say it&rsquo;s split 50/50 between But I know if I stay consistent And I keep grinding out session after session I get better I don&rsquo;t have to do anything else But just turn up, and be willing to put in the work It&rsquo;s automatic It&rsquo;s why I do daily 365 day challenges It removes my ability to make a decision to do something or not If I&rsquo;ve said Very publicly by the way That I&rsquo;m gonna do this thing every day for 365 days I have to I&rsquo;m stubborn like that Our brains are powerful, complex things And it&rsquo;s

Creativity. It's like another world. Subscribe:&nbsp;ITUNES&nbsp;|&nbsp;ANDROID&nbsp;|&nbsp;STITCHER&nbsp;|&nbsp;RSS FEED Music and links from this episode Inner Mental Cage (Bitmap Remix) by Controlled Insanity Freejazz by The Unknown Trio Hola Hola Bossa Nova by Juanitos Line-by-line notes INTRO When you&rsquo;re making things Designing things Drawing things Or just creating things Is a really special thing It&rsquo;s not like anything else on this planet When you get into the zone... It&rsquo;s like stepping into another world This is AADA, and I&rsquo;m Craig Burgess PLAY MID SONG Jazz music is the ultimate place of stepping into another world for me Jazz musicians are some of the most creative people on the planet And once they&rsquo;ve found their flow Their improvisations are otherworldly When their improvising, they&rsquo;re in a flow and in another world The idea of flow is not an idea that&rsquo;s unique to creativity It&rsquo;s talked about in sports and lots of other places The idea is sometimes referred to as being in the zone It&rsquo;s a special place where nothing else matters around you You&rsquo;re completely and utterly immersed in your activity I get like this when I&rsquo;m designing things And also when I&rsquo;m coding Once I&rsquo;m 100% focused on the activity Everything else around me fades away Being in a creative flow is a lot like meditating You&rsquo;re completely and utterly focused on nothing else In my day to day life Of phone calls, emails and office conversation I don&rsquo;t get much of a chance to get into this zone It&rsquo;s hard in a busy lifestyle with lots to do To get focused And to find room inside your busy brain But to produce our best work And to be at our best creatively We need to find ways to achieve it Everybody&rsquo;s different And part of the challenge of harnessing your other world Is to find when it&rsquo;s easiest to access for you For some people it&rsquo;s a morning And there&rsquo;s been lots of studies to say that mornings are the most productive for a lot of people For me, I love my sleep So mornings aren&rsquo;t good for me But I really kick into overdrive on an evening Unfortunately the later the better for me I love the feeling of night time peace And that really feels like another world to me I record my podcasts pretty late at night The night time has a different mood for me Everything is at peace And everything is quiet There&rsquo;s no fast moving people needing to...

Ideas. I love ideas. It's the core of any creative endeavour. Subscribe:&nbsp;ITUNES&nbsp;|&nbsp;ANDROID&nbsp;|&nbsp;STITCHER&nbsp;|&nbsp;RSS FEED Music and links from this episode All tracks from Captive Portal's new album,&nbsp;Having A VHS For A Leg Choir Librarian by Captive Portal When We Were Once by Captive Portal Equestrian Encryption by Captive Portal Line-by-line notes INTRO There&rsquo;s one thing that is common across any type of creative activity Whether you&rsquo;re a designer, artist, singer, rapper, whatever It&rsquo;s all about ideas Big ideas Small ideas Rubbish ideas Good ideas It&rsquo;s all ideas This is AADA, and I&rsquo;m Craig Burgess PLAY MID SONG When people say that thing I hate hearing &ldquo;I&rsquo;m not creative&rdquo; What they&rsquo;re really saying Is that they don&rsquo;t think they can think of ideas And even that&rsquo;s not true either They think that can&rsquo;t come up with ideas But that&rsquo;s just a story that they tell themselves Because over the years People get creativity and idea-making hammered out of them As they get older, they think they can&rsquo;t think of ideas anymore And actually, coming up with ideas isn&rsquo;t actually that difficult You&rsquo;ve just got to be fearless Actually, maybe fearless is a bit strong We&rsquo;re not talking about going to battle here Or a duel to the death But you do have to let go of your inhibitions a bit And inhibitions, fear and doubts become more deep-rooted as we get older The biggest inhibitor to coming up with an idea Is the belief that an idea has to be good But actually The only way to get to the good ideas is to get past the bad ones first Seasoned creative people are good at this Because they come up with ideas all day long They can actually run through a whole boat load of ideas in their head And analyse them in an instant Then pick out the good ones That&rsquo;s a skill that&rsquo;s developed through years of training and practice But when they first started And when I first started All my ideas were crap And then when I came up with a good idea It had either already been done Or I didn&rsquo;t have the skills to execute it Coming up with the ideas is only one side of the coin It&rsquo;s an important side of the coin sure But a good idea The BEST idea in the world Is nothing without execution And good execution at that I&rsquo;ve seen many designers over the...

What happened to design? When did it get overtaken by the researchers and the bean-counters? Music and links from this episode Mozart - Eine Kleine Nachtmusik allegro by Advent Chamber Orchestra Quasi Motion by Kevin MacLeod Walk That Dog by U.S. Army Blues ACOUSTIC BLUES by Jason Shaw Line-by-line notes When graphic design first became a profession, things were simpler Classic design used to be much simpler to understand Dieter Rams 10 principles for good design are just as relevant today as they were in the 1970s He said Good design is innovative Good design makes a product useful Good design is aesthetic Good design makes a product understable Good design is unobtrusive Good design is honest Good design is long lasting Good design is thorough to the last detail Good design is environmental friendly Good design is as little design as possible Why do I feel like&mdash;in the pursuit of more and better design&mdash;we've forgotten quite a few of these? Where did it all go wrong? This is AADA, and I&rsquo;m Craig Burgess PLAY MID SONG I'm going to get a little bit controversial in this episode And try and get you to think outside your comfort zone Especially if you're a jobbing designer right now Controversy point one: Designers aren't trusted to do their own jobs anymore And designers are becoming less respected at their craft Before a designer gets involved, often there's lots of research Or testing Or focus groups Or marketing people writing lengthy documents Then making design suggestions before the designer has even started It seems There needs to be a focus group or a large scale research project to back up your design choices for almost anything these days And if a designer isn't sure They'll be asked to test two versions of a design to see which performs best All this stuff erodes the soul of a design Design isn't as simple as that Simply doing the research doesn't automatically create a good design And the research can be, you know, wrong Design needs to be left to the designers Design is as much of a science as it is an art Getting it right isn't as simple as doing the research and saying 'so and so looks like this so we need to look like this' Design is so much more subtle than that In the hands of a good designer, a good marketing strategy can turn into something amazing But in the hands of a poor designer, a good marketing strategy amounts to nothing And there's also the other side of this The side that designers often don't get a say in BAD marketing strategies The research or the strategy is never said to be wrong, it's always the designers fault Strategy and planning can sometimes directly interfere with the end design product Many people are trying to make design a science And design to some extent can be quantified There's rules of design that when followed can produce passable work But this is why I said

I talk about a hidden part of the creative pursuit that most people aren't aware of. Music and links from this episode The Entertainer (1902, piano roll) by Scott Joplin Belview by C. Scott Knuckle Up by C. Scott En Croisiere by Juanitos Line-by-line notes Hello. It&rsquo;s me, Craig. Before we get into today&rsquo;s show, I wanted to quickly talk about something new I&rsquo;m working on I&rsquo;m starting a new podcast soon There&rsquo;s lots of things I don&rsquo;t know about it yet Like the name, the final format, when it&rsquo;ll be released But I&rsquo;m really excited by it Because I&rsquo;ll be interviewing designers and creatives that I love We&rsquo;ll be talking about geeky stuff from the design and creative worlds And I&rsquo;m really looking forward to it The reason I&rsquo;m telling you about this so early is because I need your help If you know of a designer or a creative that you&rsquo;d love to hear have a chat with me OR, you are a designer or a creative and you&rsquo;d love to have a chat with me Ping me on twitter at craigburgess or email me at craig@askadesigneranything.com&nbsp;and we&rsquo;ll go from there Promo, done. INTRO There&rsquo;s a thing in any creative endeavour That&rsquo;s actually more important than the work itself It&rsquo;s older than time, and it&rsquo;s a concept that&rsquo;s been around forever It&rsquo;s older than this song And some might say that to become a great designer, your understanding of it has to be absolute And most of all, it&rsquo;s something you&rsquo;ve probably never considered and even known it&rsquo;s a thing I&rsquo;m talking about space No, not the kind of space in Star Trek The other kind This is AADA, and I&rsquo;m Craig Burgess PLAY MID SONG Negative Space White Space Leave some room to breathe It&rsquo;s called different things by different people Negative space as a concept is pretty simple All it refers to is the space around or between the main subject of an image In visual mediums, it&rsquo;s the space where nothing is in the piece It&rsquo;ll be the spare space that&rsquo;s left blank around something To an untrained eye, it doesn&rsquo;t look like an intentional thing When you&rsquo;re reading a book, the words don&rsquo;t go to the very edge of the page And that&rsquo;s intentional, to aid your reading consumption and make it as comfortable as possible But not only did somebody design where the words will go And how much space is between them and what size the letters should be Somebody also designed the space, the area where nothing is It&rsquo;s often an alien concept to some clients too Who are always keen to see it as wasted space Space that should be filled with something else But once the negative space is filled up It doesn&rsquo;t have any power anymore, it&rsquo;s not negative space now It&rsquo;s one

Let's talk a little bit about happiness. Music and links from this episode Travelling between the Ancient Empires by Ars Sonor &amp; Sean Derrick Cooper Marquardt Park Bench Afternoons by&nbsp;MindsEye Tides by MindsEye A curious thing by J Hacha de Zola Line-by-line notes INTRO In our work focused culture And because work is all about, well working We often forget that work could be fun, if we wanted it to be Because work is driven by profits, timesheets and getting paid We sometimes forget one of the most important parts of our life Happiness Let&rsquo;s talk a bit about happiness This is AADA, and I&rsquo;m Craig Burgess PLAY MID SONG James Deb It&rsquo;s probably not a name your familiar with If you you are Congratulations, you read Wikipedia like me James Deb is often cited as one of the inventors of the 8 hour work day Or the 40 hour work movement, that its apparently known as Previous to this idea, 10-16 hour work days 6 days a week were common It was actually Robert Owen though A Welsh social reformer and one of the founders of the utopian socialism movement That really branded the 8 hour work day well He came up with the slogan 8 hours labour, 8 hours recreation, 8 hours rest This was seen as revolutionary at the time That suddenly were going to start working less hours And looking after our health And it&rsquo;s funny, now, we live in a freer society than ever One that, with the help of the internet pretty much lets you do whatever you want Whenever you want And we voluntarily choose to work longer hours Do more things for our bosses And put our happiness on hold for the sake of the corporation In the design industry, we value worker heroes The people who turn up an hour before everybody else And leave an hour after everybody else It&rsquo;s common in the design industry to work long hours And work weekends, and in your spare time Because we enjoy our jobs so much It&rsquo;s not like this feels like work, and we might still think we feel happy Those worker heroes, the people who work the longest? They&rsquo;re not heroes It&rsquo;s not big or clever working ridiculous hours It grates on your happiness Slowly and methodically And it's something you don't even realise Trust me, I&rsquo;ve been there and worn out the t-shirt I realised, years ago now, that working the longest doesn&rsquo;t make you the best It just becomes habit, then you expand every task to fill the available time You become less efficient, because you&rsquo;ve got more hours available to you Then that means you end up working longer hours, because things are taking you longer to do Then the cycle repeats all over again And, it just doesn&rsquo;t make you happy Design makes me happy I love it But I don&rsquo;t love doing it for 16 hours a day That&rsquo;s not an efficient use of my design brain I can&rsquo;t come up with good ideas for that long during the day And I shouldn&rsquo;t try, but some people do I&rsquo;m at my happiest when I&rsquo;m designing things But that doesn&rsquo;t mean I stay happy for very long when I&rsquo;ve been doing it for too long Even the things you love make you less happy when you do them for too long And if you&rsquo;re not even in a job that makes you happy Quit tomorrow It&rsquo;s...

Should you be a specialist, or a generalist? Music and links from this episode Break by Little Glass Men Poolside by Little Glass Men Spray Paint It Gold by Little Glass Men Line-by-line notes INTRO Over the years, the design industry has flicked between different trends The gradient and bevel era where designers were first starting to work out how to use the new features that Photoshop allowed The skeuomorphic design trend, that saw every designer making things look real life things And the current design trends: very simple and clean design that some people think has gotten too&nbsp;simple There's even been trends that have dictated what a designer should be, or should do There's been the traditional graphic designer, who mostly designs print work There's the hybrid designer, who designs web and print stuff And there's the more granular type of designer that's become popular in recent years, the UI or UX design, or interaction designers. They've got different names every week The current trend is to tell designers that we should focus on one area of expertise. That we should be specialists and not generalists I disagree. And in this episode, I'll tell you why. This is AADA, and I'm Craig Burgess PLAY MID SONG In the past 12 years, I've designed lots of different stuff, and worked on lots of different projects I've even built apps and web systems, and dabbled with programming On top of that, I've even looked into video game design, and started trying to learn how to make games I didn't get very far with learning how to make games by the way But it's something I definitely want to return to learning about I truly do consider myself to be a hybrid designer I'm just as interested in getting my hands dirty in the technical side as I am the creative side I get equal parts enjoyment from right brain activities and left brain activities As a young designer, this kind of difference confused me I enjoyed developing stuff, so did that mean I should be a developer? But I'm a pretty good designer too, so should that mean I should be a designer? I was truly confused, and early in my career I nearly took a job as a developer Now, I'm glad I didn't I don't ever see my interest in lots of different topics as a designer as a bad thing at all In fact, I believe It's only turned me into a better designer over the years Because I can understand things from technical viewpoints As well as the creative side When I'm designing something new, I fully understand what can be achieved technically, so I can push the boundaries and not hold back I think any development activities I do as well help me with my problem solving abilities Development, coding, whatever you want to call it Is a creative endeavour You are creating something And you're solving problems And you're communicating Anybody who tells you otherwise is just wrong To me, a good graphic designer should be able to turn their hand to designing almost anything and be able to do a good job of it It's trendy right now to specialise To call yourself something like an interaction designer Or a UI designer But to me, all designers should be interaction designers Or UI...

How do you get what you want in life? Hard work, and lots of patience. Music and links from this episode Golem by Pas Dans Le Cul Aujourd'Hui Dub Steps by Dub Terminator Octopussy by Juanitos Line-by-line notes INTRO When Stephen HawkingStephen h began studying physics, he was rubbish at it When Louis Hamilton first started driving, he couldn&rsquo;t even start the car When Robert De Niro started acting, he couldn&rsquo;t even land a job in a commercial By default, when you start something, you&rsquo;re rubbish at it Now, collectively, they&rsquo;re world renowned physicists, multi million pound racing drivers and some of the best actors of all time You want to know why? Because they had patience This is AADA, and I&rsquo;m Craig Burgess PLAY MID SONG I still vividly remember the first ever piece of design work I made It was in the first few weeks of official design education And I designed a website for William Wallace It was terrible I mean, absolutely terrible It&rsquo;d offend you if you saw it, seriously In week 1 of a 2 year course, I was a terrible designer But I had the passion and the willingness to become better at being a designer So I put in the work And started designing everything and anything I made up projects I designed fake logos for fake companies I started projects where I designed stuff for fun All of this on top of the work I had to do for my design course It meant I rapidly became a better designer I still wasn&rsquo;t an amazing one, by any means I was still a design student after all But I knew that if I followed the process And continued to make new design work And continued to keep putting in the work I&rsquo;d automatically become better I knew this because I had patience Gary Vaynerchuk says lots of good things about patience too I&rsquo;ll let him tell it for you PLAY GARY VEE CLIP Because of the internet, we expect results fast Because everything can be downloaded, purchased instantly or delivered the next day We expect everything to be so easy to acquire But a craft like design doesn&rsquo;t work like that It&rsquo;ll never work like that, because design is a craft A craft takes time to learn&nbsp; It takes patience to learn You have to learn the ins and outs of it And be able to do things backwards and forwards The epiphany I had about this whole patience thing came a few years ago When somebody said to me Even Jimi Hendrix had to learn guitar once Even he used to be rubbish at playing guitar Everybody, no matter how talented they are Has been where you are right now, no matter what level of your craft you&rsquo;re at If you&rsquo;re just starting out, everybody has taken that first step at least once in their career Once somebody told me that, I became enlightened It&rsquo;s something so obvious, but something you just don&rsquo;t think about We put talented people on pedestals And attribute everything they do to natural talent Or luck Or something else that makes that talented person...

Be nice to people. It's the single most important thing. Music and links from this episode Cylinder Nine by Chris Zabriskie The Life and Death of a Certain K. Zabriskie, Patriarch by Chris Zabriskie Sphere by Creo Line-by-line notes INTRO I like to give out lots of tips to designers And generally They just apply to being a good human as well Today's episode definitely falls into this category Ever since we started Genius Division The design agency I run with a few other conspirators We've tried to live by one mantra Work hard and be nice to people Yesterday was work hard Today is be nice to people This is AADA, and I&rsquo;m Craig Burgess PLAY MID SONG Manners cost nothing Good manners are your beauty Your mood shouldn't dictate your manners I tried to find quote about being nice too But they were all negative And paranoid Nice guys always finish last Even the nicest people have their limits Quotes like that There's an inherent distrust of nice people Especially in Britain, where nobody can take a compliment People constantly that that if you're being nice, you want something Or there's a reason for being nice Beyond just being nice I absolutely don't believe nice guys finish last at all And you shouldn't either The whole idea of finishing last Suggests there's an idea of success that everybody buys into Which is just not true Being nice is the cornerstone of everything I do I hate it when somebody thinks otherwise of me I hate it when I've hurt somebody or somebody is annoyed at me In an ideal world I'd love everybody to like me And I'm not saying that I'm an egotistical way I mean everybody should just like everybody There's no need for backhanded compliments Or silly games behind people's backs Let's just all be nice And let's get it out of the way now Being nice doesn't mean you're weak Or you're a pushover Or you let others get their own way all the time Despite what Hollywood and TV shoves down all our throats You can politely decline And you don't need an argument to solve a difference of opinion I think in the design world, being nice is especially important The design world is still pretty small And most people know each other It's quite incestuous that way So you never know when you might stumble across somebody again in a different job I don't believe in burning bridges no matter how hard the other side might try to set it on fire Being nice isn't trendy anymore I guess The corporate mentality is to drop things on everybody below you and throw stones at people above you Everybody is a target and somebody to be stepped on But in a meritocracy Where everybody is out to get on the next rung of the ladder It forgets about the people Design is all about people It's about the people you share a studio with It's about your clients you help create amazing work for And it's about your peers and other people who you ask for advice from You have to be nice to all...

Music and links from this episode This Minus Five by Captive Portal Day Bird by Broke for Free Exotic2 by Andrew Pekler Tonight, By The Moonlight by James Pants Line-by-line notes INTRO I love shortcuts All kinds of shortcuts actually I love keyboard shortcuts, because they speed things up when I&rsquo;m working I love productivity shortcuts, that make me more efficient I even&nbsp;love shortcuts in Mario Kart, because they make sure I don&rsquo;t come last Sometimes though, shortcuts just don&rsquo;t work Sometimes, you&rsquo;ve just got to knuckle down And just work hard This is AADA, and I&rsquo;m Craig Burgess PLAY MID SONG If there&rsquo;s something I see more and more of as I get older And I guess you could say more experienced Is that people become more entitled Because anybody can get a YouTube channel or a blog set up in 5 minutes They expect the results to come equally as quickly Because when we forget something or don&rsquo;t know something And we can just google for any answer in 5 seconds flat People expect everything else to be as easy to achieve People like to talk about overnight success As if that&rsquo;s an excuse for the fact that somebody has achieved something There&rsquo;s no such thing as an overnight success It&rsquo;s a lie The only way an overnight success is achieved Is through hard work, and years of it No matter how old somebody might be Take a talented 17 year old footballer for example who&rsquo;s just broken into the professional leagues That 17 year old kid has been playing football their life Probably not far enough since they started walking What&rsquo;s overnight about that success? There&rsquo;s a thing that occurs over and over when people talk about success And it doesn&rsquo;t even matter what kind of definition of it you have This thing comes up over and over And it&rsquo;s working hard Nothing worth achieving comes without hard work Otherwise everybody would be doing it The same couldn&rsquo;t be more true of being a designer There&rsquo;s so many designers out there now You just need a computer and a copy of Photoshop and you can call yourself a designer There&rsquo;s no regulation Increasingly people are turning away from traditional design education too Which I don&rsquo;t agree with by the way So the only differentiator In a stupidly crowded market Is your work And the only way to make your work get better And stand out from anybody else's Is to do lots of it, and work hard The design world is no different from many other industries these days And I predict with the rise of the internet, competition for any job will only get bigger And the only way to make sure you&rsquo;re the best is to work harder thane everybody else Designers have to know so many things these days And have to be good at so many different crafts That the only way to get good at them all is to...

Is striving for perfection actually a good thing, or is a fool's game? Music and links from this episode Dark Hearted by White Visor The queen rat. by Coin Locker Kid We Waste Time by Ugh God Line-by-line notes INTRO Hi My name&rsquo;s Craig And I&rsquo;ve got a problem It&rsquo;s a problem that plagues in my professional life And my every day life Every time I try and do something This problem rears it&rsquo;s head Over and over It gnaws at my psyche And grinds at my creations My problem is perfection Or rather, the relentless pursuit of it This is AADA, and I&rsquo;m Craig Burgess PLAY MID SONG I can hear you laughing I sound like those people in job interviews Who admit their biggest weakness is being a perfectionist That perfection, or striving to be perfect Is not a problem at all It doesn&rsquo;t do you any harm Or cause you any ill will But that&rsquo;s just not true As anybody will tell you in the creative game Striving for perfection is the fastest way to ruin Or the slowest way, depending on how you look at it Seeking perfection is a fool&rsquo;s game It&rsquo;s an impossible errand that can never be completed But nobody tells you that When you first start out I think there&rsquo;s 2 people in this world The people who are happy with their lot and happy to accept things And the other people, the people who constantly strive for perfect You often see CEOs of large organisations fall into the second category They&rsquo;re classic type A personalities The kind of people you don&rsquo;t like And the type of people that are often called Sociopaths Most creatives pursue perfection Especially on personal projects This is the exact reason why I&rsquo;ve never managed to make myself a design portfolio Because I want it to be perfect And I can&rsquo;t figure out what perfect looks like Because it doesn&rsquo;t exist I see this same kind of thinking in designs students And young people They want to keep tweaking things, and changing things Because they&rsquo;re never happy with how it looks The thing they produce never looks like the thing they imagined in their brain And then perfection gets mistaken for indecisiveness Perfection is an illusion When you make something And you look back at it the week after You always see ways you could have improved it And you&rsquo;re never happy with the previous things you&rsquo;ve made But actually, that&rsquo;s a REALLY GOOD THING It means you&rsquo;ve improved It means you&rsquo;ve got better, even within a week And it means you didn&rsquo;t try to perfect it endlessly, until you went in a gigantic circle The truth about perfection is this Perfection isn&rsquo;t real It isn&rsquo;t possible by anybody Perfection is an abstract noun One person&rsquo;s definition of perfection directly contradicts somebody else's&nbsp; Anything you create can never be perfect And the second you...

Making stuff automatically makes you better. Music and links from this episode Sofia 30 by Nuno Adelaida Internally Grateful (feat. Josh B&uuml;che &amp; Jonee Whatley) by Captive Portal The Pet by Sebon Line-by-line notes INTRO You've probably heard of Jerry Seinfeld before If not though, he's an actor, comedian, and a writer He made the sitcom Seinfeld, with Larry David The reason I mention him&nbsp; Is because he once told his method for becoming a better comedian It was simple really Write something every single day And write a cross on a calander for every day you do it You've got one goal Don't break the chain And never stop This is Ask a Designer Anything, and I&rsquo;m Craig Burgess PLAY MID SONG I absolutely adore Seinfeld idea And it's something I've long since subscribed to myself I'm not as prescriptive as seinfeld I don't do something every day Unless I'm doing a silly 365 day challenge that is But the idea of doing things regularly for yourself in your spare time is something I'm mega passionate about You've probably noticed It's a running theme through my podcasts Because I think, especially for designers, designing something every day is a really easy way to get better without even trying When I look back at my first ever 365 day challenge When I designed a poster a day for 365 days I did it because I wanted to get better at making vector graphics and using illustrator It automatically worked, because of the volume of work I was producing The same idea applies to these podcasts Because I'm making one every day I'm automatically getting better at audio production, writing scripts, talking into a mic, reading scripts, the list goes on This is the very thing Seinfeld was getting at Just by writing every day, he got a little bit better every day&nbsp; By the end of 365 days, he was a lot better The reason most peope don't do this Is 2 reasons 1, it's hard to stay consistent and to not just come home from work and watch TV And 2, most people don't like making rubbish stuff Because when you're never stopping, and making something every day, most of what you make will be rubbish And that's part of the reason for doing it too, to start to accept that sometimes your ideas aren't good, but you have to try them anyway It stops self limiting beliefs This is why Michael Beirut promotes this idea too, in a smaller way, for the students he teaches at university&nbsp; He gets students to perform a design operation every day for 100 days One that you can complete every day so you don't give up It teaches you to work faster It teaches you to come up with ideas faster And it teaches you to never stop If I could get every design student in the world to make something every day for 365 days&nbsp; I would Because I know from personal experience that they'll be so much better of a designer when they're finished Even Gary Vaynerchuk talks about a similar concept Of never stopping, and doing something every day So, there's 3 successful people here who have all...

Making stuff automatically makes you better. Music and links from this episode Venga Bus by&nbsp;Pierlo Walking Alone by Telegraphy Barbarian by&nbsp;Pierlo Do the Pump by MrJuan Line-by-line notes INTRO No matter what you do as a job I think you should be doing this thing in your spare time Whether you're an accountant, a developer, a designer or a lawyer, doing this thing makes you automatically better at your job That thing is stuff And the thing you should be doing with it is making it Because making stuff makes you better This is AADA, and I&rsquo;m Craig Burgess By the way, I&rsquo;m feeling in a bit of a Friday mood today So today&rsquo;s music is quite weekendy... PLAY MID SONG After recording another episode of AADA a few days ago, I started to think about what I could tell my younger 18 year old self That if I could go back in time, what is the one most important thing that's turned me into the human I am today? Im too humble to call myself successful, but I'm happy, and I lead a life I enjoy with no limitations. I got to thinking about what makes a good designer, and what one thing you could teach a young designer that could potentially turn that young designer into a great one When I sit down and really think about the things I've learnt in my short career of 11 years so far There's lots of things I could mention Creative ability Curiosity A passion for learning Networking Being friendly Helping others Having a vision And never giving up Yes, they're all important And really, it's impossible or not really that important to pick one But if I think about one thing specifically It's the simple act of making things And making things often Let me explain Making things can be anything, and I think that's why it's such a powerful concept to any industry In my world, making things meant designing stuff Even before I got my first design job, I've always just designed stuff Ever since I started my design education I became obsessed And started just making stuff all the time Because I was constantly making stuff I was constantly getting better I was getting 10000 hours of practice in just by designing stuff all the time And at the time when I first started out Almost 99 percent of it was for myself Just making stuff completely for the fun of it Some people would call this pointless But for me It was and still is some of the best work I do Because you get to explore things And learn new things And you're doing it for yourself and for nobody else I live for making work like this And making things At the minute I'm spending 2 hours a day making a podcast And some people might think that's quite a lot of time And it is But I do it because I just love the act of making things I'd prefer to spend 2 hours learning and making Than 2 hours vegetating Watching crap television The simple and sometimes complex act of making Has a deeper meaning for me...

What's that one thing that turns a bad designer into a good one? Music and links from this episode No More Truth&nbsp;by ROZKOL Sacred Motion by&nbsp;staRpauSe End of the Line by H-LR Line-by-line notes INTRO When you talk about what separates a great designer from a bad one There&rsquo;s lots of things that tend to come up Passion Intelligence Talent Location Desire But the biggest thing I think And one that some people don&rsquo;t appreciate Is learning And committing to a lifetime of learning This is AADA and I&rsquo;m Craig Burgess PLAY MID SONG Being a designer isn&rsquo;t easy It&rsquo;s so important to keep up with so many things, and lots of these change A LOT You&rsquo;ve got to keep up with culture, to make sure the work you&rsquo;re doing is relevant You&rsquo;ve got to keep up with the news and current events, to make sure you can ground your work in reality And you&rsquo;ve got to keep up with trends Trends can be one the hardest to keep up with, and one of the most time consuming Because trends are fickle I&rsquo;m not saying that designers should make trendy design I&rsquo;m the last person on earth to suggest that But it&rsquo;s important to understand current trends To either implement them in your work Or completely avoid them So you can make your work look timeless but not old fashioned There&rsquo;s something else though that&rsquo;s really important to a designer And that&rsquo;s technology Technology changes so quickly And designers need to keep up with it It&rsquo;s revolutionised and some may say democratised the world of design once before With the introduction of the Macintosh And I think we&rsquo;re currently experiencing a similar thing again With the rise of tablet devices And the potential that a tablet device opens up for all kinds of design work And rapid prototyping, just all sorts But to make sure we keep up with all this stuff We have to make sure we&rsquo;re always learning In another way, you could call it curiosity Curiosity feeds a lot into this And to be an amazing designer Curiosity is really important The best designers I know are perpetually curious about the world they live in They don&rsquo;t take anything at face value They don&rsquo;t see a news story&nbsp;and think that&rsquo;s the full story I think this is a thing of&mdash;and as much as I hate to say the term&mdash;being in marketing Because we&rsquo;re used to working for companies and&mdash;let&rsquo;s face it&mdash;manipulating the public image of companies We know and understand how easy it is to manipulate the public image of everything That leads most designers to be generally cynical of most things they see And that leads them to being curious to find out the truth Also, when designers see a new style of work or a new website or a new thing they&rsquo;ve never seen before They want to know how to create it, and replicate it Staying curious is so important, because if you don&rsquo;t, you fall behind, and slowly become a worse designer A designer&rsquo;s journey is one that never ends...

Things change, and you've got to make sure you change with them. Music and links from this episode Beaches by Alex Vaan Someone Else's Memories by Revolution Void Warm Up Suit by Broke For Free Line-by-line notes INTRO A few months ago I went to a restaurant I&rsquo;ve been to other restaurants since, but I remember this one vividly We sat down to eat food Tapas food actually And there was a group of 18-20 year olds sat down in a group They were all communicating through their phones But to each other And occasionally, one of them showed the other their phone They were all talking to each other But they were communicating with each other in a way I didn&rsquo;t recognise Communication is changing Or you could say It&rsquo;s already changed This is AADA, and I&rsquo;m Craig Burgess PLAY MID SONG Every couple of years A new form of technology comes around That people start outrageously claiming it&rsquo;ll be the death of something The radio The TV The compact disc player The mini disk player The iPod The iPhone And now, the internet The internet has changed our consumption habits FOREVER The internet has changed our attention spans forever And the internet has changed how we communicate forever Everybody in any kind of media position&nbsp;are struggling to understand it too TV execs are struggling to catch up with it Traditional marketers are struggling to catch up We all talk about the golden days of communication When we all sat down and talked to each other And young people could actually talk to people And we all lived in this nice bubble of talking to each other all of the time The truth is, that golden age never existed Teenagers have never been able to talk to each other But it can&rsquo;t be denied that the communication methods have changed Things like WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, Snapchat, Instagram and everything else Has changed the way we communicate and keep in touch with our friends We&rsquo;re often constantly in contact with our &ldquo;friends&rdquo; now We&rsquo;re light touch with lots of people Noseying about their perfect side of their lives they showcase on social media And staying friends with all our high school enemies on Facebook Just to see how rubbish their lives are The point I&rsquo;m getting to Is things have changed And every day, especially on the internet Things change again, and faster than last time Change happens every day An we need to learn to embrace it, and not fight it Not talk about the good old days that were worse than now And not misremember a golden age that never existed We need to appreciate that things change And just because things aren&rsquo;t how you remembered them It doesn&rsquo;t make them any less valid, or wrong in some way It&rsquo;s just new You change every day too And if you want to hold on to the past And stay the same as you&rsquo;ve always been That&rsquo;s got a...

To find a purpose in life, or a reason for a living, you've got to make something that you believe in. Music and links from this episode Action Decisive Move by Komiku This or That by MindsEye good looking instrumental by Yshwa Line-by-line notes As designers and creators We make things every day Design, artwork, videos, podcasts, writing, anything Whatever creative pursuit we follow Whatever our medium is It&rsquo;s 10 times more powerful 100 times more powerful If what you&rsquo;re making, you believe in. This is AADA, and I&rsquo;m Craig Burgess When I started this podcast On January 1st 2017 I started it for the wrong reasons I&rsquo;d long since wanted to make a podcast As I&rsquo;ve been interested in the medium for a long time But I chose the wrong style of podcast to make I was making a podcast because I wanted to market my business I wanted to market myself And I wanted to increase my profile in the marketing world But, that was wrong on so many levels Because I&rsquo;d set my podcast up to talk about design, marketing and business I mainly focused on marketing and business As I knew that was what most of my clients would find most useful&hellip; For me to give information about I had a massive problem though It was a huge elephant in the room that I chose to ignore That all this marketing and business talk Just wasn&rsquo;t me And I didn&rsquo;t believe in it I&rsquo;m a designer at heart, and I love, eat and breathe design I&rsquo;m interested in other stuff too like human performance And psychology But none of that straight forward business stuff I really believed in Or was interested by Straight out of the blocks, my podcast was doomed from episode one There was no way I was ever going to make a success of something I didn&rsquo;t believe in Some people might categorise success by&nbsp;the download numbers, and they were strong and getting stronger But I didn&rsquo;t feel successful, I felt trapped in something I didn&rsquo;t enjoy I didn&rsquo;t believe in my podcast, or my content And I didn&rsquo;t have the passion or drive to carry it on I figured it out late in the game that I needed to make something that I WANTED to make Not what I thought would make me successful, whatever that even means I was making something that I didn&rsquo;t really dare share on my personal Facebook timeline Because I knew most of my friends wouldn&rsquo;t enjoy it And I never listened back to any of my episodes after I&rsquo;d produced them Because I didn&rsquo;t enjoy listening back to them either Everything was wrong Just, so wrong Now, looking back at it, I can&rsquo;t believe how stupid or tunnel visioned I&rsquo;d become with it But hindsight always has perfect vision With my new style of podcast? I guess it&rsquo;s not so new now&hellip; It might sound a bit weird, but I actually enjoy listening back to my episodes now I make something that I enjoy producing, and that I enjoy listening to I make something that I think is good, and I make it for myself

Finding creativity can sometimes be hard, and sometimes be easy. Music and links from this episode Ambiant Point Of No Return by Kimiko Pin&ccedil;on by Comme Jospin Feet Gone Wild by Alpha Hydrae Line-by-line notes INTRO Creativity can sometimes be like a rare jewel Everybody knows the power of it And how beautiful it is But it can be really difficult to find Other times, creativity is like a cheap &pound;2 jewel It&rsquo;s everywhere And anybody can find it And buy it for cheap This is AADA, and I&rsquo;m Craig Burgess PLAY MID SONG Creativity is weird that way That it can sometimes be readily available And other times Absolutely impossible to find Creativity can&rsquo;t be controlled It can&rsquo;t be summoned on command like the other skills you already possess If somebody says What&rsquo;s 2 plus 2 You immediately work out the answer is 4 But if somebody says to you I want you to create a piece of artwork About the number 4 The answer either immediately popped into your head Or you wouldn&rsquo;t even know where to begin Imagine selling your creativity professionally It can sometimes be a difficult skill to harness on command Some days I&rsquo;ll turn up creatively And some days I know my creativity has gone for a walk But I still need to summon up the ideas The thing that usually separates a seasoned creative From a young inexperienced one Is the ability to use techniques to summon the mysterious power of creativity When it isn&rsquo;t readily available It might sound easy The job of a designer Just sitting drawing stuff all day But the pressure is actually much greater than that Most people get to enjoy their creativity when the mood strikes But professional creatives, people like designers Have to learn to turn it on like a tap when it&rsquo;s necessary So because of that the pressure is quite high to perform When you tell people you&rsquo;re a designer Or a member of any other creative pursuit They expect you to be creative To be different to them in some way I guess in a way that might be true That we&rsquo;re wired up different, and think slightly differently I think it&rsquo;s possible that creatives might think slightly differently But I don&rsquo;t buy the right brain, left brain paradigm I believe anybody can learn to become more systems focused Or anybody can learn to become more creative I think the environment that you put a human being in Largely dictates their level of creativity Children are by default creative And as creativity is often seen as a childish concept As we get older and older We get more of the child pushed out of us, and forced way Creative people are the people who fought back against that push And survived out of the other side to continue their childish pursuit of...

This is my very special extended episode about music, curated for my 100th episode. Music and links from this episode BugaBlue by US Army Blues Deltas for Corridors by Cosmic Analog Ensemble The Mood by Chris Andrews Railroad’s Whiskey Company by Jahzaar Usurper by Coin Locker Kid A Street Legacy by Cosmic Analog Ensemble (There’s […] The post Music (Extended Episode) appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

Only valid feedback will be accepted. Music and links from this episode Stargazer by Monplaisir I will by Yshwa Everything is True by Monsplasir Pizza by U-Man Line-by-line notes INTRO Even though the democratic process works for lots of things The idea of getting lots of people involved in the process Just doesn’t work for design Design […] The post Design is not a democracy appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

Staying humble is important, especially when you’re a designer. Music and links from this episode Stellar by MindsEye Jubilee Blues by Belle Baker Snake Charms by Jesse Spillane Rewire your Cables by Little Glass Men  Line-by-line notes INTRO We live in a world Full of phrases like “fake it till you make it” and “flaunt […] The post Stay humble appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

What happens when you shift your thinking from thinking short term, to being in it for the long haul? Music and links from this episode L’acrobate by Monplaisir feat Southman I Knew a Guy by Kevin MacLeod Dances and Dames also by Kevin MacLeod Little Lily Swing by Tri-Tachyon Line-by-line notes INTRO I started lifting weights […] The post In it for the long haul appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

When is bad design used intentionally? And when can bad design be better than good design? Music and links from this episode Night Owl by Broke for Free Steppin by Wake How Exciting by Revolution Void Line-by-line notes INTRO Design is used for lots of things But when it’s used intentionally It’s used to communicate […] The post Designing bad things for good reasons appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

Inspiration. It’s both a thing to acquire and a state of mind. Or is it just a load of rubbish? Music and links from this episode Chance by Kai Engel Tumult by Kai Engel Hello Friend by The Birth and Death of Silence Outro by The Birth and Death of Silence Line-by-line notes INTRO In […] The post Inspiration appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

Amazing design doesn’t come around very often, but today I try to distil down what amazing design is. Music and links from this episode Three kites circling by Axletree The Execution of a Liar by Steve Combs Three Generations by Greg Atkinson Line-by-line notes INTRO Everywhere you turn, Our world is full of design It’s […] The post Amazing design appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

The pace of technological advancements is changing the role of a graphic designer. Today I consider what that means. Music and links from this episode Phase Three by Fatal Injection The Path by Syntactic The Army Of You by Soft and Furious Ride Home by Sro Line-by-line notes INTRO Technology is amazing The IBM System/360 A […] The post The graphic designer is dead appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

Nothing gets made without dreamers. This episode is all about the dreamers. Music and links from this episode NASA sound clips from NASA’s website Words Or Silence 2 by P C III Meadow by Little Glass Men Introduction beats by Itsensäsyöjät Line-by-line notes INTRO Imagine you’ve been tasked to achieve something that’s never been achieved […] The post Here’s to the dreamers appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

Young designers don’t know the power of the sketchbook. Let me schools ya. Music and links from this episode PHX by JCM Vimaana Praacheen (Flight Of The Ancients) by Munenushi Demi Gi by JCM Line-by-line notes INTRO When you start to get older People think that you know better That you know more And that […] The post You never know it all appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

Young designers don’t know the power of the sketchbook. Let me schools ya. Music and links from this episode Five Minutes at the Rainforest Cafe by Macaw Flying pea v.1 by Daddy_Scrabble Backed Vibes Clean by Kevin MacLeod Line-by-line notes INTRO The barrier to becoming a designer Has never been lower You need to buy […] The post A sketchbook and some hard thinking appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

People have a raw, instinctual need to be creative. Music and links from this episode Death Valley by Shadows On The Snow small window shows so many delight by masato abe Dream Seekers Perfection by Night Haze Line-by-line notes INTRO The need to be creative Is much more than a job It’s much more than […] The post The need to be creative appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

When the world wide web was first invented, websites were simple. Now, websites are getting simple again. But are they all just boring? Music and links from this episode Steve Jobs introduces the iPhone Anchialine Pool by Jack Anderson Transcend by c4 Gone by Theredhead76 Line-by-line notes PLAY INTRO Simplicity looks easy When somebody sees […] The post All websites now look boring appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

Does humble graphic design have the power to change the world? And what about other forms of design? Music and links from this episode The Passive Vaccine Storage Device Chantiers Navals 412 by LJ Kruger Led by the dress colored in red by Augustus Bro & Gallery Six Midori by Beat Culture Line-by-line notes PLAY […] The post Can design save the world? appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

Let’s talk about work. Music and links from this episode The full Steve Harvey YouTube video Zapomnieç by Nonima Viscous by FRAIL Perfect Match by Kilyo Line-by-line notes PLAY STEVE HARVEY INTRO PLAY Nonima I love that video, where Steve Harvey dresses up the idea of taking a risk to do something meaningful with your life. I […] The post Work appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

What makes a good logo, and what makes a great one? Music from this episode Introspección by Downbeat мастэрпис by Kosta T Elements (Psychadelik Pedestrian chillout edit) by Marc Burt Super String Theory (ID 474) by Lobo Loco Line-by-line notes PLAY DOWNBEAT I was having a walk with a good friend yesterday And an idle […] The post Subverting expectations appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

I hear the words “I’m not creative” so much. Here’s why you’re wrong when you think you’re not creative. Music from this episode Moon Walk by Jii-Music Readers! Do You Read? by Chris Zabriskie Manchester A666 by simon_mathewson Line-by-line notes PLAY MOON WALK The word creativity is a confused word A creative accountant is a […] The post I’m Not Creative appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

Here’s my story about passion. Music from this episode her’s by Graffiti Mechanism Golden by Little Glass Men The Renaissance Man by Little Glass Men Line-by-line notes PLAY HER’S It’s so easy to get caught up in the day to day grind Doing the same thing Day After Day After Day We’re human. We love […] The post Passion appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

What if I told you you’re surrounded by invisible influencers every day of your life? Music from this episode 69° 36′ 0″ N, 37° 34′ 0″ E by ASOTWL wave wash by Ketsa End Titles by Itsensäsyöjät Line-by-line notes PLAY ASOTWL What if I told you you’re surrounded by invisible influences every day of your life? Would […] The post The Invisible Influencers appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

In what’s effectively Episode One all over again, I talk about The Design Disease. Line-by-line notes (sometimes these are neat, sometimes they’re hard to read) PLAY INTRO MUSIC Picture the scene. I’m 14, sat in my bedroom doodling the WWF logo over and over. I was interested in wrestling, it was called the WWF back […] The post The Design Disease appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

This is my new podcast. This is Episode Zero. Find me online Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes Buy me a cup of tea on Patreon The post Episode Zero appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

Ever thought about writing 5000 word blog posts? Today, I talk about the advantages of doing them, and how they might be a good idea for you too. Timestamps 1:48 – The reason for producing 5000 word blog posts 2:32 – Thinking about creating useful articles 3:20 – There’s less people out there writing 5000 […] The post Why 5000 word blog posts are a good idea appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

Creating content with personality isn’t easy, but I try to distill some of the tips to do exactly that in today’s episode. Timestamps 1:22 – Quality over quantity 2:41 – People can get information from anywhere these days, so why you? 3:35 – Getting people to come to you for your information 4:47 – Don’t […] The post Creating content that’s got personality appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

Today’s episode is a little different as I’m doing a review of a product I used for a few hours today, Adobe Experience Design CC. I really liked what I found and wanted to share with you what I think of it. Find me online Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer […] The post A (quick) review of Adobe Experience Design CC appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

How can you tell if your website is just not up to scratch? This is a topic that I try and address today, by talking about all the components of your website. Useful Links 0:30 – The design of your website 2:52 – The coding of your website – try and use GT Metrix 4:37 […] The post What makes a website BAD? appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

How can you use your social media content to make sure you don’t waste any of it? That’s today’s topic. Useful Links 0:40 – Different social media platforms show content at different times 1:40 – Using Twitter 2:25 – Using Facebook 3:00 – You don’t need to post things every day 3:51 – Peak times […] The post Maximising your social media content so it doesn’t go to waste appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

I’m switching it up today and just talking quite simply about some book recommendations that I think you should read. Useful Links 0:53 – Turn it into a series of blog posts 2:42 – Upload your blog post to other sources such as Medium 4:37 – Turn it into an email newsletter 5:48 – Revisit […] The post How to reuse your blog posts to create new content appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

I’m switching it up today and just talking quite simply about some book recommendations that I think you should read. Useful Links 80/20 Sales and Marketing by Perry Marshall Tools of Titans by Tim Ferriss The One Thing by Gary Keller Brad Burton books (he’s actually written four books, not three) The E Myth of Michael E. Gerber The […] The post My favourite books I think you should read appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

When you’re looking to start a web project, what are the things you need? In this episode, I explain exactly this. Timestamps 0:41 – Budget 2:30 – Content 3:38 – A design brief 4:41 – Have a very specific idea of what you want your website to do Find me online Ask a Designer Anything […] The post The things you need before you can start a web project appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

How important is it that the images on your website are of a really high quality? Quick answer: really important. Useful links istockphoto.com shutterstock.com Dollar Photo Club (I called it “one dollar photo” in the episode) is now closed. Sorry! Pixlr Timestamps 1:55 – Low quality images 4:11 – High quality images 6:10 – Resizing your […] The post Does the quality of your website images matter? appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

Making content that’s unique to your personality should be your number one goal. To do that, I talk about discovering your personality in your medium. Timestamps 1:37 – Sharing yourself in your marketing 3:04 – Connecting to your audience by sharing yourself 3:55 – Sharing yourself to make your content unique 5:36 – How to […] The post Finding your voice and personality in your marketing appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

Today I’m talking about how to approach a design meeting, and the best questions to ask a designer when you’ve been asked to feedback on work. Timestamps 1:00 – Don’t ask silly things 1:33 – Ask the designer to explain how they arrived at this solution 2:25 – Why is this the most appropriate solution? […] The post The best questions to ask when you’re shown new design work appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

Boy, did I really get into this topic today. Slightly inspired by some conversations I’ve been having over the last couple of days, and also by episode 66, I spoke a bit more in depth about the struggle of starting things. I think it’s the longest episode I’ve ever recorded too… Timestamps I just ranted […] The post Why you haven’t started yet appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

How do you create a good blog post? How about, how to create the perfect blog post? Timestamps 0:36 – Find your voice 2:10 – Try to find topics that are interesting 4:12 – Writing at a decent length 5:40 – Schedule Find me online Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything […] The post How to create the perfect blog post appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

Today is a bumper episode after I’ve spent a week talking to somebody else, I’ve been keen to get back to talking about other stuff. I’m tackling some of the reasons why you might be struggling to take action. Timestamps 1:21 – Fear 3:09 – Fear of failure 4:10 – Lack of time 7:55 – Too […] The post What stops entrepreneurs from taking action? appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

I&rsquo;m trying something different this week&mdash;really different. I&rsquo;m speaking to Ian Meade all week (a design consultant with over 30 years of experience) about everything to do with design, marketing, and some other random topics in between. This is the final part in a series of 5 that I&rsquo;m releasing during the next 5 days. [&hellip;] The post Conversations with&hellip;Ian Meade (5 of 5) appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

I’m trying something different this week—really different. I’m speaking to Ian Meade all week (a design consultant with over 30 years of experience) about everything to do with design, marketing, and some other random topics in between. This is the fourth in a series of 5 that I’m releasing during the next 5 days. Find […] The post Conversations with…Ian Meade (4 of 5) appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

I’m trying something different this week—really different. I’m speaking to Ian Meade all week (a design consultant with over 30 years of experience) about everything to do with design, marketing, and some other random topics in between. This is the third in a series of 5 that I’m releasing during the next 5 days. Find […] The post Conversations with…Ian Meade (3 of 5) appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

I’m trying something different this week—really different. I’m speaking to Ian Meade all week (a design consultant with over 30 years of experience) about everything to do with design, marketing, and some other random topics in between. This is the second in a series of 5 that I’m releasing during the next 5 days. Find […] The post Conversations with…Ian Meade (2 of 5) appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

I’m trying something different this week—really different. I’m speaking to Ian Meade all week (a design consultant with over 30 years of experience) about everything to do with design, marketing, and some other random topics in between. This is the first in a series of 5 that I’m releasing during the next 5 days. Find […] The post Conversations with…Ian Meade (1 of 5) appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

What’s the advantages of designing something yourself vs using a professional? Today I try to answer exactly that. Timestamps 0:53 – Doing it yourself 3:43 – Hiring a professional Find me online Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes Buy me a cup […] The post Designing it yourself vs using a professional appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

Have you just got new design work done and you’re not sure if it’s any good or not? Today, I talk about some things to watch out for. Timestamps 0:53 – Does it look professional? 2:02 – Fonts and overall design 2:47 – Too much information/crammed in 3:53 – It’s hard to work out if […] The post How to work out if a design is good appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

Today I’m offering my best tips to make sure the next rebrand in your business is a good one, and one that’s going to stand the test of time. Timestamps 0:45 – Finding a good agency 1:40 – You can’t do all this yourself 2:41 – Timeless design 4:09 – Create something that looks good 5:31 […] The post The secret to a good rebrand appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

It’s scary making something and putting yourself in the firing line in your marketing. I’m talking about writing blog posts, making podcasts, or making videos. Sometimes though, you’ve just got to get over yourself. Timestamps 1:36 – It’s scary 3:48 – People want you to succeed 5:23 – People who don’t care 6:52 – People […] The post Getting over yourself and putting yourself on the line appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

Occasionally your website won’t appear in Google as soon as you’d expect, and in even rarer instances, not at all. Today I’m telling you how to solve this, and some things to watch out for. Use this method to find out if your site is indexed in google: site:geniusdivision.com Timestamps 0:40 – Your website is new […] The post Why is my website not showing up in Google? appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

This episode is a bit of an unusual one, because I’m not talking about design, marketing or business. I’m actually talking about how to keep yourself in top condition so you can work at 100% all of the time. Timestamps 1:55 – My story 5:45 – Losing weight 8:19 – Getting more sleep 11:17 – […] The post How to perform at 100% all of the time appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

Today I’m talking about an idea that’s nearly as old as business itself, but it’s easily forgotten. Timestamps 0:46 – In an ideal world 4:14 – Providing a balance Find me online Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer Anything on Facebook Leave me a review on iTunes Buy me a cup […] The post Stop chasing new customers and start selling new stuff to the ones you’ve already got appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

Let’s talk about e-commerce stores, and 5 things you need to know before you set one up. Useful links from the episode PayPal Stripe Sage Pay Shopify Squarespace WooCommerce and WordPress Timestamps 2:21 – Payment gateways 5:10 – What system will you use? 7:42 – What will you sell? 8:50 – Shipping and the costs […] The post 5 things to think about before setting up an e-commerce store appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

Struggling to find content ideas? Today I tell you how to use Reddit and other websites to find hundreds of topic ideas for your blog, your videos, or whatever other content marketing you’re doing. Useful links from the episode Reddit searchreddit.com Quora Uber Suggest Answer The Public Timestamps 0:35 – Reddit 3:49 – Quora 6:05 – […] The post How to use Quora and Reddit to find hundreds of topic ideas appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

In this episode I answer the question you’ve been waiting for your entire life: what’s the best form of marketing that’s ever been invented? Timestamps 2:17 – The best form of marketing 3:10 – Certain forms of marketing is better than others 4:24 – Chasing the new thing 6:39 – Doing it because you enjoy […] The post The best form of marketing that’s ever been invented appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

  This episode might go a little bit over your head if you’re not very technical, but it’s an important topic to talk about. Sometimes when using WordPress your scheduled posts might not actually go live when you want to, and here I explain why. Timestamps 0:30 – How the WordPress scheduled posts functionality works 2:13 […] The post Why did WordPress miss my scheduled post? appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

What have I learned from being a graphic designer that can help you become better at what you do? In this bumper episode, I answer that exact question. I also share some information about something that’s coming up in the next couple of weeks I’m really excited about. Timestamps 1:37 – KISS 2:31 – Make sure […] The post 7 basic graphic design principles you can apply in your business right now appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

Writing and maintaining a blog is difficult. There’s no two ways about it. Today I try and teach you some simple techniques to make it less difficult. Timestamps 0:44 – The wrong way to approach a blog 1:56 – A content calendar 2:50 – Staying ahead 4:03 – Finding content Find me online Ask a Designer Anything […] The post How to never run out of ideas for your blog appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

Websites are funny old things. Some last for years, and others aren’t fit for purpose after six months. In this episode, I try to steer you on whether you need to start considering a website redesign, or if it’s still OK. Timestamps 0:32 – Are you embarrassed about your website? 1:23 – Is your website slow or […] The post How to know when it’s time to redesign your website appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

Today I’m talking about why you should be focusing on increasing your Facebook page likes first before any other kind of Facebook advertising. Timestamps 0:33 – If you have 100 likes 1:44 – Why you should be focussing on promoting your page and not boosting posts 2:31 – If you have 1000 likes 3:32 – Spending […] The post Why you should focus on increasing your Facebook page likes appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

Copyright, particularly in the UK, can be a confusing subject to navigate at first. The surprising fact of it is though is that it’s fairly easy to understand once you’ve got the basics, so in the episode I try to break it down for you and help you understand the basics of copyright and intellectual […] The post What you need to know about copyright in the UK appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

If you missed what happened when David Hockney redesigned The Sun’s masthead on their newspaper last week, well, you’re in for a treat when you listen to this. Useful links from the show Creative Review’s thoughts on David Hockney’s The Sun logo The Guardian’s piece The Sun’s piece on the collaboration Timestamps 0:53 – Exactly […] The post What you can learn from David Hockney’s The Sun logo appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

I’ve spoken a bit about generating leads with a website before, but I wanted to cover some more of the tactics today about it. Specifically the mindset you need to get yourself into to achieve it, and some of the theory you need to know. Useful links from the show Digital Marketer Customer Avatar Worksheet Timestamps 1:00 […] The post Using your website to generate leads for your business appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

I get asked this question quite a lot about other people’s websites (not by websites we make, obviously). Today I try to explain why your website might be slow, and what you can do to speed it up easily. Useful links from today’s show GTmetrix Timestamps 0:31 – Checking your hosting 1:49 – Checking your […] The post Why is my website slow? appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

There are lots of different types of “agencies” in the marketing sphere, and navigating those isn’t easy at all. Today, I try to guide you down the right path. Clue: there’s no talk of detective agencies today. Timestamps 0:27 – Navigating the marketing landscape 1:18 – What do you want? 2:05 – Full-service agencies vs specialist […] The post How to choose the best agency to work with appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

Email marketing isn’t dead. In fact, it’s seeing a resurgence in marketing automation and a new wave of people using it for service companies. In this episode I talk about how you can use it in service companies, and how to setup a free Mailchimp account. Timestamps 0:29 – Is email marketing dead? 1:39 – […] The post Getting started with email marketing and Mailchimp appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

Let’s face it, popup ads are annoying and Google should be banning them. Luckily, since January 10th, that’s exactly what Google have been doing. Timestamps 0:31 – The reason I’m being alarmist 2:05 – The 3 types of popup Google are targeting 3:45 – If you’re using these techniques… Find me online Ask a Designer Anything Website […] The post Warning: why you need to stop using popup ads on your website right now appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

I’ve spoken about value a lot over the past 37 episodes, but in this episode I actually talk specifically about it. I’m talking about how to do it, and some tactics and websites you can make use of. Useful links from this episode Tumblr Ghost Medium Pagekit WordPress.com WordPress.org Timestamps 0:39 – Tumblr 1:26 – Ghost 2:45 […] The post The 5 best blogging platforms for 2017 appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

I’ve spoken about value a lot over the past 37 episodes, but in this episode I actually talk specifically about it. I’m talking about how to do it, and some tactics and websites you can make use of. Useful links from this episode Answer the Public Reddit Quora Timestamps 0:31 – Provide the best value 1:14 – […] The post How do I provide value in my marketing? appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

They certainly look tempting: buying cheap likes or follows from Fiverr don’t cost much after all, and what harm could they do? In this episode I share an experiment I did to investigate this exact thing, and whether you should consider buying likes or not. Useful links from this episode Fiverr Timestamps 0:33 – How we […] The post Should I buy cheap likes or follows from Fiverr? appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

When you think of good design, you probably think of companies like Apple, Google, and other companies that put good design at the centre of their business models. But how important is it to your business? Useful links from this episode Ling’s Cars Timestamps 0:29 – How important is good design? 1:11 – Rubbish design 1:30 – […] The post How important is good design to my business? appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

Steve gave me a rather spiky question to answer today, which is why this episode is a little bit longer than normal. He wanted to know why education struggles to get courses for the creative and digital sector right, so I try to navigate this massive topic in 15 minutes. Timestamps 0:46 – The background to all this 3:52 […] The post Why does education struggle to get creative and digital courses right? appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

Domains and web hosting are, let’s face it, confusing. The only reason I know anything about them is because it’s sort of my job. Today, in the simplest words possible, I try to explain them. Useful Links Blue Host Digital Ocean UK Fast Timestamps 0:46 – The difference between a domain and hosting 3:06 – Website […] The post What’s a website domain, and what’s web hosting? appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

I spoke a little bit about Facebook Advertising a couple of episodes ago, but I wanted to cover this again in more detail. Today I talk about why you should be using Facebook Advertising to promote your page and increase page likes. Useful Links Facebook Business Manager Timestamps 0:34 – A Facebook Business Manager account 1:33 […] The post How do I use Facebook advertising to increase my page likes? appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

To some people, it might seem like a gargantuan feat that I’m writing, recording and editing a podcast a day. Today, I’m going to explain some of my methods for staying motivated that might help you too. Timestamps 0:29 – My method of motivation 1:04 – My daily schedule 2:37 – Batching 3:41 – What a day […] The post How do you stay motivated to do a podcast a day? appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

To some people, selling online still seems like a massive hurdle. The truth of it is a lot more positive: right now, it’s easier than ever to start selling online. Today, I talk about how you start doing it, and whether you should be doing it at all. Useful links Etsy eBay WordPress WooCommerce Squarespace Shopify Timestamps […] The post Should I start selling my products online? appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

You’ve done the hard part: you’ve gone out, found the best agency for the job, and you’ve got yourself a new website. Now comes an even harder part. Now you have to put the work in to make your website work for you. Today, I talk about what’s next after you’ve got a new website. Timestamps […] The post I’ve got a new website. What’s next? appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

I hear it a lot: “I haven’t got time to do that”. Let’s talk about how you can make time to do social media, and do it properly. Useful Links Hootsuite Buffer Later Timestamps 0:19 – Doing social media quickly and properly 1:41 – How important is social media to you? 3:26 – Batching 5:14 – Think […] The post How do I find the time to do social media? appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

Shaun asked me a series of questions about conflict in design projects, and I decided to answer them all together in 1 episode. Today I speak about handling relationships with design relationships, and how to avoid conflict. Timestamps 1:21 – Creating an open and honest relationship 3:41 – Being unreasonable 5:44 – Everybody is right […] The post How do you deal with conflict in a design project? appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

So it’s the new year and you’re thinking about getting a new website. What should you be thinking about first, and what should be looking for in an agency? Timestamps 0:36 – Why do you want a new website? 1:52 – Let’s talk about budgets 3:06 – Producing content and getting professionals to do it […] The post What to consider when commissioning a new website appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

In today’s episode I’m answering the question: “How do you measure the success of a design?”. Thanks for the question Ian! Timestamps 0:48 – What is success? 2:03 – Communication is important 4:40 – Google Analytics 6:04 – Qualitative success 7:06 – It’s hard Find me online Ask a Designer Anything Website Twitter (@craigburgess) Ask a Designer […] The post How do you measure the success of a design? appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

Today (and yesterday) I’m talking about what you can learn from the new Juventus FC logo, designed by Interbrand. It’s causing quite a stir in the design community, and lots of football fans just straight up don’t like it. Why is it that? And what did Interbrand get wrong, and what did they get right? Useful […] The post What you can learn from the new Juventus logo – the good stuff appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

Today (and tomorrow) I’m talking about what you can learn from the new Juventus FC logo, designed by Interbrand. It’s causing quite a stir in the design community, and lots of football fans just straight up don’t like it. Why is it that? And what did Interbrand get wrong, and what did they get right? Useful […] The post What you can learn from the new Juventus logo – the bad stuff appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

People often struggle with writing content for the web as they’ve either never done it before or treat it like writing a book. In this episode I talk about how to approach writing website content, and how to make sure it’s better than most of the other boring stuff you’ll read on the internet. Timestamps […] The post How to write better website content appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

I was asked by Andy: “Where does most of your work come from and what do you do, and how much time do you spend doing whatever it is you do, to help generate awareness and business?” I shortened it to a more simplistic title, but in this episode I discuss finding new work, what […] The post How do you find new work? appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.

I was asked by Shaun to answer “what’s the best route into industry for noobies?”. I decided to formalise that question a little bit into “How do I become a designer?”. In it, I talk about the attitude you’ll need to become a designer. Timestamps 0:55 – Learning how to learn 1:58 – Stay curious 3:30 […] The post How do I become a designer? appeared first on AADA - A musical journey through design and creativity.