As usual, Scrivs has a few pretty good points over at Whitespace.

Specifically, in his latest post, he emphasises "sticking with it".

When I read that, I thought "that's exactly what I've been thinking about". It sounds like a simple principle when you first read it. Pretty much "whatever, that's obvious". But that's just the thing: it isn't always obvious in the heat of the moment…

When we started about 4 years ago, we had a million ideas. We thought they were all amazing. Sure, we didn't know how to implement all of them, but were damn sure going to anyway. We tried a few. One or two showed promise, but then we started needing money as soon as something we thought was going to be great began to need more time without necessarily bringing in the dough. So we jumped to another idea, thinking "wait, this looks better, this is where the real cash is going to be!" And so it went on.

Fast forward to today. You could say we're past the pure survival stage. We have clients and opportunities. Lots of them. Almost all of them can bring in money. And that's where the trick comes in: Choosing the right ones. We could probably try to do everything, and we could hire a million extra people to handle everything. We'd have fat revenues. But: we'd just be big, but not necessarily smart, which is why we're pushing into specific directions that we see Knowledge Technology (IT is sooo 1999) moving into. And we're going to stick with these - maybe adjusting them slightly, because it's inevitable - but sticking with them nonetheless.

I'm not saying you should abandon new ideas and just keep on doing only things you're comfortable with. Not in the least. In fact, I'm very big on trying to spend weekends learning something totally new. What I am saying is: learn the right new things.

Don’t do it because you need the money.

Don't do it because someone told you to.

Don't do it because the rest of the world does it.

Don't do it because you're worried what people may think.

Don't do it because it's cool.

Don't do it because there's nothing else to do.

Do it, if only, for love.

Yes, I'm back...

Contained on this page are links to things I've found interesting enough to make me rethink my initial opinion every time I remember them. Feel free to read, link, copy, or do whatever you see fit.

• Janice Fraser - It's a whole new internet
• AIGA Design Archives
• Hugh MacLeod - How to be creative
• The true market (via ForwardMarkets)
• Eris Free - More than making sense...
• All watched over by machines of loving grace
• Contrasting Concepts of Harmony in Architecture
• The super rich vs the wretched
• Paul Ford - Google takes all
• Eris Free - Designer!=Psychic
• War of the Worlds, Orson Welles, And The Invasion from Mars
• Bill Joy - The future doesn't need us
• Erin Kissane - A Call to Arms
• Didier Hilhorst - I design That Stuff
• Cameron Moll - Good Designers Copy, Great Designers Steal
• Barbara Chaparro et al - Reading Online Text: A Comparison
• Computer Human Values
• The Principles of Design
• The radio broadcast that panicked America

That's all ? No, I'm working through a list of stuff I'd like to put on here. Check back if you're interested, the list grows regularly...

 

a few thoughts

So you're offering a "solution"? That's great, but do you know what the problem is?

If you have to convince someone to use your services, you're not good enough. Man, I'm going to regret having said this...

Never, ever become complacent. It's a temptation, unlike some better temptations, that should be avoided at all costs.

Flying the airplane is more important than radioing your plight to a person on the ground incapable of understanding or doing anything about it.

See that beauty is in precision. Know that not everyone understands that.

Everything worthwhile started as just an idea.

Perfection is sexy. Just that little bit less is even sexier.

See the best in people. You'll notice that, as if by magic, it will start to appear out of thin air.

The sophisticated, rapidly evolving nature of the world makes true revolution all but impossible. Instead of being disturbed by it, I think we should find this extremely comforting.

I honestly, truly believe in the fundamental goodness of humanity. Unfortunately (and without joking), this goodness doesn't always include intelligence.

Deception is about getting what you want. Seduction is about getting what both of you want. Don't ever confuse the two.

There is no such thing as absolute humanity, only consideration of the needs of the many above the needs of the few.

The biggest mistake the open source community can ever make is to assume that technical superiority matters in the real world.

Learn the rules, if only to know how to break them properly.

I like quality, and not the kind which comes in large quantities.

Can we really afford perfection ? I mean, sure, it seems nice - it's just that that point just before it seems to make so much more sense.

I strongly dislike the term "business opportunity". Why? Because it's usually uttered by morons who don't care whether lasting, long-term value can be created. Think about your children's children, not a new BMW!

I gave up trying to explain to strangers what exactly it is I do a long time ago.

Officially, I think the title which best describes my role is Presentation Layer Architect User Experience/Interaction Guy. I don't like titles, so see it more as a "technical description", because that's what it is.

Most of my time is spent doing two things:

• Making sure that the fundamentals are in place to bring my company's message across clearly -which means I write and structure or review e-mails, newsletters, information sheets and technical documentation. I also spend quite a bit of time actually communicating with our clients to help them understand the power of the systems we build for them.
• Helping people in our teams identify, understand and deliver the little details that make a real difference. I spend a lot of time refining notifications, dialog boxes and error messages to make as much sense as possible to whoever's reading them. Often, I move buttons and text around on screen to make software easier and more pleasant to use. Quite conveniently, these things are perfectly justifiable outlets for my obsessive preoccupation with detail

Mostly, I'm passionate about experiences, and how to make them more human.

It's a simple thing really, but I love it

My name is Martin Hattingh, I designed and built* this website.

I'm a Presentation Layer Architect User Experience Analyst who's in love both with what I do, and with the potential of the human mind. During the day I move between juggling all sorts of business-related stuff over at bSOLVe, drawing icons and buttons, and drinking green tea. At night I sleep, and on the weekends I ride my mountain bike up (and very quickly down) anything remotely hilly. I'm a sucker for punishment :-p

I used to have a long description of my way of thinking (mindset, I guess) up on this page. Because I do things unconventionally, I felt that I had to explain myself. It was kinda cool, but it was long-winded, and only crazy supermodel-stalkers ever read the whole thing. So I'm told, at least... That being said, there were a few important things I did want to keep, including my home-spun definition of design, which also says a lot about me:

Design is creating something out of nothing, or something more(or less) out of something. Creation is fundamental to design, even though some design removes from something existing in order to improve it. Design is thinking about the way something works, and not just thinking - but carefully considering every little detail about how every little part fits together to form the whole. Through this consideration, design is about arranging things in a way which improves the subject/object/matter being considered. More practically, design is applicable on multiple levels. It's about making things work well. It's about making things look good. On a deeper level, it's about making people feel good about things; a crucial, if sometimes overlooked factor.

Suffice it to say that I design stuff, messages (and ways to bring them across) mostly. I won't bore you with paragraphs of philosophical rambling (my blog has enough of that in general!), but will leave you with these points, in summary:

• I do not design communications for businesses or individuals I do not believe in.
• I do not build something if I do not agree with it in principle.
• Mutual respect and trust is non-negotiable. Always.
• I believe in the power of attention to detail, in the emotional value the human mind attaches to creations which are carefully considered and meticulously brought to life.
• I love ideas that transcend conventional thinking, and how they speak to the human spirit.
• I do not always know.
• I will always figure it out.
• I do not believe that it's incorrect to use and after a comma. Do it yourself, and tell people you did, just because you can.

Unfortunately (because sometimes people do ask) I'm not really available for "freelance" work (experience design or otherwise). bSOLVe is my life's work, and I pretty much devote all my professional time to it; that being said, I'm open to considering projects in business capacity (or, if you prefer to put it that way, the bSOLVe team - which includes me, naturally - would be happy to look at your requirements).

Oh, if you're interested in that kind of stuff, I hold an M.Comm in Business Strategy from the University of Stellenbosch, and was until recently busy preparing for a PhD in knowledge management/innovation strategy. Because I love what I'm doing so much, I'm going to have to finish it at a later stage

* Thanks to Omar and Scott for dasBlog, the engine which powers these pages in the background. Respect.