Should I be talking about this?
Having spent 10 years as a comedian before entering this industry, it’s unsurprising I have spoken at length as a professional designer and strategist.
It’s been a super-effective way of clarifying my thinking, sharing different ways of working (informed by my unusual career path) and, obviously, advancing my career.
But after a long spell of speaking, presenting and facilitating, I started to think a bit more deeply about what I had to say. And whether I should be saying it.
This was triggered by listening to some fairly profound presentations at conferences and events. The speakers weren’t necessarily polished, but they were authentic, experienced, and shone a new light on issues of the day.
So now, when the opportunity arises to present at an event, I ask myself :
What new thing or thinking am I bringing into the world?
If it’s not a new idea or perspective, it’s probably not worth repeating
Do I have the lived experience to draw from?
No-one really connects with the theoretical, they want to know how an idea or action works in practice, and how they can learn from your own experience or mistakes
Am I the right person to speak on this?
Should I be supporting someone else to communicate an idea instead of doing it myself? Often there is someone who’d benefit greatly from the opportunity, who just needs a nudge and support to put themselves out there. Better them than I.
Over the past few years I’ve answered YES to all three, but on far fewer occasions.
I’ve presented at UX Australia on design as an emergent practice, based on a strategic design project inside NSW government.
I spoke at a global AI conference on how designers can continue to build “design instinct” whilst working with AI, based on my role as Head of Design in a design agency.
I shared mental models to set professionals up for the new tech-disruption at Design Outlook, based on my experiences as a mentor (and a lot of time in my own head).
But it wasn’t just because I said YES to those answers. These were also ideas that were tenacious, that played out in multiple internal monologues. That had a natural spark to them which drove me to actually create them.
They reckon everyone has a book in them. If tat’s the case, then I see these like chapters. I’ve probably got another ten in me, but need to choose wisely if I want to produce a book worth reading.