Back when I started my design career, I thought everyone else was wrong and I was right. Then, after a few years in the job (and frustrated about why people weren’t seeing things my way), I realised that I was the one who didn’t know anything, and that I had a lot to learn. I was lucky to have been surrounded by supportive, giving, and experienced designers who taught me how to be a better one, and also showed me the multi-dimensional aspect of what it really meant to be a designer. Now, 15 years later, I’m the one who knows a few things about design, so my role is to teach (even though I’m still learning new things everyday).
And now, in storytelling, I’m back to being a junior. But this time is different because now I know that I don’t know, and that’s liberating. Now, instead of being frustrated about why people just aren’t doing things my way, I enter into everything with curiosity. I’m a sponge for information. I know that, from my experience as a designer, seeking out people who have gone and done it before me will help. It’ll prove to me, rather quickly, that what I think I know is wrong, and that they’ve got different (and often better) ways to approach the craft. In the end, it’s really just about being the best storyteller I can be, and I’ve got a lot to learn, the difference is, this time around, I know it.