Chase the money or chase the dream?

So what do you do when your faced with a choice of doing what you love or doing what you do great.

I myself have always been on the side of following your dream, don’t get me wrong, I’m a dreamer who believes in dreams as reality. But comes a point in a mans life where he realises his dream may not suffice to fill his aspirations. The question is, has his ambition outdone the capacity his dream can handle. Is the cup half full?

So here’s the deal. I’m a designer, I do what I love, I love what i do. I design for the pleasure, creativity, innovation and most importantly, freedom. I’m no Frank Lloyd Wright, nor am I the worst. But I do it well. Give me brief and I will execute it with precision.

Here’s the dilemma, I have skills that do other things well. Actually better than I would say I’m a designer. And these… may fill the cup of ambition to the brim. What could they give me though, promotion, money, ego, power, more money. Is this truly enough?

Money isn’t happiness. I of all people know this far to well, happiness is within. My soul is unbreakable on this particular outlook on life.

So do what you love or do what you excel at. Be great if both were the one and same, in your case they may be, in mine, not. With their vast range of skills I wonder if Renaissance men of old had this dilemma. Did Michelangelo and Da Vinchi follow their dreams or chase the p’s (money in slang talk)?

I’m a believer in finding the job that makes you happy. A job is half your life, why work in misery. I’m a lucky one, when work doesn’t feel like work your in a good place, how many people can truly say that. But when you have that niggle that you have a bigger calling, something you were meant to be, this choice cannot be put to the side.

I do know one thing, I will never chase the money for that alone. Without a molecule of my dream within the foundations of those notes, there is no value in what will be earned. It will be in vain.

Every man makes his own destiny from his actions. My destiny awaits over the horizon.

One Eared Dog - The portfolio, words and inspirations of Jay Karsandas

Year 2011 and us designers are still going damn strong. Over 2000 years of crafting, pondering, solving, and smashing the design block. From the days of the masters like Michelangelo to the modern rebel of Banksy we just keep coming and evolving. The sea is thriving, I can’t forsee a stop to our creative juice flowing freely.

But they may try I give them that. From the committee to the marketeers, it’s an endless army that stands in our way.

If they do stand strong we have no choice but to stand forth. Let it be known there will be a Creative Revolution (ok there won’t be dead bodies but it’ll be colourful I promise).


Another 2000 years and design may morph into something from the matrix but that won’t stop us from what we do. Just think of a world devoid of designers, artists, inventors, creators, the inspirational that make our world look so unique. We inspire the young, invigorate the old and establish the new. Without us it would be a world covered in darkness, not blessed with the essence and magnificence of colour.

A world without designers would mean we stay static, the government would have it their way, everything the same with no one to express their true nature to break convention. We would be slaves to their cause. Breaking convention develops mankind and shifts the paradigm.

We designers design for a sense of freedom. It makes us feel alive, and for someone to take this from us would not only do us injustice but take away what is the make up of our genes. And what would we be without this freedom, nothing but desk jockeys to please the corporate machine. We were not born to follow the crowd, we were born to create a path to lead the crowd.

Designers unite, inventors combine, artists get your brushes ready. So splash the colour, align the pixel, measure the angles, and create the next big idea.

This is a Creative Revolution. Keep on believing. And remember… you are not alone, we fight together.

One Eared Dog - The portfolio, words and inspirations of Jay Karsandas

Countless times I have heard a phrase start with… “I hope that….”

Something to me didn’t seem or better yet, feel right about this certain way of thinking. Hope is the last ditch call when everything else has failed and circumstances are now out of your control. Why settle for hope when you can have belief. Already you may be disagreeing with me. That’s cool, I hope you do, otherwise life would be boring if we all got along.

Ok, I’m not talking about situations which you cannot control in the sense of natural disasters, alien invasions, incurable illness and so on… I’m talking situations that are more in your control than you think. The game you have coming up, the job interview you just had, the promotion you want & the goals you aspire to.

Here is the the definition of both:
Hope is the belief in a positive outcome related to events and circumstances in one’s life.
Belief is the psychological state in which an individual holds a proposition or premise to be true.

Could you tell the difference in both? Well to me the ‘psychological state’ is the importance in how you perceive the situation, your mental state and approach. Why settle for hoping for something when you can believe in it with a burning desire. There is something quite strange and paranormal about this state of mind, don’t just take my word for it, research the sporting greats. They all believe in the outcome before it has happened. Yeah I know you’ve heard this before, but if you have then why are you still hoping for that one thing to change. If you believed from the start you would not be hoping now and it’s quite ironic that the definition of hope above has the word ‘belief’ in it.

So lately I wrote my new mission statement (straight from the teachings of Stephen Covey – legend) which came from the basis writings of my principles. I’ve had it in my head for a while so I’ve been visualising the outcome for some time. Funny thing is, what I wanted actually came true, the job I’m aiming to required a career diversion and I now have that opportunity. Not from wishing, hope or luck, but from hard work, faith and belief.

Look I’m not hope bashing, It’s not like I don’t ‘believe’ in it (ok lame joke), I have wished on it may a time. It does not seem like a happy place to end up, but there is a choice and I choose belief.

“Keep your dreams alive. Understand to achieve anything requires faith and belief in yourself, vision, hard work, determination, and dedication. Remember all things are possible for those who believe.” Gail Devers

For those who hold on to hope and hate me for going against it, before you unleash a tyrant or criticism I suggest you look up the meaning of ‘faith’ in Wiki. And faith is something I have belief in strongly.

One Eared Dog - The portfolio, words and inspirations of Jay Karsandas

Alright alright. Web designers… we’re cool right? Yeah I know. We do awesome designs with our inspiration. But we know the truth on a few matters that relate to what we do. Well if your in denial, hey ho, let me enlighten you.

1. We’re all Jedi Masters.

Yes we sit there in front of our beautifully designed Macs, not those rubbish PC boxes the minions use. We’ve all done it before… the rooms quiet, your on your own and you raise your hand to the screen. Flick it to one side an the window moves with it. Jedi power I salute you! You do it again this time your moving your window from one screen to the next. Magic.

So astonished with your powers this time, you can’t help but show your meagre office buddies the height of your powers. For added effect you showcase your finger slide on your new magic mouse to control your pointer. It’s not magic and they look at you with a strange bewildering look, maybe it’s jealousy. Then as they walk away muttering something along the lines of “tw*t”, you’re thinking… “if only I had a cloak”.

2. Really we’re just ‘cool’ geeks.

As I said before we’re cool right? We wear slick jeans with t-shirts that say CMYK. Now which chicks wouldn’t dig that!

Think about it though. We like computers, comic artwork, gadgets, CSS styling and Star Wars. We may not know the in’s an out’s of Superman issue 542 or the workings of a computer network, but we know enough. And enough is well… enough. When they say “it’s a thin line”, I think they may be referring to us designers. We are the ‘thin line’ between normality and geekville.

3. The developer is your greatest enemy + your best friend.

Those damn developers! Think they know everything about the web, but actually they know quite a bit. We designers dabble in the arts of HTML, CSS and a bit of the jQuery (can I call it ‘arts?). But every so often, more than often we hit a roadblock. Some stupid code doesn’t work or something doesn’t look right. Enter the developer… The designers enemy.

They look at us like we’re fools, hence we look at them the same. There’s a little battle of the mind, but our Jedi Force will prosper!

After a little tense build up we have communication breakthrough, trying to speak their language and just nod and agree when all we hear is “11000111010101″. But then something magical happens. They sort the problem, we got the job done. We talk a little and realise we have a few things in common. We’re the best of buddies, for now…

4. Sometimes the client is right.

Their paying you. Let them have what they want. No no. They don’t know what they are talking about, we designers know the market more than they do. Pretty design is not always successful design. Finding the compromise between adding the cat on a cat website or not may be the best way to go. There is always compromise, and many drafts in between.

One tactic we designers may use is just pretend to forget what the client asked for and 3 versions down it’s still not in. We play dumb in the hope they forget to. Sometimes it works, sometimes it don’t. But you give it a try none the less. Just think, the client could be right (but most probably not).

5. Last but not least. The dreaded ‘committee’.

Hours of graft, deep thinking, much measuring to the pixel and even the help of your fellow designers for some positive critique. The work is finalised, beautifully displayed for all to admire. And now comes the moment of truth. The long walk to the dreaded ‘committee’. You open the door and there they are. The marketeers, directors, developers, salesman, even the cleaner. Everyone’s a designer these days.

You watch, speechless as your work gets torn apart. Move this, move that, add this, take away that. Your thinking, “is this not the final proposal”. Damn!

And here it comes, the final blow. “can you please add a big bubble over the image, actually just take the image out, oh yeah and can you please make it red”. Your heart sinks. You feel like giving up. But as you walk away you remember, a Jedi never gives up.

There is a saying. “A camel is a horse designed by a committee”. And I’ll leave you with that.

God bless an may the Force be with you.

One Eared Dog - The portfolio, words and inspirations of Jay Karsandas

Do you live by principles? Do you have a set of rules or guide to fall back onto when you make a choice? As the inspirational Stephen Covey states having a mission statement in life helps you keep a set of core principles to abide by. Life goes on and people come and people go, oh yeah, and shit happens. That’s the basis right. Everything changes, but as long as they are strong… principles don’t.

Just having them in your head isn’t enough, maybe stick them on your forehead to remember every time you look in the mirror. Alright enough of the silliness :) Here is my Mantra that keeps me in check. It needs a refresh with parts adding as I may have grown a bit since then, but before I do here is the first ever draft I did. Enjoy.

I will use

REASON

first and foremost as my basis.

I will not imitate he who

hurts

me.

Hate

no one.

Hurt

no one.

Make time to learn and

teach.

We live for each other, always

help

others in need.

Always

smile,

be positive even in times of despair.

Love thy closest with

compassion

and loyalty.

No one person can change my inner

core.

Live to your

purpose.

One Eared Dog - The portfolio, words and inspirations of Jay Karsandas

Seriously man. Stop being so possessive about what you do. Let me explain.. (and excuse the bold words, kinda gone over board)

You do some work, you create something. Hey your feeling accomplished about yourself till, kaboom! The bombshell drops. Your criticised, constructively or not, in this case makes no difference. Think about it this way, in most of cases people are built to criticise. It’s the bitch inside of us that takes over. Expect it and embrace the onslaught.

See my previous post on ‘The art of not complaining like a little bitch’ so you don’t become one of those.

Expecting it alleviates your initial reaction to an extent that you don’t become a possessive monster. Enter your situation with the thought of the questions you would expect aimed at you and remember, not everything we do is perfect, damn most things we do aren’t perfect. Cement that thought in mind and your mental attitude will be charged to accept criticism. Lodge this into your thinking and you won’t see everything as an attack, instead a productive method to improve yourself and your work. As they say ‘expect the worst’ and then prepare for the best.

Start enjoying people.

How could you not enjoy improving and what you do. Lets use me as a lab subject on this matter. I’m a designer, I’m supposed to read my clients minds and create their ideas visually. At times (I hope rarely) I may get this wrong. Looking through my eyes to produce what I see fit as the solution may not in their eyes be the ideal solution. Who’s to say I’m always right, while who is to say they are right, and no the client isn’t always right! But what I know is right, is that I’m ready for their feedback in a way that has the chance to improve my work. Now tell me if improved work doesn’t bring greater satisfaction, and in turn enjoyment in what you do. My oh my…. now thats alright isn’t it.

So whether it’s work, relationships or some passer by. Deflate your ego a little and be ready.

Ok. Anyone seen Mr. Cowell? I’m ready for you!

One Eared Dog - The portfolio, words and inspirations of Jay Karsandas

Love is not an emotion, per se, but through a variety of emotions converging, the expression of love is created. For a basic understanding of the creation of love, Robert Plutchik’s wheel of emotion (check it out on Wiki) states love as the result of Joy and Trust. Simple as it sounds, the result of this can create complex situations that can potentially trigger off any of the other basic emotions.

Not all feelings are pleasant, often confusing and can mutate from one extreme to another. This abundance in variety makes us uniquely human, but… some choose to use this, ‘subconsciously’ or ‘consciously’ to gain a feeling of self gratification from another’s emotional misfortune.

This is where emotional love comes into play. Differentiating emotional love from physical love is confusing at best, one can sometimes be lost as to where one starts and the other ends. A combination of both can bring true joy to oneself, only if there is a return in kind from whom we seek.

When you feel fear, you do not easily convince yourself that it is someone else that it is happening to. The same goes for love (and even happiness). They are beyond the physical level, within you that no one else can feel for you. Emotions can be controlled to a certain extent, but love… even for the masters of emotions this is one that will ultimately beat the majority. It can be bottled up, preserved, hidden to the core, but not turned off.

So what for the person who is loved. He or she who accepts the feeling of being wanted by someone in turn to try to boost their own well being. A short feeling of gratification may come from this, but a feeling of well being doesn’t. What really comes is a modern day ego boost which only has a temporary lasting on the mind. Modern day fast paced society tempts us into feeding our desires and wants rather than what is right or wrong. If moral science played a part (unfortunately it doesn’t in this case) then each party could walkaway morally correct and pain free.

For the person who subconsciously takes advantage for their own gain can be forgiven for their misunderstanding between physical and emotional love. To distinguish between the boundaries is a fine line. Though for the person taking advantage consciously, this has the effect of destroying their own character to which they have no excuse if they despise who they become. To take a moment and step out their own ego and into the others shoe, a vision of the negative perspective can be seen. But feel it, they won’t; unless they have experienced it in the past. From here they have a choice to continue or not.

I am by no means an expert on love, the content of the article doesn’t state this. Nor can I say that I am the master of emotion; only a trainee :)
But from the context of this article I have learned one thing, that riding on the wave of anothers feeling can’t be true to what we should be wired to do. But in essence we are. It doesn’t mean you can’t change; easily said I know, an even harder act to follow.

One Eared Dog - The portfolio, words and inspirations of Jay Karsandas

I think myself as great.
A thought since I remember.
I see only one way.
Taking your glory.
Willingly, in my hast.

Lavished by praise.
But come to think of it.
Why should that drive me.
What good is external praise.
If it not be the truth.

Your idea is mine.
I’m the star of the show.
Kidding only myself.
I believe it to be true.

But with time it sinks in.
It’s not me who has done right.
Truth be told.
I am not who I think I am.

Come to think of it.
I had no part to play.
And in the end.
Im left behind.

My poem is meant to convey how you can be drawn into seeing yourself as successful. But in reality is it really you who has got you where you are? When you hit a high point and face a true test, can you really make the next step when you rely on just yourself. Don’t become this fool.

One Eared Dog - The portfolio, words and inspirations of Jay Karsandas

I’ve always been taught to share and be good to others. At some point in my teens this kind of disappeared, albeit it was still there just not in abundance. Humanity exists to help each other, Switch on the news and you probably wouldn’t think so.

Yeah ok, you have to sometimes go down the selfishness route to get ahead in the workplace, win competitions and so on. I learnt something that stuck with me a while back, “be selfish to be generous to others”. Doesn’t feel logical hey. Maybe I’ll go into detail on this method in a later post.

The internet is a powerful tool to share and do good and there are some great ways to help online. Check out some of the links below with a mixture of some simple do good ideas from me. Let me know in the comments any ideas you have that you want to share with the world. Whether it’s big or small, do something good today….

• Spread some happiness, share the love. Check out Action for Happiness, a new website acting on making the world a more positive place. Join the revolution.

• Selfless good deeds do exist. Do one today.

• Help the older generation get hooked up to the web. Become a BT Internet Ranger today.

• Do not stop someone from progressing themselves for your own benefit.

• Help the elderly. You yourself will be there one day. Become a volunteer in your community with ageuk. Give some of your time today.

• Smile at a stranger and say hello. Spread some random joy :)

• Do the right thing and helps kids in need that are effected by climate change. Go check out Climate Kid at Do The Green Thing, who are helping UNICEF help kids through this innovative campaign.

• Help a stranger. See someone in need of help. Just stop and give a hand. My car didn’t start once, and some random stranger took half an hour out of his time, late at night in the cold to help me get back on the road. I will never forget that.

• Sign the pledge at the Real Man Campaign and support Women’s Aid cause against domestic violence. You can read my poem in support of the cause to :)

• Everyone has a skill. Use your skill to it’s potential and share it with the world.

• If your an expert on something, share it and teach it to whoever is interested. Teaching will make you understand the subject better deeper than learning it.

• Don’t buy the usual standard gifts. Make or create something from your own hands.

One Eared Dog - The portfolio, words and inspirations of Jay Karsandas

We all have the tendency to complain, whine, criticise and bitch, call it what you wish. In the meantime read the title again. No one wants to be called a ‘little bitch’. But I’m sure most of us have heard it a few times and theres not really a comeback once you’ve been told straight. You know the feeling right?

From any situation surrounding work or relationships it can be narrowed down to complaining about other people. We’ll concentrate on this particular as it has the effect of hitting home the message clearly. When we criticize, condemn or complain about another what do you think is happening? What do you think is ‘really’ happening? Take a moment and think about it.
Ok… The answer is infact, “you are doing harm upon yourself”. Strange it may seem at first thought. Exactly how can another’s fault or mistake possibly harm you from you stating them out loud.

“Any fool can criticize, condemn, and complain but it takes character and self control to be understanding and forgiving.” – Dale Carnegie

As Dale Carnegie states any fool can do the above. If you take the time to examine the case of your reaction to their faults, nestled deep you can find the true answer. It’s your reaction to the situation that causes you to criticize and complain and it is your responsibility to deal with the situation accordingly. Responsibility, the meaning which derives from ‘our ability to respond’, in this instance our deep emotional response to others faults. If you find yourself taken aback without analysing the situation for what it really is then your response will almost certainly be negative. Negative response, negative outcome.

Putting this into a real context; if a work colleague were to make a mistake or was not as proficient at a task as yourself it can be frustrating nonetheless. If you find yourself in this situation (or should I say when…), take a step back to look from the perspective of the person you have just condemned. A method I use is a quick mental rundown of why they have done what they have for you to disapprove:

~ Maybe they are under extreme pressure.
~ Personal problems may be a cause of clouding their judgement.
~ They may not be a master of that skill but are learning the trade.
~ They could be in need of help rather than being made an example.
~ I make mistakes, why can’t they. We are only human.

The list can go on longer than my server can take the capacity. Thinking on the spot to yourself eases the effect of the emotional response helping to make a rational judgment. Balance the fraction of the time to think to the time taken by not, and you will notice the difference.

Another idea derived from our natural response to this situation is that we gain self gratification from condemning another. The ego is fuelled, in turn making ourselves feel superior but momentarily. Infact it is the opposite that happens in the long term. Envy and jealousy within us are prime emotions that contribute to this sense of superiority. A hint of another failing we grasp at the chance to condemn,why? Does it really make your feel superior? After the moment has passed ask yourself if you are in a better position than before. Or has your jealousy and envy just clouded your judgement. The old saying that ‘we complain about others what we hate about ourselves’ can be true to this point. We complain about the actual failings but deeper we are envious of their successes. Forget about their failings and look at your own, you may see some similarities but more importantly you may see in their success something that you are lacking yourself. Keep this in mind and you can see where you should concentrate on making improvements yourself.

Point is. If something whether it’s mind or matter doesn’t do you any personal benefit or others then it is seemingly pointless. Why do something that is pointless. Rational judgement would think otherwise. Complaining, criticizing and condemning has the power to become infectious and develop into a habit. Lest not forget that habits are consistent. There is a thin line between this habit and criticzing constructively for a positive outcome.

My method to tackle this may seem a little straight forward, but it works. Put a pound (or whichever currency you wish) into a pot for everytime you find yourself falling into the trap of this negative trait. Choose to do this over a period of say two months, and from my own experience, each week seen a stead fast decrease in my contribution into the pot. Make sure that the money collected goes towards something of note, or an extreme is to spend it on something wasteful. This way it will make your mind work harder to think before you speak. I don’t need the collection anymore, my method helped me force a habit which was creeping into my lifestyle to this habit being close to non existent. It does come back at times, but it’s a rarity.

“If you must speak ill of another, do not speak it, write it in the sand near the water’s edge”

The difference you will note in your well being and attitude from holding your thoughts and not speaking ill of others is a trait that can be mastered with some practice. Where your mind and body cannot be harmed be indifferent to others failing’s, as it is not them but you that will do harm upon yourself.

So in layman’s terms here’s my one lesson to you. Stop complaining like a little bitch and man up.

One Eared Dog - The portfolio, words and inspirations of Jay Karsandas