I went to school to be a graphic designer, but I learned that we are much more than that. I want to explore why I’m uncomfortable with this term, its genericism and the boxes it puts designers in. Disclaimer: I’m not trying to offend anybody’s profession, personal opinion or love of the term graphic designer. […]
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What makes a strong creative leader? A proficient design leader skillfully identifies and nurtures the potential within their team. They establish clear boundaries and offer guidance, creating a space where designers can experiment and grow within these parameters. This approach strikes a balance between direction and autonomy, empowering designers to explore their creativity. Such leaders […]
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Curiosity is the foundation of creative problem-solving, much like roots are essential to a tree’s growth. It absorbs inspiration, akin to how roots draw nutrients and water, and as it expands, we forge more connections. We are born with innate curiosity, eagerly exploring the world with every sense. However, societal norms often stifle this inquisitive […]
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Every organization has faced the frustrating challenge of deciding how to improve its project management process. There are two main decisions: which software to choose and how to seamlessly incorporate the new software into the team’s daily routine. The goal is to be more efficient, productive, and organized with projects and tasks. 1. Choosing a […]
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Navigating my team’s personal and professional choices has been a significant part of my leadership journey. Realizing that it’s tougher to see a skilled employee become disengaged than to lose them has shifted my focus. I’ve learned to prioritize their growth and aspirations over my preferences, which has been crucial for my development as a […]
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Four years later my LinkedIn feed is littered with employee rants that theirs is the next company phasing them “back to work” or with stories from fully remote employees feeling isolated, some worrying they are being passed up for promotion because they aren’t being “seen” by the right people at the office. Of all the […]
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Picture this, Ottawa, 2008… Rewinding to 2008, I departed from a comfortable position at a small agency with a vision: to create a career, and potentially an agency, that mirrored my design aesthetic and cultural values while enriching my life experiences. With this ambition, I embarked on my journey. The inception of Initiate was relatively […]
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In November, I attended DesignThinkers 2023, a design conference put on by the Association of Registered Graphic Designers (RGD) in Toronto. I was thrilled to discover that Chris Do, an Emmy award-winning designer from the US, was the Keynote Speaker and would talk about selling. I had stumbled upon Chris’s work a year earlier, particularly […]
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In June 2020, I quit my job and left an industry I had known for over twenty years. The idea had been percolating for months, but I took the world coming to a stop as a sign from the universe that some changes needed to happen. So quit I did. With quiet quitting getting so […]
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From a business perspective, I look at all the books I collected over the years that I did not get to read and place them in order of what I need to know now anticipating what I’ll need to know more of in the future. Thus, in the spirit of sharing, here are my top […]
