Minnie Choi

Designer. Thought-Drawer. Internet Evangelist.

[minnieblogs]

SIDE HUSTLE: Designing a logo 2

My friend already came with a list of ideas, some explorations, and a Pinterest board. They (him and his wife) wanted a mark representing coziness & warmth that sits above their diverse arms of the business (real estate, photography and marketing). I’m going to initially focus on these three options - Type only, Cozy cat, pickets of fence w. possibly some flowers. George (Skillshare teacher)’s tips I learned today: 1. Create a mood board (images w. good contrast and silhouette) 2. Print a hard copy of the best image from the mood board 3. Keep sketching to capture the essence and geometry of the image using tracing paper 4. Digitize using illustrator I’m starting with the cozy cat. Before I chose one image to sketch away, I did quick silhouettes in Illustrator to gauge each image's potential.

[minnieblogs]

SIDE HUSTLE: Designing a Logo 1

Lately, I've had few asks from friends, church, etc for a logo design. You see, I was never trained in graphic design, so the thought of designing a logo always gave me some fear. Yet, people do ask for logo designs, I think, for either of these reasons - One, I can illustrate, and/or Two, I'm the only graphic-ish desinger-ish friend/person they know. 

I've designed these (cringe cringe) and even got PAID for doing one of them (sorry!!):

This past week, when my friend (actually a person I really really look up to) had asked for a logo design, I said SURE :) but I'm going to try to learn some logic behind the process of logo design this time instead of going with my guts. 

I started watching "Logo Design Fundamentals.." video lessons by George Bokhua on Skillshare (already so helpful!) and I'd also like to use this opportunity to utilize my blog space again for documenting. Because it's been too long since I took this learning and writing things seriously (since graduating grad school last year).  

[fatma-sketchbooking]

Sketchbooking: Windows (by DrawingIsThinking)

[minnieblogs]

can't get enough of your drawings!

[minnieblogs]

If creative professionals volunteer to help you, what would you create? Post your idea http://bit.ly/15941q6

[minnieblogs]

Thesis: three and three

3 motivations for the helper:

/ There is a story that you can empathize with.

/ You’ve executed an idea in the similar space and you know how it’s like to go through it alone.

/ The creative pursuer is within your network asking for a specific task using your skill which you’re happy to share with.

3 motivations for the creative pursuer:

/ You have urge to create to free what has been captured in your head (we call it the creative outlet)

/ You create, transferring your thoughts, hopes, values, taste and style into something visible. In other words, by creating something, you’re manifesting the very person you are.

/ People who identify with your work fuel your creativity and further pursuit.

[minnieblogs]

Thesis: The Creative's Block

It's Day 2 of running the surveys "On Making Creative Ideas Happen" and "On Helping and Being Helped". Survey's ongoing, but this was such a (late) valuable exercise. It clarified what I should focus on executing based on a real & common problem.

Keith Byrne at RGA introduced me to how to clarify my concept by breaking it into three parts - insight, idea, and how it works.

Insight: Creative people who come up with personal idea that they want to pursue struggle executing due to lack of time, knowledge and people resource.

Idea: Float supports creative individuals to pursue execution of their ideas by clarifying the steps to take and bringing experienced people who'd like to help out.

How it works: Float website will let creative people come and choose two separate paths. If you need help, you can choose your goal (ex. "I want to open an Etsy store") to gain knowledge and/or seek for helpers If you'd like to help, you can input your experience (from the other survey on helping, people most likely empathize and are willing to help if associated with their experience) and skills to find match or browse projects.

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I can't solve the problem of lack of time, but I can help de-mystify the path to execution and connect with people who'd provide practical (through their skills) and emotional (empathy based on their own experiences) support. I still have to clarify my thoughts on,

Why is it important for creative people to execute their own ideas?

Why would people want to help execute other creative people's ideas?

[minnieblogs]

Thesis: Story of Helping

Thesis days are slipping away like sand in my hands, I can't quite formulate my words around the amount of stress & burden but also the amazing joy taking a stab at something I've been so deeply passionate about.

I've been working with 3 creative young women this past year to offer help in bringing their presence to take shape in the online space. Sharing my personal learnings from the journey:

1. Helping is costly. Costly than what I initially thought.

I'm not going to downplay what helping envolves. It breaks into my few hours of sleep and family time left within the day, outside of work and school, to respond in communications, be attentive to needs, give thoughts on what parts I can help with and actually go do them. 

2. Helping gives lots of joy. Much more than I imagined.

The encouragements I've received back from the women I've worked with fueled my creativity and my personal life. Collectively we've exchanged about 212 emails within 6 months time, anywhere between 0~9.5 hours time difference. I also found joy in sharing my skills and knowledge. Seeing how my skills can be helpful in tangible ways were an empowering experience.

3. Helping lets you connect deeply with people. Newie and oldie.

As I was acquiring experience of steps to create a micro brand presence online with one of the woman, I was reconnected with my high school friend who draws these beautiful characters. Now all I want to see is her dreams come to life, opening an Etsy store, make story books and stationaries, and hold art exhibitions for good cause.

Time and energy gets divided, but heart doesn't. The more we care it seems to expand and make more room. As I made new relationships while working with the 3 women, the more I got to know them I've learned and cared more about them. 20-30 years later, I want to inherit to my daughter the global relationships and networks that came from true bondings as we launched something together. I want to be able to do more, so I can help more. By helping other women, I became more driven but with less selfish reasons.

What's driving you to do what you do?

General Audience: Please help further formulate my thoughts on helping, by taking 5 mins for this survey: http://bit.ly/Y2gTLI

Makers/Designers/Illustrators/Artists: Please help me identify hindrances between creative idea and execution by taking 5 mins for this survey: http://bit.ly/12sK3pL

[minnieblogs]

Thesis: this would be called 'storm-design'

"storm-(any verb)": Trendy term among Koreans referring to surge of one specific behavior, hence 'storm-inhale' for devouring, 'storm-send' for crazy texting, etc 

literally what I'm doing from now until end of April.

wireframe of stories

[minnieblogs]

Thesis: name, logo, color palette

[minnieblogs]

Thesis: what would I have done without you guys

Sana & Nikki you guys pushed me thru.

Though, I still don't know how to make a cybernetics diagram. (shamed)

[minnieblogs]

Thesis: Final concept in stone.

kidding.

Just in my good old photoshop. Between ShanShan's UI concept presentation and my friend Ellie's breathtaking illustrations, I borrowed some balloons to illustrate my concept at this stage :)

When my skills and the other person's skills meet, together we can launch something that would be their stepping stone for a serious creative outlet or business. In the mean time, I'm learning to launch services and get to connect with these creative people in a very heart felt way as we converse through in-person, skype-dates, emails, and gchats across continents.

Our balloon bouquets are bound to launch within next few weeks, but hopefully the stories don't end here. Each woman I befriended and worked with who now has experiences to launch something are capable of helping other women to launch something as well. 

So up you go, balloons.

(ok. this is as far as the balloon metaphor goes :)

[minnieblogs]

I won't give up becoming REAL—my mind, my heart, what I say and design to be all true to each other.

[minnieblogs]

when I think about that fuzzy haired baby of mine, I feel motivated to become an adult I don't want to be.

[minnieblogs]

Thesis: Design Matrix

Design Matrix maps out lifecycle of a product/service plotted along one axis and channels/contexts for engagement plotted along the other axis.

Example: the lifecycle of a cook engaging with a new cooking app might be Planning/Shopping/Cooking/Eating/Sharing.

X axis will have the stages of your service lifecycle Y axis will have: ENVIRONMENT , ACTIVITIES, PAIN POINTS

[minnieblogs]

Thesis: Story about Making and Selling

"The business model is a story about making and selling." -Joan Magretta

In simplified terms, for thesis, I'm making easy how-to guides of creative platforms online (such as Etsy, Tumblr, Vimeo, etc), and selling advertising spaces through acquired site traffic.

[minnieblogs]

obviously unrelated to thesis

I somehow thought it was a good idea to draw everything I ate today instead of going to sleep. 

[garychou]

Employers are demanding a workforce that can engage with complicated, ill-formed problems. Executives want individual contributors that can embrace volatility and unpredictability, while crafting narratives of the future. Brands are realizing success when they try to empathize with — rather than understand — their customers. This — not the production of beautiful things — is what designers do best, and it is the value they bring to organizations. Producing stunning creative output it only a tiny part of what it means to be a designer, yet aesthetics continue to be the only part that we herald as valuable. But it’s these other skills — empathizing, systems thinking, storytelling — that describe a successful career in design.

Jon Kolko: Now Hiring: The Most Liberal Art (via garychou)