10 rules from Milton Glazer (Part 1)

Milton Glaser - graphic designer, known primarily for its logos ♥ NY and brooklyn Brewery. He is also one of the founders of the journal New York Magazine.

You can only work for those people who you like

A lot of time it took me to come to this curious conclusion. Before that, I was thinking the exact opposite - I think that professionalism requires very cool treat to customers, keep your distance, that is, for example, do not dine with them in a friendly manner, and does not communicate in the abstract themes. And just recently I realized that the true something quite the opposite. I realized that all the work, which was ultimately the most prominent and large, I have done for those clients with whom I have had warm relations. I'm not talking about professionalism, I'm talking about love. You and your customer must have something in common, common ground that unites you, or work on it - a painful and hopeless struggle.

If you have a choice, never to hire

Late one night I was sitting in the car in front of Columbia University, was waiting for his wife (she studied anthropology there). I listen to the interview on the radio. And leading asks the question: "You have already turned 75 years old, do you have advice for our audience as? To prepare for old age "irritated voice replied," And why I now ask about the age?! "I I recognized the voice

John Cage, Composer and philosopher who had a profound influence on the development of music and on the formation of people like Jasper Johns and Merce Cunningham. I knew a little Cage and admired his contribution to the present.

And he answers: "Although, you know, I will give advice on how to prepare for old age. Never employ. Because then someone will one day be able to fire you. And now you are not ready for retirement. As for me, nothing has changed since then as I turned 12. Every day I woke up and thought about how I earn a living today. And this morning I woke up and thought the same. I am well prepared for retirement. "

Avoid "energy vampires"

This is a continuation of the first paragraph, by the way. The 60s was a renowned psychiatrist Fritz Perls, founder of Gestalt therapy. One of its principles is that you have to understand the "whole" before you understand the details. Everything has an impact on the person: the family, the environment in which it is at the moment, the people with whom he associates, etc., etc. Perls proposed that in relationships people act as energy vampires or energy donors. By the way, one and the same person in some respects may be the donor, and in some - a vampire. So the vampires need to reduce communication to a minimum. There is a test to determine what a particular person is necessary for you. It is very simple. Here you've spent some time with this person: dinner, take a walk or play tennis. You feel energetic, in high spirits? Or, on the contrary, you feel sluggish and tired? If the latter, then you are at the expense of "energy ate" your friend.

When professionalism is not needed or Good is the enemy of great

In the early days of course, I wanted to become a professional. It was my greatest desire, because they're all professionals know, not to mention what they get good money. However, after working for a while, I realized that professionalism - this limitation. In fact because of professionalism - is to minimize the risks. You car broke down - you go to a mechanic-professional, because he quickly identify the problem and he knows how to solve it. If you have an operation on the brain, you can hardly trust his head surgeon who wallow fool, did not really any operation, but invented some new method of neural connections endings. No, please, let the operation will make the old way, those doctors who have performed hundreds of such. But in our area, the so-called creative (I do not like that word, because they have become overused in recent years), professional enough. It is impossible to minimize the risks and to follow the beaten path. The essence of creativity (Well, that word again) is to repeatedly make mistakes. A professional point is not to make mistakes that can lead to failure, while the need to repeat the success. So, professionalism - the goal is very limited.

Less - is not always better

Being a child of modernism era, all the time I heard it, like a mantra: "The less - the better." But one morning I woke up and realized that this is nonsense, absurdity and nonsense. Sounds, this phrase, of course, it's great because it contains an interesting paradox. But if you look at the world around, the phrase is by no means applicable. Look at Persian carpet, which is riot of colors and patterns, each of which is fine. Is it possible to attribute to it the phrase? What monochrome carpet, for example, blue, would be more beautiful? A Persian miniatures or architectural masterpieces of Gaudi? All this is fine, but does not correspond to the phrase: "The less - the better." I have an alternative proposal - "It is better, when it is sufficient."

To be continued…