Personal Update: Career and Role
/I mentioned before that the previous posts are meant to set up my story and thought pattern as I find a new career – these are written in retrospect and take a fairly linear approach. It makes sense at this point to jump to the present and add some color to the story.
After doing a lot of thinking, exploring, research and observation, I have made the decision to pursue a career in the design industry- I am specifically interested in working for a digital agency or design firm.
How did I come to the decision to explore design of all things (I had previously worked in the Pharmaceutical industry)?
1. I took the time to plan my attack and determine how to build a solid base before blindly applying for jobs somewhere.
2. I thought about my interests, my personality, who I like to hang out with and what I have enjoyed in past jobs…Essentially who I am and what makes me tick. I identified my core values.
3. I began mapping my interests and values to disciplines: This was not a prescribed process but came as I met people and learned about areas that were unfamiliar to me at the time.
4. I identified an area to explore and began to do so.
So why Design?
- I have always had an interest in good design, be it digital, physical objects or even business processes and ways of doing things. Good design is aesthetically pleasing, efficient, serves its intended purpose without much fuss or frustration for the user, and can simply make people happy.
- I enjoy creativity and creating. Most of my friends and the people I associate with are creatives- filmmakers, designers, artists - they all share my interests in music and art. These are the types of people who work in the field that I have chosen to pursue…and I want to work with people who have similar interests and who I can call friends.
- I am interested in emerging technology, new ways of thinking and doing things. This is a major component in the design industry.
- Etc., etc., etc…
I’m not a designer by trade…Where do I fit in?
I have had various roles in my previous career in the pharmaceutical industry. A majority of my time was associated with project work, coordinating, managing and leading projects and teams and this is an aspect of my previous work that I have enjoyed.
Design projects need to be managed.
I have decided to pursue a role as a Project Manager at a digital agency or design firm. I want to work with teams comprised of creatives, technologists and business visionaries- I find this combonation exciting.
I’ve targeted a discipline to explore and I’ve decided on a roll to pursue…
Now what?