7 Inspiring Quotes from “Ignore Everybody” by Hugh MacLeod
By: Diamond Alexander
Tags: Design Thinking, Hugh Macleod, Writers Block, Design

#1 — Nobody suddenly discovers anything. Things are made slowly and in pain.

This reminds me of quotes I’ve read from famous designers who say they try out hundreds of logos before settling on one. They put in the time. I think there are moments of inspiration or divine creative endowment but the actual making of something — that takes time. Waiting to just “discover” something will probably leave us broke, disappointed, and worse designers.

#2 — You are responsible for your own experience. Nobody can tell you if what you’re doing is good, meaningful, or worthwhile.

I struggle with this a lot during design critiques. I feel like I’m just so amateur (which I am) and that my design is not the perfect choice (which it’s not) and that I’ll never get better (which is not true). The truth is, I get to choose my attitude and emotion towards my work and education. There are objective criticisms and feedback to be received but I get to choose to enjoy the process and take pride in my work. No one else can do that for me. I have to cheer myself on and validate my own progress.

#3 — Everybody has their own private Mount Everest they were put on this earth to climb. You may never reach the summit; for that you will be forgiven. But if you don’t make at least one serious attempt to get above the snow line, years later you will find yourself lying on your deathbed, and all you will feel is emptiness…I think it’s not okay for you never to try to climb it.

Just gonna leave this one right…here. Amazing.

How I feel about grad school. Credit: Hugh MacLeod

#4 — From a story about a man who restores antique fireplaces. MacLeod asks him why wouldn’t he make a living selling the things he actually loves. And the business owner says, “The first rule of business is never sell something you love. Otherwise, you may as well be selling your children.”

And in the design world, we probably shouldn’t call our work “our baby,” either. Because at some point in the creative process, we will probably have to erase our baby, change the size and shape and color of our baby, draw X’s through parts of our baby, and have someone else completely crumple up our baby out of dissatisfaction. Sounds terrible.

#5 — Sing in your own voice. No one person can be good at everything. The really good artists, the really successful entrepreneurs, figure out how to circumvent their limitations, figure out how to turn their weaknesses into strengths. Don’t make excuses. Just shut the hell up and get on with it. Time waits for no one.

I am not a great illustrator or artist in the traditional sense. My logo exploration sketches look like I’ve done them all with my non-dominant hand after a glass of Merlot. But that doesn’t have to stop me from getting my ideas out and creating pixel perfect versions later with a medium I feel much more comfortable using — professional design software. I can’t let my insecurities about my drawings prevent me from getting ideas out onto paper and testing what works. I would miss out on a part of the design process and create more work and stress for myself later.

#6 — Writer’s block is just a symptom of feeling like you have nothing to say, combined with the rather weird idea that you should feel the need to say something…You’re better off going out into the big, wide world, having some adventures and refilling your well. Trying to create when you don’t feel like it is like making conversation for the sake of making conversation.

“Refilling your well.” It is tempting to keep pushing and grinding away at an idea or a concept because we think we should. True, we have deadlines and bosses who may not care that we’re “just not feeling it” one afternoon. We are problem-solvers, after all, and not pure artists. However, pushing and forcing doesn’t always work. Our brains need time to process our problem away from the problem itself. I think this time to refill and recharge is crucial to maintaining stamina as a designer. Plus, research backs this up. Stanford researchers found that walking, indoors or outdoors, boosted creative inspiration.

And as an introvert, his analogy made perfect sense to me because making conversation just cause actually hurts my soul.

and finally,

#7 — The market for something to believe in is infinite.

I loved this quote because I feel that it can apply to anything we may be working on or engaging with. Whether it’s an app, logo, website, art installation, new apartment building, fad diet etc. — people are looking for something they can believe in. The market for that is infinite. How beautiful.