Good design is a language, not a style.

Massimo Vignelli

Groundwork

Before I explore design solutions, I strive to understand user/target audience needs. I research, gather insights and metrics, and interpret data to facilitate my ability to brainstorm strategic decisions about potential solutions. 

An integral part of my ideation process involves taking the time to consider multiple ways to strategically approach the problem before a look and feel, colors, layouts, and fonts are chosen.

Rapid Visualization

Once I have a firm grasp on the vernacular of the client, their target audience, and any key metrics, I enjoy rapidly validating and optimizing design concepts to arrive at a solution.

Experience

My ability to provide successful design solutions is informed by my varied educational, career, and life experiences. 

My eight-year enlistment in the United States Air Force taught me the value of working with a cohesive team. Being an architectural draftsman and illustrator, in the Air Force and as a civilian, taught me the importance of accuracy and planning.

Undergraduate and
Graduate Studies

My undergraduate studies in graphic design provided the foundational knowledge for my career. My graduate studies in art history and anthropology, along with my experience excavating Preclassic Maya structures at the site of Xunantunich in Belize, taught me the value of respecting and understanding history, people, and culture.

Creative Leadership

Leading multiple creative teams in New Mexico, New York, and Texas, taught me the value of the creative process, meeting deadlines while working on multiple projects, and the importance of inspiring, motivating, guiding, and supporting my teams. It also provided me with the opportunity to work with very diverse groups of people.

Higher Education

Being an assistant professor at Russell Sage College provided me with the opportunity to instruct and guide the next generation of designers in creative ideation and human-centered design. It also reinforced my strong belief in the value of mentoring and the importance of providing constructive, actionable feedback.

Leading Creative Teams

My journey to creative leadership has been exciting and frustrating, fulfilling and disheartening, exhilarating and infuriating. On the one hand, I have worked with great people who taught me about creativity, leadership, supervision, pitching ideas, team interactions, and much more. On the other hand, I have also worked for leaders who weren't so great. Whether experiences have been positive or negative, I learned from every encounter, every situation, every success, and even every failure.

I wrote this book to provide a roadmap for the next generation of creatives. My goal was to provide them with the advice I wish I would have had when I started my journey to creative leadership.