What is your metric for success?

“How do you want to spend your day?...

What is your metric for success?

Maybe your metric for success is you want to be recognized as good at what you do. You want to be recognized as being competent at what you do. I think that’s a dangerous road to walk down because now your notion of success is completely dependent on strangers and what they feel.​..

How you spend your day every day is your life.”

— Merlin Mann (via Back To Work)

Relationships that feed you

I came across this article on Medium by Shuna Lydon, a pastry chef in Brooklyn. The article is a piece about Gina DePalma, the renowned pastry chef of Mario Batali's Babbo restaurant in NYC, and one of Shuna's first mentors. Gina has worked with Mario Batali for many years at Babbo and before that with Claudia Fleming at the Gramercy Tavern. The article talks about Gina's passion for and adherence to the integrity of Italian cooking throughout her career. I love food and I love anything Italian - the food, the culture, the land, the people (I married an Italian) but this isn't about Italian food or anything related to food really - that will be for another post maybe... In the article Shuna quoted Gina as saying this about working with Batali:

“When you have a strong, creative relationship with someone, you feed off that energy; you can’t wait to share your own ideas and get more from your colleagues... in the beginning years he inspired me with just his energy and excitement about food and ingredients, and our mutual love of Italian cooking.”

— Gina DePalma on working with Mario Batali

It reminded me of the importance of surrounding yourself with people and relationships that inspire you. I've learned through my career, through school, through personal relationships that nothing can replace a great relationship. Whenever I've lost my heart or my motivation I can always relate it back to relationships that drain me of energy. Whether that relationship is with people, with work, with my surroundings, whatever. Finding relationships that are truly great means finding relationships that inspire you, excite you, motivate you, challenge you, and even scare you (in a good way). And if you can find relationships with people that do all that, then that's the best kind.

Through

“The only way out is through.”

— Dan Benjamin (via Quit)

A Universe of Abundance

“If you perceive the universe as being a universe of abundance, then it will be. If you think of the universe as one of scarcity, then it will be. And I never thought of the universe as one of scarcity. I always thought that there was enough of everything to go around - that there are enough ideas in the universe and enough nourishment.”

— Milton Glaser (from How to Think like a Great Graphic Designer by Debbie Millman)

My thanks to EFS

Friday was my last day at EFS. These guys have been invaluable to me. My job at EFS was my first job out of University and it was my dream job. They have given me more experience than I ever imagined. EFS allowed me to become the designer I wanted to be. They appreciated my artistic skills along with my programming skills and allowed me to wear both hats. They also trusted me as a designer and that is a gift. I will always be grateful to these guys for the opportunity, for trusting my work, allowing me to grow and taking care of me. Thankfully this is not goodbye and I will continue to design for them, but I will miss coming into the studio and collaborating in person.

Love you guys and I will miss you, but I'll come visit. The Canadian care packages will be coming :)