Trained Eyes

05 Nov 2011 Leave a Comment

by Ai Kanoh in English Posts, Work

One of my friends was in pottery a while ago, and she talked about the mystery of art criticism. “If you are new, and don’t acquire systematic knowledge of art, you never understand how critics says good or bad on a creation. Of course you have your own like and dislike that’s enough to enjoy art, but not enough to do art.”

It’s not only about art. At any professional work, we need to have such trained eyes by experience on what we create, no matter how big or small the work is.

I work for an inhouse marketing team in an Indian company, and we do literally any kind of strategic content creation for marketing, advertisement, and PR. Apart from the beauty or artistic factors of the contents and graphics, we have the valiable of what customers care and perceive, which is the most essential element of our kind of creations.

I am in the early career of this busienss, and my eyes are not yet well trained like an experienced professional. I still depend on senior people who have the better eyes. When I care how clean a button design is, they cares if the color, size, or the shape is motivational to click it. When I care how a copy message is consise and cool, they care if the message could have a possibility to be taken in a different meaning by the customers.

It is an advantage of working for an organization. Life is more complex yet your creativity gets maximized when you are exposed and reviewed by so many others who are better than you. Being professional is to have more and more multiple view points and angles to criticize a quality of work. If I am 2D-thinking alone, other people fulfill to make it 3D-thinking. Eventually, I get to bring others’ viewpoints in me and will be able to think differently, beyond myself. I hope.

That is why being patient for my work is very important. I do rework ten times to reach the mark, revise one proposal several times till people agree, talk and consult people till I get the best idea. I tell to myself don’t be afraid of being messed up and confused, don’t be depressed to ball up a piece of paper with full of my “fresh-new ideas” and start from scratch, because that’s one of the most exciting parts of working with people. If I listen carefully, there’s always a chance of breakthrough of myself in senior people’s words.

Many people start their own business or freelancing. That’s also a great adventure of life. Some people spin out to seek freedom, and I understand how they feel too. But working style does not matter. In any fields, longer and more serious we work, more we realize how the ramaining way is so long and far from the milestone of reaching a certain professionalism. I can’t make it alone all the way only with my ordinally mind and talent. I need help to get there.