Gilmore Parsons

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Ok so last week we met with Steve Parsons of Gilmore Parsons. I’m really starting to see that design is design. What i mean is that wether its landscape, signage, or architecture we all seem to have alot in common when it comes to professional practice. There where several points that really stuck out from our discussion. outlined below are a few of them.

  • On Time

  • On Budget

  • On Track

I know this might seem like common sense but. As a creative designer there have been very few projects where I have managed to hold on to all three of these. On time for me is trying not to look at a project with rose colored glasses on. Trying to really evaluate based on other jobs how long a project will take.

Budgeting for meetings and overages and revisions is also a big part of being on budget. Expecting those little things that come up on every single project.

Being “On track” is my latest mission in life I’m really striving to become a world class communicator. I never realized how important communication is to running a sucessfull business.

Website updating:

This is so easy to do and practically FREE. I have converted my website to more of a blog style site. Now i can make updates alot faster. Instead of waiting for that free moment when I have two weeks to work on the perfect site (which never happens by the way) i have decided to allow for a half hr a day for blogging and my business.

“involve clients to make them feel like part of the process.”

Why not i mean they know there business better than i do. Besides nobody likes a know it all snobby designer type.

Understand clients don’t try to ram a design down there throat?

I agree I think that as designers we often get bogged down with what we want to do. instead of listening to what it is that are clients want or need from us. I find it easier to come up with a solution when i understand my clients limitations. (finacial, creative, technical)

As you grow as a professional designer you become more of a administrator.

This used to be my biggest fear  that as I grow as a business i would become less and less a “designer” and more a business man. Is that really so bad? i get to talk to people all day about the subject that i love As well as help new talent explore and reach there own creative potential.

“Letting go of control is very difficult.”

This is a big one unless they invent a cloning machine i’m really gonna have to learn to let go. ok so maybe the design might not be done exactly the way i would have did it but is the project:

  1. On Time
  2. On Budget
  3. On Track

“What is the effort involved?”

If it takes me longer to learn or figure out something than it would to explain it to somebody and have them do it then it might not be worth my time.