Sjefdesign

Just design according to rules of nature…

Many people (designers/politicians/movie stars/musicians etc.) are asking us to take care of the world and our fellow humans that are suffering from you name it (greenhouse gas, pollution, chemical weapons, AIDS, etc.), otherwise the world becomes an awful place to live in. Everybody wants to live in a beautiful and peaceful world.

On the other hand it still seems difficult to share our wealth with everyone in the world. This made me think about the world, rules of nature and design (my profession) in particular. Why is it so damn difficult for humans to look at the total picture and make decisions based on what is good for our environment and the total flora and fauna? My answer to this question is:

People, just as other inhabitants of the world are trying to survive on this planet. (The survival of the fittest.) Therefore, the individual is focussed to become better. It may sound crystal clear and too obvious, but I truly believe that one does something because it gives him more power to survive within this world. I am not saying that the third world is less strong than the western world and therefore they should be washed away. I just think that it is inevitable that some people are trying to make advantage of them while others want to help them. Both because they think it is best for themselves.

Humans seem to be a social animal and within the past they were able to live, work, play together. Uniting gives humans more power than an individual. Therefore people are trying to gather and be part of society or a group. However, when the individual is threatened he will most likely choose for himself instead of the group. He is trying to survive. There is nothing wrong with that it is a natural phenomenon.

While we have to except the natural phenomenon, people look down upon others who state that they only live for themselves. Society is forcing us to put aside our individual goals and think as a group. Your neighbors will reject you if you don’t donate to charity. You should be able to think primary about yourself. We should dare to state: ‘I do it because I think it is best for me.‘ After you are totally honest to yourself and you dare to say it to the rest of the world, you can start to think/live in freedom without the moral constraints of society, as designers you already have enough constraints to deal with.

In order to become free as a designer there are 4 rules to go through and you will be able to motivate yourself for every design project you choose to participate.

1. Admit you always act beneficial to yourself.
2. Don’t do something because somebody tells you to, do for yourself.
3. Minimize the effort to fulfill your goal.
4. Optimizing works.

If you are not able to admit the first rule, you should be aware that your motivation and devotion will disappear. Nobody will reject you because you are honest with yourself, asking yourself the question: What is in it for me?

Humans are looking for the simplest and easiest way to come to a specific goal, don’t resist it, it is nature. You might argue that getting a six out of then is not always the best thing, that totally depends upon your goal. If you want to obtain your graduation, you better only get sixes. If you have other goals, being the best of the class, learning, you will do more.

Optimization is another rule of nature. I think nobody is trying to resist this. We all know that having the optimum is a natural thing, live according to it.

You might wonder, if these are natural rules, why bother about them, because we will follow them eventually, it is in our nature. Within our society, cultural aspects are very strong and we have to be careful that they do not conflict with our primary needs.

So, do not resist against the rules of nature. Admitting them will enlighten you!