Hold up, let me back up a little. Me and the majority of the other designers in my quarter are in a class together called Cross Cultural Innovations. It's hard to describe, but we have new tasks to accomplish every week and none of them are design assignments and none of them correlate with each other. I tend to compare it to a crazy reality show like the Amazing Race where we are given missions every week that we have one week to accomplish. 'your mission, should you choose to except it...' etc etc. you get the gist. most assignments involve self analysis, getting to know your classmates, and making us think creatively.
It's pretty overwhelming and enormously hard for me most of the time, but it's been an amazing ride. The first week we were put in groups and sent to a 'secret location' in the city of Atlanta and told to find a way to present this location to the class using all 5 senses. we had to figure out why we were sent there, what our mission was, what our roles were as group members and how we would present it. Me and two others were sent to the Castleberry Hill neighborhood. I could go on for awhile about how incredible this little niche of the city is, but i'll save that for another day. We set out on a mission and had to troubleshoot to make our presentation work. frustrating. time consuming. exhausting. but wonderful. eye opening. adventure. unbelievable
week one i was already hooked. our other assignments involved making an object picked randomly from a box resemble or symbolize a partner in the class after spending time and observing them. that week we also had to create a piece of jewelry that symbolized each of us individually.
Another week we had to create a 'cake' of ambition that's ingredients and presentation represented the characteristics we'd need and the steps we'd have to take to reach a certain job title.
last week we met at Turner Broadcasting (where our instructor works) and we took an improv class where we played games and acted out skits, not unlike 'whose line is it anyways'. it was crazy and fun and something i'd never tried before. luckily i am around my classmates so much that i didn't even think about being embarrassed. last week we also had to present 30 second pitches that we had prepared.
this week involved admitting and confronting our fears, and much like our other assignments, this one sent me for a loop. We had 2 weeks to decide our fears, find ways to confront them and take steps to overcome them. I ended up coming up with several fears and finding a way to combine them in my presentation. maybe later i will list my discoveries.
it's hard to describe all of these assignments in their entireties, but i'm trying to give a little taste.
my point is, this class is completely flipping my mind. we never know what to expect week to week, and every class is a whirlwind of an experience. it is probably the class that causes me the most frustration because i have to wrack my brain to come up with concepts and to execute them. and not just any concepts; concepts that have to do with me personally. concepts i have to throw at my classmates and instructor without any way of knowing how it will be received. i have never had to completely put myself out there for people in a way that i have been forced to this quarter. and in this school in general.
i've decided self analysis is the hardest thing Ive ever had to do. some of these things i never would have done on my own. who wants to confront their fears and then admit them to their peers?! it is an unreal experience and i've just been riding it along to see where it leads me. every week is a new experience. every week is a new challenge. i've never felt so insufficient, young, naive and inexperienced in my life. but this has forced me to move past it. I'm starting to figure myself out and its been a slow process. mostly im dragged across the line kicking and screaming. Where i felt insufficient, ive started to feel confident. Where I am lacking, I'm learning to fill in the blanks.
i am forced to extract all of these feelings and discover myself in a way that i've never done before. not just in this class, but in every class. i have never been so challenged and done anything this hard in my entire life.
i work my ass off every day. nothing is easy. our instructors force the best from us and hold us accountable. i present ideas and work to my classmates and instructors every day. i get critiqued like crazy every day. it is impossible to slack off. i've been pushed harder than i thought was possible but i've never been more excited about it. i'm starting to see the big picture and i've only just started. i know i am not the same person i was 6 months ago.
these instructors have these incredible lives and careers and this week i've really seen the possibilities i have after leaving portfolio center. it is unreal to me to see the different options i will have and the decisions i have to make and the diversity of directions i can take. all which culminate in a field that i absolutely love. the instructors push us and shove us down and lift us up, and i'm still getting used to failing every single day. failing and being okay with it, and trying even that much harder till its perfect.
i work with an incredible group of classmates that i learn from on a daily basis. their hard work and creativity gives me motivation and inspiration every time i sit in a class with them. i have never second guessed my level of creativity so much and it scares the shit out of me. it's so terrifying but remarkable all rolled into one.
as a conclusion, this week we were given our final assignment which is to completely brand ourselves as designers. this has a lot of implications and levels that I will most likely get into later. We also left class with free tickets to a fashion show Saturday night. Next week we don't have normal classes, but are instead attending a Braves game together. All courtesy of the free tickets are instructor gave us to a game that is during our class period.
I am feeling so reassured of what I am doing and it feels fantastic. I'm starting to see why I am here and where I want to go next. I'm starting to understand why I am spending two years here instead of entering the real world. why i am not meant for journalism. why i made the decisions i made. I know I am starting to ramble, but right now I'm loving life and i'm trying to make it last.
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