Working File

This is our last episode of Working File, at least for a little while. Linda and Maurice join Matt and Andy to go down the list of possible topics for shows that we never got to make. It's a Working File lightning round! Thanks to all of our contributors over the past year who helped make the show a reality. Links Discussed Wrist Robot Machine Learning Material Design Bootstrap Wordpress Abstract Git Frank Chimero Frank's Rowhome Illustration Official Objectified Poster Andy's Ripoff of the Objectified Poster Matt's Objectified Poster Luba Lukova Everything is a Remix

This episode features Matt and Andy having a one-on-one conversation about the future of Working File and the difference between expressive and functional design projects. Links DiscussedOn the GridNumerologyThe Beginning of InfinityDavid ColeWaterfall Model

Matt is back for a lively discussion with Victoria and new contributor Daisy Sun about self-esteem and how to get a job when the world tells you that you're underqualified. Should you apply for a job if you don't meet the posted requirements? How do you break into an industry that feels elite and inaccessible to you? Is getting fired from Ben & Jerry's for being too short to scoop the ice cream technically discrimitation? Links Discussed Lord of the Rings "Cave" SnapApp Wayfair Wayfair Jingle NGP VAN How to Pronounce Wacom FontBureau Ben & Jerry's David Foster Wallace on Fish Dear Prudence Food Lust People Love

Matt and Andy take an episode off and Maurice wrangles three new contributors from all over the country to discuss how geography influences design community. Richard Wade Morgan, Kim Green, and Jamal Collins call in from Atlanta, Boseman, and Clevenland, respectively, and compare their experiences as a designer in different locales. Links Discussed Studio WadeSarah LawrenceWeapons of Mass CreationAdventures in Design PodcastMontana State UniversityBora ShehuUniversity of GeorgiaLiving Walls AtlantaGoat Farm Arts CenterRazorfishSon & SonsMailchimpKabbageMake America Gay AgainLost-N-Found Youth

Long time contributor Maurice Cherry organized this episode where Andy, Matt, and new contributor Jon Lewis discuss what it's like starting your own business as a designer. What are the reasons to start something new instead of getting a normal, stable job? What are the most difficult parts that no one ever tells you about? Links Discussed Lunch MetaLab Bakken & Bæck Million Dollar Matchmaker Elevate App Mike Monteiro

We take a break from our normal topical panel shows this week for something different. Prompted by an interview with Simon Sinek, Andy and Linda have a one-on-one discussion about our generation's attitudes towards work and social media. How does our approach to our careers differ from our parents'? Are connections made through social media less meaningful, or at least different, than those made in real life? Links Discussed Simon Sinek on Millennials in the Workplace Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs Friends of The Web The Great Recession Chermayeff & Geismar & Haviv The Borg Our Incredible Journey Ueno MailChimp Candy Crush Steve Jobs 2011 Tōhoku Earthquake and Tsunami Millennials

This episode is all about education. Andy, Matt, Meg, and Maurice share their origin stories as we discuss the differences between being self-taught and learning about design through a formal, paid program. How do you find your voice when you begin your career working for others? How do you learn humility after you've spent four years and tens of thousands of dollars becoming an expert in something? Links Discussed Working File Episode 2 — The Artist and the Problem Solver Morehouse College Historically Black Colleges and Universities Wolfram Mathematica Lunch Sarah Huny Young Huny on Revision Path Husani on Revision Path Husani Oakley Savannah College of Art and Design Maryland Institute College of Art Kutztown University Rhode Island School of Design Clients from Hell Josef Albers Lynda Skillshare Black in Design 2017 Revision Path Creative Works AIGA Eye on Design Conference

Annie and Jon join us for a speculative discussion about the future of design. Will artificial intelligence and machine learning replace us in the future? How will we develop taste in automated systems? What will become of our industry when capitalism finally implodes? Links Discussed “Merlin Manndroid” AirBNB Design Artificial Intelligence Assembly Line Twitterbot Algorithm Pun Machine Learning Word Embedding Pupper2Vec: Analyzing Internet Dog Slang with Machine Learning Anthony Jeselnik Markov Chain Replika App Creativity Planet Money AirBNB — Painting with Code Material Design Image Synthesis From Text With Deep Learning Philosopher King Basic Income A/B Testing Zine Baby Boomers The arc of the universe is long… Dark Ages List of Countries by Infant Mortality Rate The Matrix Pokémon Red Programmed in Minecraft Making Music and Art Through Machine Learning Musical Novelty Search — Evolutionary Algorithms + Ableton Live Moonlight Upstream Color Dream Daddy SmarterChild Alexa Siri

On this episode, Matt, Andy, and Kristy are joined by new contributor Sabrina Majeed to discuss what it means to be senior in any field. Find out what potential employers think of your years of experience and what it means to be a mature designer. Links Discussed On Being a Senior Engineer Buzzfeed Slack Bill O'Reilly Kate Arnonwitz Hire Sabrina

This episode reunites Matt and Andy with Dan Auer, cohost of On the Grid, the podcast that eventually led to the creation of Working File. We get caught up on developments in Dan's life and discuss how we've grown and changed in the five years since we recorded the first episode of On the Grid. Links Discussed On the Grid My Brother, My Brother, and Me Andy's Garden on Instagram Cyberbullying Dreamcast Pentagram Hedonic Treadmill Burning Man Sagmeister & Walsh

Robyn and Chappell join us for an episode all about the presence or absence of “weird” sensibility in graphic design. We start off talking about the new art direction of Bloomberg Businessweek but end up discussing capitalism, Snapchat, and the SR-71 Blackbird. Links Discussed Bloomberg Businessweek Adobe Acrobat Vectors Conference Laverne and Shirley Intro Etsy PageRank Bloomberg Businessweek Tim Cook Cover Comparison️ Time Magazine Newsweek Richard Turley Snapchat Allison McCann Jennifer Daniel Tracy Ma Lucky Peach Magazine The Economist Urban Outfitters GOOD Magazine Coinstar Machine Learning A/B Testing David Carson Cult of the Ugly by Steven Heller Drop Cap Gemini The Establishment Ray Gun Magazine Emigre Magazine Brutalism Chappell and Eric Hu's Twitter Thread Ralph Caplan Yale Graphic Design Metahaven Trapper Keeper Gotham The Outline Law of the Instrument VSCO Clear App SNAP on the New York Stock Exchange Skunk Works Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird Parallax Scrolling Five Thirty Eight Vice Nada Surf

Andy and Matt are joined by Lola and Kara to answer listener questions about design managers, creative staffing agencies, how user choice affects modern product design, and of course, whether or not design can change the world. Links On a team, what do you look for in a leader/design director? How is design changing as consumers of creative content are more empowered than ever before? Skipping titles/filtering content/blocking ads Netflix is testing a button for skipping the opening credits True Detective title sequence Ad blocking The New Yorker Adobe Flash Websites RIP Google Reader What's your opinion on the influence of classical graphic design education on today's interface designers? Josef Müller-Brockmann Villa Savoye Designers make fun of each other for saying things like "design can change the world", do you think that it's asking too much, or can it? XYZ Type

Andy and Matt are joined by Cap and Maurice to talk about our relationship with conferences and other design events. Even though all four of us have spoken at events before, why is it that we almost never attend them ourselves? What responsibility do conference organizers and speakers have to the greater community? Links Unconference Design Thinkers (Event) Background on Maurice’s Speaking South by Southwest Psychogenic Amnesia XOXO Blacklisting Thought Leader Tokenism MacGuffin You Look Nice Today BuzzFeed Design on Medium Etsy James Victore Angry Black Man on TV Tropes Where are the Black Designers? Ghosted Cishet Microaggression Debbie Millman Vectors Lunch Revision Path

On this episode we’re tackling a potentially sensitive subject: money. Linda and Annie join Matt and Andy for a candid discussion about their past jobs and how much money they made doing them. When is it appropriate to negotiate for a higher salary, and how do you do it? Is there a difference between how much we deserve to be paid and what we’re actually paid? Links Emily Post AIGA Design Census Working File Episode 10 New York City Passes Law Banning Prior Salary Questions in Hiring to Help Close Wage Gap Cost of Living Calculator Inflation No more free meals for tech workers? IRS advances project that could tax on-site food perks #talkpay on Twitter Glassdoor Salary Calculator The Perfect Salary for Happiness: $75,000 Gender Equality: Women Must Advocate for Each Other

Chappell and Robyn join us for a lively episode wherein we discuss the language we use to describe ourselves and our work. With her recent transition to the private sector, Chappell gives us her take on agency life and the vernacular associated with it. Find out why the words we use matter, even just internally. Links Sidecar Communication Studies Product Requirements Document (PRD) Huge Business Requirements Linguistic Relativity Telephone Line World of Warcraft Chicken or the Egg Dilemma Anthropology Industrial Revolution Basic Income Socialism Squarespace “Verbal Designer” Why Women Don’t Apply for Jobs Unless They’re 100% Qualified Minimum Viable Product Heuristic Subtweet Agile Software Development Metahaven Design Sprint Fonts vs. Typefaces

Matt and Andy are on their own this week having a practical discussion about proposals and how we communicate with potential clients. What is the right amount of information to provide and the best way to provide it? Why do we keep sending 8.5″ by 11″ pdfs when no one is printing them out? Links Motel Friends of The Web Pentagram Adobe Creative Cloud Boilerplate Engagement Letter Google Webmaster Guidelines Responsive Design Minimum Viable Product User Story Git Screen Reader

This episode is all about our relationship with the AIGA and more general feelings about design community and discourse. Annie, Matt, and Andy are joined by new contributor Nicole Killian to discuss our relationship with the AIGA and centralized representation of our industry. Why do so many of us feel distanced from our de facto professional organization? Links AIGA 2016 Design Census The AIGA AIGA Member Benefits MCAD (Minneapolis College of Art and Design) Walker Insights Design Lecture Series AIGA Annual Punk Rock SCAD Union (Matt’s Rogue Design Club) Make Trump’s branding great again: in-house experts talk campaign design AIGA Diversity and Inclusion Initiative How do you do, fellow kids? Design Observer Art Director’s Club Type Director’s Club RGD (The Association of Registered Graphic Designers) Justified: AIGA Annual Design Competition AIGA: Unjustified by Paula Scher 50 Books | 50 Covers competition David Rudnick’s Tweet and Explanation Design Thinking Very Busy Andy 4 Corners Project is One Designer’s Solution to Help Syrian Refugees Resist Logo SpaceX makes aerospace history with successful launch and landing of a used rocket

Matt and Andy are joined by Kristy Tillman and new contributor Cap Watkins to discuss design management. We learn about some of the traits of bad managers and discuss how to advocate for design within an organization. Should design work be diversified and spread throughout a company, or is specialization valuabale? Links The Seed of this EpisodeSoceity of GrownupsSkunk WorksManaging Humans by Michael LoppGeorge CostanzaSabrina MajeedIDEO“Stand-Up”Design ThinkingSonic Drive-InHigh-Resolution PodcastThink Wrong“Head Count”“Growth Marketing”Jared Spool’s Tweet about Everyone being DesignersFollow-up Thread to Jared Spool’s TweetBuzzFeed SolidTechnological SingularityLifestyle Business

Kara Haupt and Victoria Rushton join us on the eve of Matt’s wedding and the first day of Kara’s new job for a candid discussion about our confidence and sense of self-worth. As designers, our value is constantly measured against other designers, other industies, and our own unforgiving standards. How do we come to terms with having a creative job in a world that often feels like it’s falling apart around us? How do we know if we are doing enough? Links The New Yorker Impostor Syndrome Victoria Rushton fixes things for fun and no profit (Review of Victoria’s talk at the TDC) “Could Jesus microwave a burrito so hot, he himself could not eat it?” “The Fixer” Existentialism Hillary for America Babe Vibes Pep Talk Generator On the Grid

This marks the beginning of a conversation that we’ll be continuing in the future: the relationship between design and politics. Maurice Cherry and Robyn Kanner join us to talk about whether or not design is inherently political, turning down jobs for ethical reasons, and practical ways we can have a positive impact on the world around us. Links MyTransHealth Consulting Bias Sunk Cost RFP (Request for Proposal) Dear Design Student: How to Fight Fascism Developing Citizen Designers Voter Suppression Law of the Instrument Black Lives Matter Linguistic Relativity Affordable Care Act (a.k.a. "Obamacare") Cold War Propaganda Posters Kony 2012 Milton Glaser's "We are all African" Poster Post-Truth Politics Know Your Enemy

This episode, featuring Linda Eliasen and Jon Gold, addresses the relationship between the design process and production. Does an understanding of the materials and techniques used to manufacture your designs make you a better designer, or hold you back from doing truly innovative work? When should we push limitations of production and when should we just stick with a tried-and-true, established solution? Links Ueno Designer News Stranger Things MailChimp Dropbox Impostor Syndrome Tron The Matrix What Next for Design? with Jonathan Ive Ruby on Rails Objective-C SDK Caylee Betts on Twitter React Frank Gehry Pixar Concept Cars Artificial Intelligence Arup Develops 3D Printing Technique for Structural Steel Reality Distortion Field Everything is a Remix Fractals Samuel Mockbee Rural Studio

Victoria Rushton and Annie Yiling-Wang join us to discuss criticism in a professional context. For many of us, what was once formal critiques with peers during our education has been replaced by a confusing array of criticism from a variety of people. How does feedback differ when it comes from our clients, our peers, or our superiors? Links Orange is the New Black Font Bureau IDEO Telephone (aka “Chinese Whispers”) User Research Rule of Thumb Clients from Hell Fan Fiction

Andy and Matt are joined by Kristy Tillman and Lola Landekic for a conversation about side projects and the culture that surrounds them. We talk about the virtues and pitfalls of pursuing a self-initiated projects and whether we should hold people accountable for the things that they make. What role should side projects play in your portfolio, and how should we regard them when we’re hiring a designer? Links Art of the Title Model View Culture Side Project Culture: Opportunities and Obstacles for Marginalized People in Tech Tomorrow Looks Bright Detroit Water Project (now The Human Utility) State Mottos Project “Going on dates with eachother and documenting it.” Redesigned Beer Cans On the Grid Elaine Bass on Wikipedia (Thank you, Lola!) Gender Bias on Wikipedia MICA A Painting with Ampersands Douy Swofford General Assembly Matt’s Fake Alternate NFL Logos “Really Depressing Article, Do Not Read” Gaslighting

On this episode of Working File, which is actually the first one we ever recorded, we’re joined by Satchell Drakes and Jen Mussari to discuss being a designer in the public eye. How is being a famous designer different than being a famous dentist? Is one particular personality type or kind of design work rewarded by social media? What are we saying when we only show our polished, perfect selves online? Links Satchell’s Video on That Dragon, Cancer Charity Water Small City — Jen's Studio in Brooklyn “Being a famous designer is like being a famous dentist.” — Noreen Morioka Neil deGrasse Tyson The Kanye West Wiz Khalifa Twitter Beef of 2016 What it Looks Like on Reply All Jamie Keiles on Instagram Depressiongrams 24 Creative Pros Get Real About Their 2016 Goals on HOW (see: Dylan Lathrop’s response) Creativity and Depression Clients from Hell Bruno Munari’s Children’s Books CSS for Babies James Victore — The Dinner Series Design Matters with Debbie Millman Bioshock Infinite Developing Taste Jen’s Instagram Account The Gap by Ira Glass Grace Bonney interview with The Great Discontent

This episode is all about the distinction between working individually and working collaboratively. Gitamba Saila-Ngita and Meg Lewis join us for a discussion where we talk about our preferred work environments, the difference between design education and practicing design professionally, and conflict resolution amongst coworkers and clients. When should we compromise and when should we stand up for our ourselves? Links Ghostly Ferns Sagmeister & Walsh Louise Fili Experimental Jetset Steve Jobs Ringo Starr MailChimp Etsy Cards Against Humanity Nike Pentagram Malcolm Gladwell Redscout

Our inaugural show is all about the state of the design community, design journalism, and what Working File should be. Chappell Ellison and Maurice Cherry join us for a conversation about the difference between design discourse in public and private spaces. We find out that Andy has high expectations for designers and discuss the nature of criticism across different creative industries. Is there a distinction between criticsm for consumers and criticism for creators? Is the internet even an appropriate medium for critical discourse? Links Fast Company A New Look for Instagram New Logo and Identity for Uber Designer News Dribbble Smashing Magazine AIGA The Great Discontent Revision Path Design Matters with Debbie Millman Flat Design Open (NYC Based Design Studio) Design for People University of California Rebrand Ralph Caplan Revision Path 107: Dori Tunstall Google Reader Design Observer Where are the Black Designers?