Motivation

Motivation. Motivation is an interesting thing. In high school, I was motivated to be a part of everything. I was in theater, played volleyball, basketball, ran track, president of Amnesty International, played piano and hand bells at church, participated in various/many community service activities, and on top of that laundry list I was able to be a straight A student. Then in college, I continued my strong will for involvement. I joined a sorority, was a member of various clubs and organizations, had a part time job, was a straight A student and managed to have a social life. Now, I am in the "real world" and my motivation has gone to the way side, or at least outside of work.

Its interesting, because I looked up the synonyms of motivation, and the words "incentive, inspiration, reason, ambition and determination" show up. I feel like I have a lot of these words. I have ambition and determination. And I have a reason for my ambition. I want a successful career. I want to challenge myself every day. I want to find something I enjoy. I want to learn and travel. I have plans. General plans, but plans, and a dream. Yet, apparently (despite what the thesaurus) I lack motivation to get to where I want to go. I am learning that motivation in school, can be very different than motivation in life. I am trying to get back to the productiveness of my college/high school days, however, it seems to be taking time.

I'm not sure if its an adjustment period. I'm not sure if its me. However, I do know, that my productivity levels have changed significantly. I stay busy of course. Still doing many different activities, however, the activities never seem to involve any sort of motivation to actually finding a new job. Even though I desperately want one. Some people tell me I should just enjoy life for right now. Others tell me I just need to make time for working on my portfolio and job applications. I'm not sure which one I should be focusing on, however, if it is the latter, than where do I find the motivation to use my time towards this? How do I get there? And where did it go in the first place? 

Motivation. How do you stay motivated? 

Shoes seem to be a theme

I realized that in the year since I have posted on my blog....the theme seems to be the same. Shoes. Apparently, shoes are more important to me than I ever realized, but what a great way to segue from one time of blogging to the next.

And for your information, I did go shoe shopping and bought two different pairs of classic boots. One black and one brown. And while I was ever so excited to purchase them for my new job, I am now at a different job and unable to enjoy them as much. Funny how things can change in a year, and yet not change at all.

My Inner Fashionista

Once again I have been a poor blogger. It has been close to a year since my last post...so I'm sure no one is even reading my blog, or this post for that matter. But my goal is to start being better. Being better about staying active in the design world, being better at controlling my life and being better about being happy in my career path (or the lack there of).

My current obsession is my inability to dress the way I crave to. It sounds petty, but when things don't go the way I planned, its easy to turn to things that make me feel good: clothes, shoes and bags! However, it is unfortunate that my current job requires me to wear the same shoes EVERY DAY and where it is acceptable and appropriate to wear a t-shirt and jeans with no make-up. Thus, my current guilty pleasure is the fall VOGUE magazine. Granted the thousand page magazine is mainly ads...but I love looking at it all and just hoping that one day I'll have the chance to wear shoes like these

some where at some point in my life. Although, being a 5'10" woman doesn't ever leave me with much opportunity, as already I tower over many people even if I'm in flats.

So while I currently an unable to indulge in my inner fashionista, it is at least inspirational to be able to look, admire and be inspired by the colors, textures and fabrics of America's fashion industry.

And here's to my attempt to get back to blogging...and expressing my many thoughts.

Sea of Shoes

Sea of Shoes

So I've been debating going shoe shopping for a few weeks now, and its not because I NEED to go buy new shoes, but because I want different versions of what I already have. I think this is the problem most girls have when it comes to clothes. Its not that we need all of it, but there's always some variation on what we already own and its interesting so we purchase it. And hey, you never know where you might be going that you might need to wear it.

Another reason I want to go shoe shopping is because I now have a 'real' job in which I can wear different types of clothes and outfits, so in the past my clothes have worked for me, but now i find myself not having the right shoes to go with my outfits.

This blog has inspired me to go find a few great pairs of boots and maybe some pumps that I can walk in without feeling like a giant (I am already 5'10") and feel comfortable wearing while walking to work and/or standing up at a bar for a good few hours. All many important things to consider when shoe shopping....so wish me luck! Bout to spend some good hard earned money that I should probably be saving for rent and bills....

Designer//Slash//Model

This website was made and designed by a Digital Kitchen, which is a digital design firm that creates interesting and cutting edge graphics for clients such as BMW, HBO, Discovery Channel, etc.

This particular site is a satirical promo for DK to show their personality and how they take a tongue and cheek look at the world of design.

Take a gander!

Designer//Slash//Model

Designer//slash/model

Love this!

Been a While

Yes, I believe it has been 5 months since my last post. I guess I get caught up in life and don't much feel like posting my ideas out to the world. But I have been keeping myself busy.

I graduated from NCSU in Graphic Design in May, then I began an internship at the North Carolina Theatre in Raleigh in June. This was a great opportunity for me because I love theater, and when I was younger I had the dream of designing for Playbill and this was my chance to design for a theatre company even if it wasn't Playbill. I also had the opportunity to work with some amazing women while meeting great people.

Halfway through this internship I got my first freelance design job and soon after I began a full-time position (non-salary) at a small exhibit design firm downtown, which I am still currently working at.  And also this summer, I traveled a lot of family reasons and now my sister is engaged!!! And now I will begin working on her wedding invitations and save-the-dates. I have also started to participate in AIGA Raleigh, and a friend and myself have begun a Design Collaborative.

So its been crazy, but I love keeping myself busy and I have really appreciated all of the experiences I have had in these past months, they have been invaluable.

Some links to my life:

Where I worked earlier this summer:
http://www.nctheatre.com/theatre/index.html

Where I work now:
www.abrothers.com

Design Stuff I'm Involved In:
http://designpact.blogspot.com/
http://raleigh.aiga.org/
http://www.ncsu.edu/graphicdesign/newcontexts/