{September 2011

This semester
Successfully pass first semester senior year
Design and completely finish a project from beginning to finish
Follow through with assignments rather than restarting over and over
Work on personal pieces
Create and sell one original piece of my work
Earn an extra 1,500 dollars to completely cover living and project expenses
Party less organize more
This year
Successfully complete a degree project that is representative of my work
Graduate on time with the RISD class of 2012
Continue to work on and create a collection of personal works
Create and sell three pieces of my work
Launch online business
Graduate with upwards of 2,000 dollars to cover moving expenses
2 years
Have a job/business that earns upwards of 30,000 a year
Have the money and time to travel to Europe and/or Asia
5 years
Have a job/business that earns upwards of $60,000 a year
Fully support myself in my own apartment
Have money and time for travel and vacation
Have no children
10 years
Own my own successful company grossing upwards of 200,000 a year
Have a net worth upwards of $2,000,000
Financially assist family members
Have all school loans and other debts fully paid off
Own my own home/city apartment
Own vacation home and boat
Be married

FOC freedom of creation
I’m interested in 3D printing and how the technology will grow over the upcoming years . Freedom of creation (FOC) is a group of designers that produce everything from lighting to accessories using strictly 3D printing technology.

Imaan van der Haak
I’m interested in unusual ways of accessorizing the human body especially with attention to non-permanence.  Imaan van der Haak has a collection of “avant-garde facial distorting” jewelry that definitely sparks curiosity and raises the issue of practicality.

Liquid Light: industrial light installations
Lighting and the repurposing the objects continue to be large inspirations with regards to my own work.  Industrial designer Tanya Clarke is the brain behind “liquid Light,” a series of lighting installations that use LEDs, hand sculpted glass and recycled plumbing to create stunning pieces that serve as visual reminders of how precious water is.

Timothy Horn
Using ulterior materials in unconventional ways inspired a lot of my ideas for my upcoming degree project.  Swiss sculpture Timothy Horn creates work that strives to blur the line between natural and constructed by combining unexpected materials and forms.

{ 7:24 pm

{ 12:58 pm

1 Week:
I will have changed the oil in my car.
1 Month:
I will have completed all my Professional Practice Assignments.
1 Year:
I will have graduated from RISD.
5 Years:
I will co-own a Design Firm.
10 Years:
I will have traveled around the world.
50 Years:
I will have designed everything I own.

Dieter Rams: “Less, but better.” German Industrial Designer.
Steve Jobs: “Design is not just what it looks like and feels like. Design is how it works.” American entrepreneur and inventor.
Walter C. Baker: First to break 100 mph land speed record in 1902, in an electric automobile. Engineer.
Matt Monk: Graphic Designer

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{ 12:28 am

Semester

– I will design / make an ottoman and chair that exhibit control and confidence in furniture design.

– I will be proud of my work.

– I will have a web-presence

– I will begin to eat fresher foods and cook more for myself and my friends.

– I will go skydiving

– I will begin to develop a DP that excites and challenges me

1 year

– Participate in an NPR interview focusing on the Furniture Design class of 2012

2 years

– After graduating I will sell at least 10 “Star Spangled Spatulas” through my website or etsy.

– Travel and learn the American craft of BBQ from a pit master.

– Obtain a design job.

-Drop 70 pounds.

-Meet nice people.

10 years

–  have graduated grad culinary school overseas

– Begin producing and selling design products

20 years

– Open a 12 table restaurant with friends

– have a studio

– be integral in something big

– own  a dog and a car.

Death

-NEVER

people i admire

– Gordon Ramsay

– My brother (CEO of National Field.org / the first hierarchical social network and the second best looking Wasserman brother)

– steve jobs

– Pharell Williams

–

{ 11:27 pm

10 years:   

– Own an architecture / design firm

– Earn 100,000 a year

– Own property / home – large enough to run the online business

– Work maximum of 50 Hours a week.

– Pay off RISD loans

– Raise a family with at least 1 child

– Travel to Australia

– Have finished composing a instructional percussion book

5 Years

– Established online Vintage Percussion Business with virtual shopping car

– Build 2 websites dedicated to design &

– Land an internship working for an architecture firm

–  Have a degree – (3 Year) Graduate in M.Arch from RISD

– Take arch exams and become licensed.

1 Year

– Purchase a Roland V – Drum kit

– Move out of Charles Landing into a house or other apartment

– Find a band with a steady gig to help fund keeping a car

This Year

– Purchase a bike by Spring semester

– Have completed a comprehensive Resume

– Have completed a comprehensive Portfolio

– Have completed a Business Card

This Semester:

– Wake up at 8am each morning or sleep a maximum of 8 hours a    night.

– Sleep a minimum of 6 hours each night.

– Establish a functional schedule with work, school and en balanced

– Learn how to cook 4 new meals by December

– Will run at least 3 days a week

– Will woodshed on a practice pad for 15 minutes at least 3 days a week

Inspiration:

Scott’s Drum Center / Acadiana School of the Arts

Repercussions – Vintage Percussion Dealer

Tschumi – why? cause he’s just a monster

Michael McClure – Professor  ( Rome Prize )

{ 9:15 pm

Goals for Fall:

• Experiment w/ materials and resources that are accessible to us at RISD: Try new things.
• Keep thinking of my language within design: degree project.
• Get photography done for website.
• Update resume and portfolio.
• Make website and business cards.
• Keep in contact w/ connections in Europe.
• Work in shops w/ James and Jeff on shop tech: aquire more knowledge in machines.
• Attend a Better World by Design.
• Attend career services events on entrepeneurship and business.
• Balance my life and not only work: go out and laugh and forget risd ever existed, exercise 3 times a week

Goals for year:

• Take a Brown class about entrepeneurship.
• Take a class on Art therapy/ complete psychology concentration.
• Improve in Rhino.
• Finish required credits to graduate.
• Apply to 15-20 job positions: design studios/ psychiatry+ art therapy/ shop tech
• Build contact list of manufacturers, businesses that could help.
• Maintain relationships: Network w/ design studios I know and keep developing relationships w/ teachers/ shop techs/ alumni.
• Hopefully exhibit in Milan.
• Keep working on side projects collaborating w/ 2 possible future partners of studio.
• Try to sell work: either collaborative or my own.
• Cross country bike ride

Goals within the next 2 years:

• Work for a studio: junior designer or designer or part time education: $30,000+ income salary ($20/hour) – I am open to ending up anywhere in the world.
• Wherever it is that I end up, settling down there for 2-3 years.
• Volunteer time working for psychiatrist/art therapist: learning more about this line of work/ possibly looking into graduate school.
• Working on personal projects: selling work, hopefully in a fair (Milan, ICFF, Miami, Holland…)
• Having a life because I am a workaholic: making friends, developing relationships, fitness
• Travel – South America is the next destination.
• Maintain relationships w/ people I care about: go see them.

Goals within 5 years:

• Designer at studio making $40,000-45,000 minimum in a studio I like
• Go to fairs for this studio
• OR psychatrist/ practicing art therapy (grey area)
• OR teaching part time any of the subjects mentioned/ working part time on designs for my own studio: investing in tools/ space for a studio?
• Have a pet

Goals by 10 year mark:

• Self- employed design studio making $100,000
• work w/ people: teaching or helping psychologically.
• Still work w/ people that want/need art therapy.
• Have a HAPPY family.

{ 8:47 pm

{ 5:18 pm

{ 5:18 pm

10 Years:

–       I will make 100,000 a year

–       I will own/ co-own a design firm

–       I will collaborate with large outlets to reduce the amount of overproduction and useless design in America

–       I will own a car, a motorcycle, and several bikes

–       I will own a nice watch and have a box of cuban cigars on a fancy coffee table that I’ll never smoke

–       I will bike a minimum of 100 miles per week

–       I will go to the gym a minimum of four days per week

–       I will be happily married to someone as financially stable as I am

5 Years:

–       I will make 60,000+ a year

–       I will obtain regular commissions and/or work for a large company (ex. Nike, Gillette, Braun, Muji…)

–       I will release a line of products/furniture and be regularly published

–       I will be technologically aware

–       I will bike a minimum of 100 miles per week

–       I will go to the gym a minimum of four days per week

–       I will continue to cook great food and eat in good company

–       I will stay close with all of my friends

1 Year:

–       I will complete at least 4 pieces for my DP, and investigate both lighting and tableware/cookware

–       I will get my DP work published on blogs

–       I will learn design/furniture history

–       I will intern at a large company to see if I enjoy that kind of design work

–       I will get a paying job/internship to supplement my personal design efforts

–       I will bike a minimum of 100 miles per week

–       I will go to the gym a minimum of four days per week

This Semester:

–       I will have three abbreviated DP drafts by the end of the semester

–       I will have a finalized DP by the end of wintersession

–       I will learn to sew proficiently

–       I will photograph all of my current work

–       I will redesign/launch a new website

–       I will submit current work to blogs

–       I will learn how to brew beer

–       I will learn the material properties and techniques of concrete

–       I will cook at least twice a week

–       I will independently study design history

–       I will go to the gym a minimum of four days per week

–       I will bike a minimum of 100 miles per week

{ 5:13 pm

{ 5:08 pm

This scares me.
10 years:
Own/Co-own a design firm with at least 3 employees,
Start a family,
Be financially stable (hopefully this will happen before the 10 year mark, I’m thinking 7 years is a more realistic goal)

5 years:
Secure at least 2 residency programs (ideally one overseas,)
Continue work with design collaborative,
participate in  a design-build non-profit,
Have at least 2 reliable/consistent clients for commissions (something like a real-estate developer)
Keep any media up to date
Participate in design showcase (ICFF, etc.)

2 years:
Persistently submit work to design publishers/blog,
Establish or join design collective,
Full-time employment with design firm on west coast,
Hike Mt. McKinley
If above/below doesn’t work out, go to grad-school

This year:
Graduate,
Learn how to knit
Find language for design,
Submit work to competition,
Work with Fix Studio in summer,
Have all design decisions for DP made by end of Wintersession

This semester:
Build killer website
Find music shop to intern with this winter
Begin writing thesis?

Some cool people in the world

Jen Jako www.fixstudio.com
Hanna Sandstrom kaptenhanna.blogspot.com
Kari Merkl www.merkled.com
Bernard Brucha www.mashstudios.com
Fellas at MADE Studio www.made-studio.com
Cameron Sinclair www.architectureforhumanity.com

{ 12:16 pm

{ 12:12 am

This Semester

• Balance Architecture Grad school while still going out and partying
• Finish Rosetta Stone: French CDs and continue learning French
• Make an impression with the students and professors in the architecture department
• Stop biting my nails when I do a project

This Year

• Successfully finish first year of grad school
• Take an apparel studio/class – Learn to sew
• Wear clothes I designed and made in public
• Get an internship in France – live in Europe for a few months again
• Continue designing, improving, experimenting with techniques for my humidors/jewelry boxes
• Sell at least one humidor or jewelry box

2 Years

• Finish RISD grad school and have a top job lined up
• Start a successful and consistent line of humidors/ jewelry boxes
• Be fluent in French/ taking French at Brown
• Feel confident in my apparel skills
• Have my friends/girlfriends want to wear the clothes ive designed
• Travel to at least 2 new countries for a week at least once a year
• Continue selling my humidors/jewelry boxes

5 Years

• Buy a Lotus
• Be in a design firm making a lot of money, in preparation to start my own practice
• Open a cigar lounge and sell my humidors/jewelry boxes
• Enter a competition
• Live in France for at least one year
• Be engaged/find a girl that I would want to get engaged too
• Be the first thing to pop up when you google “Jason Alvarado”
• Be financially stable and quite wealthy
• Have a high demand for my fashion designs and humidor/jewelry boxes

10 Years

• Own my own firm/practice
• Design a collection and have a runway show
• Have my own line of clothes
• Be on project runway
• Have my own line of humidors/jewelry boxes
• Place top 3 in an architecture competition
• Buy a Ferrari/Pagani (some expensive supercar)
• Be in a great marriage with at least one kid
• Be successfully known as a Fashion Designer, Humidor Designer, and Architect
• Own a vacation house in France
• Work whenever I see fit
• Be written about in design books and be researched and be some students favorite designer

Inspiration

• Elie Bleu – French humidor/jewelry box designer
• Mondo Guerra – Fashion designer from project runway
• Elie Saab – Lebanese fashion designer
• Lionel Messi – Soccer player for Argentina National team and Barcelona Club team

{ 10:10 pm

It’s not required that you password protect your posts, but if you want to, here’s how to do it:
click Edit next to Visibility in the Publish area to the top right
then click Password Protected
click Ok, and enter a password
Then click OK.
Note – Editor and Admin users can see password protected or private posts in the edit view without knowing the password.

If you do password protect your posts, you must use the password we agreed upon in class so other members of the class can view your work. If you need a reminder of the agreed upon password, it’s the same password that came with your account (which you should change). Hint:

f Christopher

Jason Miller

He has created tons of work, all of which are thoughtful and interesting. He also supports other designers through Roll and Hill.

Tim Liles

His work has always included a fun playful spirit and he has worked for companies that truly fit his aesthetic like Converse and Hurley.

Asher Dunn

He started a business straight out of RISD and has pushed for it to grow and expand. He is dedicated to being involved in the local design community.

Hella Jongerius

She’s remained true to her genius aesthetic and has had the opportunity to work with so many amazing companies like Moroso and Maraham.

Paul Loebach

I admire his knowledge of furniture and craft history and his passion for utilizing new technologies while referencing a historical vernacular.

Tim Gunn

He is so cool and an amazing icon of design eduaction.

{ 8:34 pm

This semester

            Create a list of 15 places that I would like to work at / apply to

            Photograph all work successfully (high quality)

            Write to at least 5 design blogs about my work and website

            Have a completed resume and business cards

 This year

            Graduate from RISD with an updated resume, website, and portfolio

            Have applied to at least 10 companies / businesses

            Make a list of personal projects that I would like to work on after school

            Take a week to travel

           Build myself a manufacturer/ material source book for future personal work

           Successfully find design related job

 2 years from now

            Continue to work on and finish a personal project every 5 months, market/pitch projects to the future perfect, matter, ect

            Keep website updated – press, new projects, resume

            Enter at least 2 design competitions/ shows per year (core77, ID mag, ect)

            Build a professional resume by finding freelance work (3 small projects/ yr)

            Go to ICFF as attendee every year it takes place

            Be showcased in at least one satellite show during NY Design week

            Take at least 2 weeks each year to travel

            Continue to learn manufacturing processes for design

            Continue to work in a design related job

 5 years from now

            Be guest lecturer, teacher or visiting designer at a university (RISD!)

            Do a collaboration with a designer friend!

            If previous jobs are unsatisfying, find a job related to my interests/ aesthetic

            Have at least two of my own products manufactured by companies I admire (above)

            Reevaluate personal work/ define direction

            Create 10 new personal project ideas

            Continue to work on, finish, pitch/market a personal project every 5 months

            Build a professional resume by finding freelance work (2 small projects/ yr)

            Showcase personal work at 3 ICFF satellite shows (1/yr for 3 years)

            Showcase at ICFF at least once

            Have my work be in at least 7 national design magazines (Dwell, Surface, Wallpaper)

            Go to Milan as attendee

10 years from now

            Be a regular part time faculty member for at least a year at a design university

            Have my work be in at least 15 national design magazines

            Show in Milan

            Have a furniture/product design job I’m very satisfied with OR

            Be self employed designing my own furniture/ products

{ 8:09 pm

Don’t forget to send your preferred email address so you can have an account created for you. Projects for this week must be posted to this site, and you will need an account to do so. If you don’t see your name listed on the site when you click on the icon of the 2 people, you don’t yet have an account. I’d like everyone to have an image associated with their profile, via Gravatar, in time for the next class meeting. Also, you should change your password once you get your account.

f Christopher

If you are having difficulty getting started on setting your goals, here are a couple of readings on the topic that might help inspire you:

The book Write it Down Make it Happen cites several stories of goal setters who turn into celebrities after they write their goals down. Apparently Jim Carrey wrote himself a check for $10 million and Scott Adams of Dilbert wrote “I will become a syndicated cartoonist” 15 times a day, long before either came true. Although this is perhaps a simplistic view of the steps these individuals took on their road to success, the author spends 250 pages arguing for the power that writing a goal down can have.

I mentioned the often cited study of Yale’s class of 1953, which claims that the 3% of polled graduates that had set goals were more successful than the other 97% combined.  Fast Company seems to be making the claim that they debunked this myth, but Yale also has an official statement on their website stating “It has been determined that no “goals study” of the Class of 1953 actually occurred.”

If that doesn’t make you skeptical of the benefits of goal setting, there are plenty of articles that try to do just that. The Boston Globe has an article that reads like a cautionary tale against letting goal setters get out of hand (warning – it loads slowly). The article cites a paper titled “Goals Gone Wild,” whose author, Adam Galinsky, says, “Goal setting has been treated like an over-the-counter medication when it should really be treated with more care, as a prescription-strength medication.” Sounds Dangerous. The New York Times also has a post in their “Idea of The Day” blog, that touches on, and links to more content on the trouble with setting goals. In the end, I think, like all things, moderation is key. As long as you maintain an awareness to your greater situation, keep an open mind, and set S.M.A.R.T. goals, I think you will be better off having set goals than you might be otherwise.

Elsewhere in the New York Times, the owner of a furniture company outlines some of his near term goals for his business. Although he has an impressive list, these goals read more like a to-do list than “goals” as we have been discussing them. And another article in the New York Times has some exercises you can do to help figure out what your goals might be. It’s focused specifically on single year goals and was written to help with new year’s resolutions (from 2007), but it might be useful anyway.

If you are looking for some scholarly research on the topic of goal setting and motivation, try Motivation: Theory and Research, a report that was funded in part by the Army Research Institute for the Behavioral and Social Sciences. Perhaps most relevant in this text is Chapter 2 “Goal Setting Theory”, written by two pioneering researchers in this field, Edwin Locke and Gary Latham. Another approachable text that covers some of the same territory is Goal Setting and Task Performance: 1969-1980, also co-authored by Locke.

If you are still stuck, below are some questions you can ask yourself to help get in the proper mindset (adapted from the book Professional Practice for Interior Designers) :

• If you were going to interview for an opportunity tomorrow, what specific career goals would share with the interviewer?
• What could you do now to improve your chances in pursuing the opportunity you desire the most?
• List three of your biggest successes
• List at least 3 things that drew you into your field
• List 3 people you most admire, include a few sentences explaining why
• Which of the following is most important to your career: money, recognition, self satisfaction, creative expression
• What do you think you need to change to make yourself happier in your career?
• What frustrates you most about your pursuit of your career?
• What do you like most about the working in your field?
• When are you at your best?
• Do you prefer to work in a group or independently?
• What do you want to be remembered for, what will your obituary say?

Another exercise adapted from the same book:
On a sheet of paper make 2 columns, one with the heading “problem” and the other “solution”. Under the “problem” column, list things that are holding your back, then write a potential solution to the problem in the “solution” column.

If you find anything else helpful or interesting, share it with the group here.

f Christopher

For your reference (or entertainment!), I’ve posted the slides from the “Goal Setting” presentation.

f Christopher