Learning from Failure

Over the past two weeks, I researched, documented and collected loads of laundry detergent bottles. I talked to biology professors and students about the effects of the detergent chemicals on the environment. I even talked to my advertising professor about designing for other cultures. It wasn't working out.

I had a great idea, but in reality, there wasn't a great way to execute it. After my advertising class on Monday, my professor and I sat down and talked about why designing for cultures no longer works as it used to. He said that as the world becomes flatter and flatter, the more this concept of cultural awareness in marketing diminishes. Of course, there are still minor differences. There are images that aren't culturally acceptable, and certain product attributes that some cultures like more than others, but when it comes down to it, if a business wants to sell its products in multiple countries, they are probably already a global company, and don't really need to change much about their brand.

So, I asked if I should lean more toward marketing a sustainability project. And then he explained and we agreed that you don't really want to market sustainability, but rather it should be a value that a company has for itself.

After our discussion, I raced home on my bike in the freezing cold and snow flurries, ran up the stairs of my dormitory, threw open the door to my room and sat at my desk in a crumpled ball with my head flat on my laptop. This can't be happening, I thought. This is capstone. How can I be in such a horrible lost mess at the end of November? What am I going to do?

I brainstormed for the next hour, went back to my sketchbook with my original list of product ideas and thought how I might be able to make something else work. By midnight I was still searching for a solution, but I thought it was best to rest my brain and sleep.

You might think it's odd that I am sharing my struggles with capstone, but I find it very fitting. This blog was created to show my process throughout my capstone. That includes the stress points. Great designs, like most things in life, don't always work out. And by George, sometimes you have to fail in order to learn and grow. Yes, my proposal turned out to be a total drop in the bucket, but I am glad I realized it now instead of next semester.

We are given such a huge amount of time to do capstone because good design takes time. Our professors know we are going to face many challenges (and that is partially why you should pick a capstone you love), and that in the end, our projects may be entirely different than we thought they would. And my capstone will be entirely different, because I am going to start fresh.

And you know what, I think it's a good thing.