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My Design Career

I have been working in the building and construction industry for over 15 years now and whilst my career so far has been successful and rewarding, the path ahead is simply not very appealing. My aim in life is to enjoy it and when I finally realised that I wasn’t enjoying my current line of work I decided a change was necessary.

One of my greatest strengths as a builder is my ability to look beyond the boundaries for innovative solutions to the many challenges faced in the delivery of a construction project. It is this area of my work that I naturally enjoy the most. It allows me to work to my strengths, creating a sense of accomplishment, but more importantly, it allows me to be creative. Having identified my strenths and the aspects of my career that I enjoyed most, I started to realise that if I could combine my strengths with a more creative career I would not only have a more enjoyable career, but hopefully a more successful one too.

Originally I planned to study Architecture; I guess this was the logical choice for a builder who wanted to be more creative! As it turned out I was offered a place in Industrial Design and not Architecture. At the time I didn’t know much about Industrial Design. I thought an Industrial designer worked in the industrial sector and had something to do with power stations and oil rigs (boring). It was not until I did some research and commenced the first semester that I realised how big the Industrial Design sector is and how much influence Industrial Designers have on our every day lives.

I think my future in Industrial Design will be loosely based around the buildings we live in and what goes in them. I am constantly re-designing my apartment, my parent’s home and pieces of furniture that are lying around. Sitting here in my apartment now I designed and built the desk I am working at and the bookshelf sitting next to me.

I find that I am already developing ideas and philosophies around the way things are manufactured, their impact on our planet and the unnecessary amount of waste that they generate. I think my simple and practical approach to life will show through in my Industrial Design career and in the products I have influence over.

Ultimately I believe my future in Industrial Design will be reflective of the skills I have acquired as builder, combined with the skills that I am learning and have yet to learn as I study Industrial Design. I enjoy the practical nature of Industrial Design and I enjoy being involved in projects from conception through to delivery, but most of all I enjoy the constant drive for innovation that appears to be a fundamental component of Industrial Design today.

2 comments:

  1. I believe that on your search for a more creative element in your job, industrial design seems like a very appropriate area of study. It is very beneficial having skills from the building industry, as you will already have a better understanding of the sorts of designs that people like, and desire.

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  2. YOu've obviously got a liking for construction and with this brings many skills for industrial design. The courses that you had applied for all show a creative and practical side so Industrial design, naturally, seems to be a match for what you want to do in the future whether it be ID or architecture.

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