How logo design taught me to rethink

UX wasn’t really a thing when I went to university. We talked about web design, but it was mostly boring discussions about HTML, CSS, and Javascript. My love of design started with logos.

In my first design class at NSCAD, we were asked to produce 100 logo variations for an art gallery. At first I thought ‘This is an ADHD nightmare’.

100 logo variations.

I checked out some inspirational logo books from the library, printed off type specimens, gathered transparent sketching paper, a selection of Staedtler Fineliners in varying widths, and sat down for what I was sure would be a very painful week of sketching.

But as I started to sketch, I was surprised. I was fully in it.

I started by sketching distinct concepts, then used the transparent paper to layer in iterative thoughts on how shapes connected, adjusting small nuances in type, making connections, taking elements away. The whole time I was playing a mental game of choosing to iterate on an idea, or shifting focus to a new way of thinking altogether.

It seemed small at the time, but what I learned in this process has followed me in every stage of my career.

I learned to rethink – my first ideas were never winners. Rethinking under these narrow parameters opened my eyes to being flexible, and non-precious, about my ideas.

I learned to question everything – I was looking at inspiration and flipping through great logo designers work, but I was looking at the meaning, the why, behind each logo. I was seeing, not just looking.

I learned how to take critique – seeing my own original ideas enhanced by self-critique and class-critique, I learned that critique of your work isn’t personal, it’s for the greater good of the product.

I often think of how my career has shifted, where my strengths are, and whether critical thinking can truly be taught. When I think about how people learn today, I always remember that such an important lesson came in a seemingly simple activity. This act of taking time, slowing down, thinking, remaining flexible, is so much more than just the act.

I’d love to know – what lifelong lessons have you learned, and how did you learn them?