As an introvert and a generally quiet person, I got into design at age 15 to express myself.
I realized I was pretty good at articulating complex thoughts and ideas into something visual that could be widely understood.
I made a living off of it.
I evolved with all the changes that came over the last 2 decades.
But in this era of AI in design, I find myself resistant to fully embrace it.

Design is communication. It's language, but visual. It's observable, human imagination.
It's about expressing an idea, a concept, a value.
The creative process is about slowly defining the edges of that thing you are building.
What it is. What it is isn't. And all the intrinsic, unseen qualities.

I'm realizing the part I love about design is wrestling with the idea itself, and finding creative ways to express that visually for others to absorb.
The outcome always has more depth because of that, sometimes difficult, process.
The creative process as an act itself is vital, tangible, and beneficial.
There is something to be said for building the tangible skills to convey the meaning behind things and to keep finding new ways to express them (i.e. innovating: which AI can't do, only replicate).

Design is a signal.
It's not just a visual.
It's not just meant to be consumed.
There is something almost intangibly alluring about good design that connects with people.

Some things about AI excite me, but most of it feels extractive. It's often noise, not signal. It flattens and dilutes design into something that loses meaning. I find my excitement about design fading with AI tools that are supposed to help me be faster, produce more, and keep up with the times (that aren't even good TBH).

So I am returning to more of my pre-AI rhythms. The canvas. The mistakes. The physical expression. Pencil on paper (which is still how I draft logo ideas).

I am not a machine. I am human. I enjoy human things. Even the parts of the human experience that we sometimes forget that we enjoy: struggle, for one. Without struggle, life would be boring.
Not everything needs to be easy, fast, or cheap.

I would argue the opposite. Often, the things that have real value are hard-won, knee-deep, and beloved BECAUSE of the journey. Maybe something is lost when we skip the journey and go straight to the destination.

The story builds the outcome.
And to me, that's what makes it worth doing.