Ideas are fragile, especially in their initial state. They’re vulnerable to the pressures of the world, and they’re scrutinized under so many different lenses that they can get squashed quickly. I see my primary role as cultivating an idea, and then defending and nurturing it to allow it to grow and strengthen so that others can add their areas of expertise and knowledge. You can lose a project very quickly if you lose the idea, so I work to protect it and make sure it remains legible.

I have found that one of my strong skills is to bring the best ideas out of my team. I also teach as an adjunct professor at Lawrence Technological University and that has given me an ability to move from student to student, and in the office, from designer to designer. I quickly get into what they’re trying to do, understanding their ideas and helping them clarify those ideas so that they have a strong narrative that a project team can get behind.