Last Friday I attended re:build 2011, which took place in Indianapolis. The stage was aptly located right below a basketball goal (Hoosiers, anyone?). I wasn’t too sure what to expect but I was blown away by every speaker and the attendees. The speakers were intelligent and captivating and I walked away super inspired with ideas to bring back to SmallBox.
Here were 5 of my takeaways
1. We shape the future of the web.
Faruk Ates brought up the topic of how designers are the sole architects of how the web will be in future. It is up to those of us using the web to continually push boundaries and evolve the web by experimenting with new technologies and devices. Technology is a field of lifelong learning, and you can easily fall behind. But the rewards for keeping up to date are priceless, as we are shaping the future interactions of our children and our children’s children. It’s a truly marvelous privilege when you shift your perspective this way.
2. Content has experience.
Every day since working at SmallBox the big buzzword seems to be content and its importance to the web. Rightfully so, because content is what drives user experience and is at the core of what people use the internet for. Users will gravitate toward content that is rich and intuitive to use, and over time websites with poor content will be weeded out. Keeping content as a priority in the web development process can have amazing results if done correctly.
3. Take a step back.
Too often we are so deep in our work, with our noses to the grindstone that we rarely take time to reflect and look at the big picture. Faruk Ates and Nevan Morgan both discussed this and described how artists take breaks and move away from their work and reflect on it without being able to alter anything. This reflection can help determine the next move in a thoughtful and planned manner.
4. Limitations breed creativity.
SmallBox CEO Jeb has talked about this before with our team and I keep it in mind often throughout the work week. It was not too surprising that these bright and intelligent speakers also talked about putting limitations on ourselves to foster and grow creativity inside a project. Putting restrictions on our work gives it scope and usually leads to more interesting and introspective work. A painter has the limitation of his canvas, a musician has the number of tracks/instruments he can put on one song, and a web designer has only so many pixels to manipulate in a browser window/device. By setting limitations, we force ourselves to be resourceful and creative.
5. I want an iPad.
Okay, so this one is a joke, but seriously I had iPad envy throughout the day. I saw how useful they were during events like this for communication and for sketching out ideas/notes really quickly. I am going to start saving up.
Re:build was an amazing event that I was happy to attend. I recommend it to everyone interested in web philosophy and emerging trends on the web. It was a delightful experience and I cannot wait to go next year. Many thanks to the events organizers for a fantastic job with a Hoosier touch.
