Design: It’s about the story telling

I’m not a great story teller, but I’m trying to learn and get better as I gain more experience in life and work experience. I’m pretty confident that this is a key aspect in almost everything you do, and if you really think about it, the act of story telling is a very primal thing that we as humans do. From the moment we’re conceived, we’re told stories by our mothers & fathers while we’re budding inside the womb, and when we’re finally thrust unto the world, we’re told more stories. We are taught and are tested through the stories we’re told, and in turn that one day we will do the same to pass on knowledge. At the core of it all, the story telling is to communicate and deliver a message to the future through history i.e. past experiences.

In design, it’s all about communication, but really at the beginning of every project when we present a concept to a client, it’s about telling a story that the client will buy into conceptually and logically. Without it, you’re just chasing your own tail. A convincing story is the brick work for the solid foundation of the concept you want to present to your client; but it’s not just that, it’s also the focus of what you’re trying to achieve too for your client.

What I really fail to understand is that why when I went through school, there wasn’t a course specific to the art of story telling. This is an essential tool for every designer, and this really should be a part of the curriculum of every design/creative education, if it isn’t already in other institutions. I don’t believe that it’s entirely intuitive that design is about story telling, because we’re given the concept that it’s all about communicating a message, but in every day language the communication aspect is often perceived as a reactionary event, sort of like a knee jerk reaction that happens over a longer span of time. Brilliant designs & advertising all give you that “damnnnn” feeling when you feel overwhelmed by it’s message & execution (of course a good sense of marketing and understanding is at hand too). We’re fed it every day and it’s so common that we just no longer detect it. Not everyone is a good story teller, and even some of the best just weren’t born that way. Countless hours of experience culminate to a greater story to be told. There’s one quote from Paula Scher that I remember very fondly of and it was her talking about the design of the Citibank logo:

“It took me a few seconds to draw it, but it took me 34 years to learn how to draw it in a few seconds.” – Paula Scher

I think this really sums up the notion of story telling. Yes it’s a skill she’s attained, but it’s the ability too to deliver the concept (the story) with pinpoint accuracy. And all that through 34 years of experience in that one moment. Beautiful & great stories are told every day so learn the mechanics of it, and how you would translate that story into your own language. I don’t think anyone can teach you how you can tell a story with conviction, it is something you, yourself has to grasp and spend time on perfecting it.