"HOW RDQLUS WAS THAT?!

Every summer there comes a time when reasons for my annual burst of excitement is all too obvious. The HOW Design Conference approaches and I reach near giddy status in anticipation of meeting up with thousands of creative types like myself. Consider this: I never went to summer camp so this is my 12 year old self, packing and readying myself for a summer camp full of old friends and new faces. 'Meatballs', anyone?



This year's edition of the "HOW" was in the creative haven of Austin TX. No better place could have been chosen as it supported a very loose, indie, devil-may-care vibe that lies at the heart of many a creative person. The heat was record status, but that's not saying much for Texas in June, where 103º is no record temp. The food was incredible all week long. And the "weird" was definitely brought with force.



For the past few years I've been a member of the advisory committee for the conference and the last two years I've been fortunate enough to have presented and facilitated the Networking Lunch. So I've been involved on a different level, which may explain my passion for the HOW conference and my love for the staff. But this year there was more… I was "honorary staff"! Little did I truly know what that meant. The involvement went even deeper, more scheduled that even an attendee, and really pretty tiring. But also with that, deepened my appreciation and my feelings of why this is so important to me. I've seen the conference from the perspective of attendee, speaker and now staff. Nothing has dulled my view of what HOW means to me and so many others just the same. Some get jaded or the newness and excitement wear's off. Understandable. But for others, the vibe grows in importance and meaning. Just like summer camp.

So after introducing speakers and conducting on-the-street interviews, I was once again asked to speak on a panel with some amazingly sharp minds, a few of whom also happened to be very good friends. Jeni Herberger, Daniel Schutzsmith, Jeff Fisher, Andy Epstein, Megan Slabinski and myself held an early-bird special session to talk about some of the issues facing creative professionals of every type. To our surprise there were actually people in the seats that early! More over, they had to kick us out of the room because people stayed for hours after, talking things over and really taking the conversational art to heart. Have I told you why I love the conference so much? It's just that: the ability to connect and share for 4 days in a delightfully captive environment.



I wasn't able to attend many sessions due to working the conference this year, but lots of good things were heard about many a speaker. Von Glitschka, Daniel Schutzsmith, Mark O'Brien, Mark Randall and Andy Epstein are a few of the people you should look up because their info will be available and it was very well received.

This year was also special for me as a new author and a growing independent creative. The HOW Bookstore carried my new book "100 Habits of Successful Freelance Designers" and even set up an impromptu book signing for me. Thanks to the staff who worked the bookstore. You were so amazing! New this year was the incredible HOW Marketplace, where creatives were able to display and barter handmade goods. Leading up to the conference, I created an exclusive t-shirt that became a minor hit with conference goers. (raise your hand if you are the proud owner of an exclusive "Aus10tayshus" tee!)





And now we've come to the candy-coated goodness of it all… Yes, there was the now famous themed end-of-the-conference party, hosted by Neehah Paper and HOW. This year's theme of "Keep Austin Weird" was taken to heart by many, myself included and if you caught sight of my gold crown, golden "Elvis" shades and golden shoes, you know I was all in!



In all, another great conference and the excitement for the next has started to mount already. My thanks and love to the HOW staff. Bryn, Heather, Beth, Lynn, Barb, Alicia, Amy, Megan and Sara; You all are so amazing and I've always respected and appreciated what you've done for me and others, but I now have a new-found respect for what it is you truly do and pull off without asking for extra thanks or adulation. Well I'll loft up all the extra I can because you deserve it. And to the many others I met and chilled and conversed with last week; Props and all the best to you, colleagues and new friends. You've made this year as good or better than any other.

Keep the Conference experience going at HOW Design Conference

The Art of Saying NO

"FoR" and editor of HOW Magazine, Bryn Mooth, recently contacted me with a few questions dealing with issues that freelancers face for the HOW Creative Freelancer Conference Blog. Here's part 2 of that interview…

Click the title or link below to have read the most recent post.

CFC Blog: the Art of Saying No

Advice from a Freelancer

I recently did an interview with my good friend and "Friend of RDQLUS" Bryn Mooth, editor of HOW Magazine. Coming off of their amazingly popular HOW Design Conference, the staff at HOW have created the Creative Freelancer Conference aimed squarely at issues facing independent creative types. Bryn was kind enough to contact me with a few questions.

Click the post title or the link below to read the part 1 of the interview.

CFC: Advice from a Freelancer

Thanks to Bryn and the staff at HOW!

HOW Magazine Online

It's a Celebration!

The night has finally been picked and the event is planned! It's going to be a low-key chill & spill for the official release of my first book! Yeah a little late but a brotha's been workin' y'all! I'm am very humbled, excited and very thankful to all who have helped or been involved in even the smallest way with so many of the good things that have gone down lately.

If you can join, come on thru and say hey! I'll have a few books on hand if you want to grab one, but it's not about that. I just want to celebrate and party with you… come on now… CeeeelllllabrAAAAAYshun!
(Cool & the Gang is NEVER wrong!)

Special thanks to Tanya Patry & Brenda Lyman for their lasting support and efforts making the good times happen.

(photo courtesy of Donovan Beery… who bought the most books of any one person!)

Limited Edition "Aus10tayshus" Tee for HOWaustin 09

The Time Has Come! Announcing the RDQLUS CREATIVE limited edition "Aus10Tayshus" graphic tee for the HOW Design Conference in Austin TX this June!

With the advice of native-Texan, "Friend of RDQLUS" and killer creative Roby "Swagga'Fitz" Fitzhenry, the earth-tone brown design is the final call. So with that…








For the next two weeks, the tees are going to be made available thru the RDQLUS CREATIVE shop on Zazzle. When (50) total shirts are ordered, or the two-week period is up, the design will be discontinued forever!

Another small-batch, hyper-limited run of hand-numbered, screen-printed shirts will be available from me at HOWaustin. These hyper-limited edition tees will have a variation from the limited edition tees. But don't fret, all who get a tee will feel that special'ness that comes from "rare & exclusive" draped on their bodies!

Look 4 me in my custom 1-of-1 variation at HOWaustin and keep your fingers crossed that I have one left for you!

(The tees will be printed on semi-fitted AmericanApparel™ Organic tees)

RDQLUS CREATIVE: Dyana Valentine iD & branding

Last year, I met a gracious, in-your-face, dynamic personality in the form of mentor/speaker/teacher, Dyana Valentine. Frank, honest, candid… and yes that mane of untamed goodness… she was in full command of the room as she spoke to eagerly listening freelancers, at the HOW Creative Freelancer Conference in Chicago, about finding our just who they were and what their focus was. Little did I know that our paths would cross and I would get the opportunity to do the same for her as a client.

Using my iD creative briefing process dubbed "Identity Therpy", I was able to take an assessment of who Dyana was at her core, her beliefs, and her message, which is that of passion for finishing what you start mixed with her own vibe quoted as "elegant utility". Wow was THAT tons to go on! And still again, there was that mane of untamed goodness…

So I steered directly into the obvious. Dyana Valentine is a sparkplug of a personality, but most people don't have an iconic and almost trademarked trait. She does, undeniably. She knows it, and she owns it, and anyone who comes within 100 feet of her can't forget it. But there had to be more to it, more substance—a back-story. So to create the silhouette of that iconic hair, the choice was made to create said silhouette from other icons that would represent aspects of her life and message that she brought to bare for hear audiences and clients. Each icon has specific meaning: big ideas, teaching, benevolence, searching for the details, hard working, yet regal and natural, raw energy. All of this that actually makes up Dyana Valentine comes together to make up the mark that represents her as a professional entity.





The full mark itself can be broken out into three phases: the "icon fro", the nameplate, and the icons themselves as useful tools for categorization and presentation of messaging and topics.















The new iD gave way to branding items that were necessary in the roll-out of her new professional suite.





Dyana is also known for her "Hello, I'm Really Good At…" stickers that are both teaching tools and ice breakers. So with a new iD, why not brand those also? A solid brand from top to bottom is a fine avenue for clear, consistent visibility messaging.






I'd like to say a big thank you to Friend of RDQLUS, Jeni Herberger, for the formal introduction to Ms. Valentine. I'd also like to thank Dyana Valentine herself for hbeing such a joy to work with and an exciting client. For more about Dyana Valentine and the amazing work she's always up to, visit www.dyanavalentine.com

"HOW AUS10TAYSHUS" Can RDQLUS Be?!

HOWaustin 09 Custom Tee from RDQLUS CREATIVE

So yesterday, by way of Twitter (@rdqlus_creative), I hinted at a limited edition, custom design for the HOW Design Conference '09 to be held in Austin, TX this summer. Well a sneak-peek of the new design has surfaced!

The overall design is a fun take on the name 'Austin' and features a random-typeset spelling of the word 'ostentatious', meaning: "designed to impress or attract notice". Well, uh… YEAH! The "HOW AUS10TAYSHUS!" design will come in (3) varieties, each featuring one of the RDQLUS identity colors.








The scrolls, stars, and cobbled-together typefaces all have a fun Southwestern feel that is decidedly Texas, while staying contemporary and avoiding and old, campy or played out look. The idea is to give mad props to Austin for all of it's creative vibe and cultivation of contemporary arts and creative cultures!

For more info on the HOW Design Conference, click thru here. Stay tuned to find out when and where this RDQLUS limited edition design will surface! Also check out 'Friends of RDQLUS' 36Point to see their plans for HOWaustin!

RDQLUS CREATIVE; Identity Work - The Purpose Driven Leader

Through a very interesting '6 degrees of separation' I was introduced to Mr. Paul Bryant, an Omaha-area businessman who over the last 4 years has assumed the reigns at The Wesley House Leadership Academy in North Omaha. A staple of that community, I myself attended The Wesley House as a youngster growing up around the areas between Lake and Hamilton streets.

With the many projects that Mr. Bryant is working on, he wanted to begin to brand some of his speaking and teaching materials for greater impact and reach. So in a bit of paying-it-forward (or backward in this case) I fashioned a mark and title block for him to have the beginnings of an identity for his endeavors.

The Purpose Driven Leader series of works will be about the schooling, emotional and moral instruction. Starting with young men in the North Omaha community due to the location of The Wesley House, the message will extend from young men and women to even established adults of all races and ages.



The mark itself shows an instructor organizing a group of young men with his focus on the very young and as they get obviously older, they are further back in the line-up, more and more ready to go out on their own with the lessons learned. The silhouettes are created as much by what is not there as is what is there, allowing the eye and the mind to finish the composition by filling in the gaps. The very strong figure/ground relationship makes it an easily reproducible mark on a variety of mediums.

It began with young men because sadly the statistics are such that it is the young men of the community often pulled into less than favorable situations. By helping the young men of a community, it is often a large help to the community on the whole.

My thanks to Paul Bryant and The Wesley House for the kind reception and the chance to work with them on what is sure to be a growing initiative.