Weeknote #10: The reality spectrum
I’ve been thinking about this idea of a ‘reality spectrum’ for a while now. The idea that there is a sliding scale of how much real life impact your design work has, and that this has a direct relationship with another spectrum; stress levels.
Last week I finished the deliverables for the project I was working on with Lloyds Bank’s innovation team. It’s a hypothetical proposition that has a long way to go before it makes it to market. While the work was interesting and I enjoyed learning more about innovation methodologies, one of the things I struggled with was the distance from reality.
This was my first contract following 15 months in the NHS during a pandemic. One of the main reasons I left the NHS was it was too stressful, too real. I’d never worked in a job before where you went to sleep thinking about it and woke up thinking about it. The weight of responsibility and the fear of doing something that would result in NHS Digital being on the front of the Daily Mail, or worse having a negative impact on someone’s health, was huge.
With my work at Lloyds I moved to the other end of the spectrum and once again, it didn’t real right. I struggled to connect with discussions about risk — because there was no real risk at all beyond a project not finishing on time. I struggled to make the connection to the work that I need to perform at my best.
So my learning from last week, that I’m taking into this week as I start piecing together work for next year, is that I need to find my sweet spot when it comes to design being real. Too real and I struggle to set boundaries, not real enough and I lack a connection that matters to me.
When I find it, I imagine I’ll feel a bit like this child running through a yellow world of joy.
