Finding Value in the Economic Crisis
Current events like Cindy’s release from Xpedx are symptomatic of a much larger problem that appears to be coming to a head in the economic crisis. Times are tough right now, and companies are cutting costs. Those cuts tend to come first from advertising, marketing, and all of those places that generally involve jobs like mine in the design industry. There was a particularly dreary article published in Newsweek by Harvard Business that emphasized just how much people may stick their heads in the sand and attempt to keep rebuilding the dyke instead of addressing the oncoming tidal wave.
In that article, the author writes:
“Instead of finding more ways for us to all yap at each other, in this more sober economy we may want to emphasize other priorities. What new products and services will make for better, healthier lives and relationships? How can companies improve their performance? How can teenagers improve their math and science skills, instead of their texting skills?“
That’s the sad viewpoint that so many people are taking these days. Combine with that the number of people who continue to suggest that web 2.0 devices like Twitter are merely for us to “yap at each other”.
We can take the author’s suggestion and turn our backs on some of the greatest technological and mass media innovation since the printing press -or- we can take this opportunity (especially as designers and innovators) to push forward despite the recession and maybe even turn things around. We can be proactive and actually build value when the rest of the world is looking retain theirs. And it’s not even something we need to do special besides be who we already are: people whose value is in their creativity and their ability to create value for others.
As I’ve mentioned for the at least 1,237,683^2 time, Twitter is far more than a microblogging tool that allows us to chat colloquially, it’s a mass communication tool, an organizational tool. It’s a very powerful device. And there are other sources of web 2.0 power like LinkedIn and YouTube that can be creatively used to bring new value despite a bad economy. The reason the Newsweek author is wrong is because he lacks the insight to think creatively.
Basically, it comes down to us. The designers. We have to be proactive. We have to be creative. We are in a unique position to bring change in tough times, and we have to be willing to meet this head on instead of cowering in a corner.
