Graphic Designer
Has been in the design industry for 17 years
Dress code:
He is a black tee shirt, jeans with sneakers, and ball cap guy. If he has a client meeting, he'll fix his hair (skip the cap), put on a jacket, with the added touch of a pocket square.
Favorite shops/brands:
On his wish list:
More pocket squares
Addicted to:
Has over 200 pairs of sneakers in his home. Keeps five pairs of shoes in his office.
Favorite style sites:
Workday:
Typical work hours:
9:30am - 9:30pm, or later.
Meeting essentials:
Job stress management:
Does other things - like going for a bike ride - to not think about work problems. "When I get back, my brain has been wiped clean, and I find myself far more creative."
Office music:
Desk drawer:
Favorite office supply:
Office space description:
"Imagine if you had a big country farmhouse and everything centered around your kitchen table - this is my kitchen table space."
Email management system:
He uses Google apps for business. It's basically Gmail, but in an email app. "I don't know if it saves me any time, but it certainly saves me headache. "
Agenda:
Secret to meeting daily objectives:
Keeps a bulletin board full of project note cards, prioritized by status. Also, writes his
to-do list and manually crosses things off.
Method for networking:
Don't be afraid. Say, "Hi," and then shut up
and listen.
Professional advice that has stuck:
From the HOW conference: "No one hires you for what you can do. They hire you for who you are."
"If I'm stressed out
while sitting here,
having a creative
roadblock, I stop
working because I'm
not getting anywhere
anyways. So I grab a
bike and ride."
"Every day, I come to work, I try to be a better designer
than I was the day before. It's been like that since the
beginning of my career. I'm always striving to be better."
Duane's desk is the combination of two drafting tables. He spends time, for each of his projects, on both sides of his desk - the sketch/draw/concept side and the execute in Adobe Illustrator on his mac side.
Spare tube and tire lever
Chapstick, Medicated
Car key
Steve Zissou Patch
DCTA Transit Pass
Pens: Sharpie & Uniball
Cycling cap
iPad in fun case
Noise canceling ear buds
Comb
Various stickers
Device screen cleaning cloths
This side of Duane's desk space is used for drawing, sketching, painting, and developing initial design concepts on paper. The note cards provide a visual status reference of his ongoing projects.
Duane uses one monitor for emails and social sites, while the other is reserved for design projects and research.
Duane has collected over 200 pairs of sneakers. Determining which of his shoes to wear each day is the most challenging part of his morning routine.
The second room in Duane's office includes more work stations, the printer area, and a convenient kitchen stocked with waters, energy drinks, Cliff bars, coffee and Sriracha sauce (his favorite).
