I recently got round to reading Sagmeisters monograph. I enjoy reading monographs, however I think they are a difficult thing to really get valuable information from. The trap is to read to closely into what other people are doing that it becomes strange for an individual to focus on their own path without it being a pastiche of other peoples ideals.
Sagmeister's book is particularly entertaining and it highlights the extreme devotion to his professional life, and his seemingly non existent personal life. This monograph was of value due to the viewpoint that Sagmeister shares on his personal and professional practice divide. I think that I will take this with a pinch of salt. I am massively different to Sagmeister in the way that I am not as intense about graphic design as Sagmeister is. Sagmeister believes that if you hobbies you do not enjoy what you are doing. I personally feel that everything in moderation is applicable, and that my own design work is better when I engage with things outside of design. I think this is something I will take into my professional practice, engaging with things and people outside of the design spectrum will help me be a more rounded designer with wider and more personalised professional and personal concerns.
There are some ways that we are similar in that I think that design needs to be for people, and not at the mercy of other designers, or design criticsim. I like the idea that I do not need validation to be confident in my work, and I feel that Sagmeister is very comfortable with his working process.
I will continue to read books on design, and beyond, as I think they can be more reflective and impactful than a blog post, news article, or a lecture.
