Michelle Merlin came to talk to us about their experience as a designer. This speaker had more of a closer to home feel as they graduated from the same program that we are all currently enrolled in and because of this generated similar projects with similar professors. I think that just looking at her work between portfolio and professional practices gave me a good idea of who this person was and how capable they were as a designer, the quality of the work just seems like its on a completely different level compared to me and my classmates. Strangely enough even with such an impressive body of work she was still extremely humble. During her presentation I was most interested in her experience working in a highly regimented design studio and got me thinking about the kind of work environment that I would be able to perform the best in and would allow me the kind of lifestyle that I desire. Personally I do not think that I could cope with working in a place that has a “work had play hard” mentality. I think that what I would be looking for a work environment similar to her experience at Genghis Kern with a smaller work team and a good balance between my work and home life where I won’t be red eyed throughout the whole weekend. This presentation also brought me back to Natalies train of thought about when should you leave and when should you stay with your job. I think that trying to analyze my options at any given time while working for a company is the best course of action. In Michelles case she was satisfied with her job at Genghis Kern but saw an opening for what was her kind of dream job and managed to get accepted, this makes me think more as there weren’t problem and she was happy where she was but she saw an opportunity to work somewhere that suited her more. After this presentation by her I feel that she is someone that I aspire to be like in the body of my work. Seeing someone who came from the same degree program as myself creating this great body of work and finding jobs in a way makes me feel more comfortable with my decision to go into this major and that there are some people that are using their degrees to work in the field that they studied.
