The enormity of that problem is mind-boggling, but critical. If you could give advice to a young person starting out, what would you say? I was hesitant and embarrassed by it. It has to be something that you are also good at and that the world finds valuable. I also think mentorship opportunities are huge. I would not be where I am today without someone who had taught me how to navigate the world of business and how to deal with adults.
The core team who got us through the first year were people I knew through connections. And the opportunity of playing the game—of deciding that Typekit would be a venture-funded project—was just so much easier here.
That makes it great to be here. There are drawbacks. That is a huge boost to creativity—making connections that you would have never thought of. I try to do that, but a lot of my calendar is about networking and meeting with people who founded or work at startups. I have to seek out and make an effort to find people who are not doing what I do.
For sure. Behance is the largest organized creative community and what they are doing is amazing. For all of the eye-rolling we do around social networks, you can take the signals from social networks and see the best work bubble up, regardless of network connections or geography. How do we uncover those amazing people and their craft? Behance has found a way to do that. Also, having a small group of people I trust is really important. Sometimes there are periods of good momentum, but I also get stuck.
The more difficult answer is that I try to find a balance between going fast and going slow. If I were to choose something to listen to in order to get into deep creative thinking and work, it will be ridiculously epic, post-rock instrumental music from the likes of Mogwai or Explosions in the Sky. Well, my favorite movie of all-time is Raising Arizona from the Coen brothers—you can take that for what it is. And my favorite TV shows are all the TV shows that are on right now because—holy crap!
I wish I had more time, but I like choosing to engage episode by episode. Also, The Elements of Style goes hand in hand with that. Well, I think we all probably aspire to make the world a better place. I was unbelievably fortunate to be beginning my work and practicing a craft during a time when there was so much opportunity surrounding this thing that has transformed the world.
Nobody would disagree that the web has fundamentally changed everything. To be there at the beginning was—and is—an honor. I believe that any contribution I can make at this point in history is going to make things better, as long as I have the right values as I do it. Have you had any mentors along the way? Jeff cofounded and served as CEO for Typekit, a service that offers designers and developers a subscription-based library of hosted, high quality fonts. Are your friends and family supportive of what you do?
Upcoming SlideShare. Like this presentation? Why not share! Embed Size px. Start on. Show related SlideShares at end. WordPress Shortcode. Next SlideShares. Download Now Download to read offline and view in fullscreen.
Download Now Download Download to read offline. Presenting to Decision Makers. SOA Transcript. Evaluation of the verve music video. Choosing the right technology for kids. Threats to your Employees at the Work Place. Related Books Free with a 30 day trial from Scribd. The Secret of Chanel No. Related Audiobooks Free with a 30 day trial from Scribd. Two-Dimensional Man Paul Sahre. Views Total views. Actions Shares. The pair had a series of lunches and coffees, and Conrad began asking Veen if he might be interested in joining True Ventures.
In the way Silicon Valley works today, having some influence over the things that get funded is a great way to help guide and shape the direction of the web. Today Veen dedicates roughly half his time to the investment side of things; the rest he spends in more of a mentorship role with the companies in True's portfolio.
He also acts as an advisor to companies such as Medium and WordPress, and has just started a podcast — Presentable — in which he chats with guests about how design is changing the world. There are also, of course, speaking engagements, including his talk at Generate London on crafting a creative culture. Still fully engaged by the ever-changing world of UX, Veen is currently fascinated by the possibilities of virtual and augmented reality and how they're going to affect interaction models.
There's never an opportunity to be bored. While technology is moving forward in leaps in bounds, there is an area that is holding the industry back: diversity, in terms of gender, ethnicity, age and socio-economic background. Veen believes it's something we must address if the practice of UX and product development is going to mature. It might not be a technical issue, but it's a tough one to tackle and Veen is well aware that True Ventures needs to practise what it preaches.
Let's get this right, now. Book your ticket now! This article originally appeared in net magazine issue ; buy it here! Jim McCauley is a writer, cat-wrangler and occasional street performer who's written for a multitude of publications over the past quarter of a century, including Creative Bloq, T3, PC Gamer and a whole load of long-dead print magazines.
Jim McCauley.
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