Be Inspired - Go Ahead and Dream
In the spirit of the Martin Luther King Holiday... here is an inspiring design story.
In 1966 Charles Harrison solved an everyday nusance—the early-morning clanging of metal garbage cans—by designing the
first-ever plastic garbage bin for Sears. "When that can hit the market, it did
so with the biggest bang you never heard," wrote Harrison in his 2005
book, A Life's Design. "Everyone was using it, but few people paid close attention to it."
BACKGROUND
Harrison came from a home where money was tight and became skilled in solving problems. "That set the stage for the rest of my life." Harrison said. He also struggled with dyslexia. But found his strength in art. In 1956, Sears refused to hire him because of an unwritten policy against hiring black people. To get around it, they hired him on a freelance basis through a vendor/contractor. In 1961 when they finally hired him, Harrison rose to become the first black executive and overseeing 22 designers. He worked at Sears for 33 years until the department was shut down in 1993 and was the last employee to leave. Harrison currently teaches at Chicago's Columbia College. Read More
PRACTICAL INSIGHT
- Design should be uncluttered, straight forward and honest.
- A lack of job security may cause you to find security deep within yourself
- The afternoon sun may litterally shed light on a problem in a way that you may not have seen at daybreak.
- Being the odd man out may give you the right perspective.
PHILOSOPHY
- Family - pull from your family background
- Skill - always push your skill with continuous learning
- Experience - touch the world and different cultures. really learn about the people you're designing for.
- See a Wider Scope - realize you're doing this for someone else. Not yourself.
- Keep pushing - keep your focus. have a passion. stay with it and you'll most likely make it.
