The great discontent: Dan Cederholm

Designer Dan Cederholm interviewed by The Great Discontent:

Maybe it goes back to not being formally trained, but I always had this inferiority complex. I thought I was going to be outed as a non-designer and that someone would say, “Wait, he’s not really a designer. He’s not part of this club.” That isn’t true. The difference between someone who is a designer and someone who isn’t is simply that a person who is a designer has done it. My advice is don’t get hung up on labels or position or titles. It doesn’t just happen; it’s a gradual process. You can’t be afraid to jump in there and start doing it.

Dan’s a cool designer, one who’s been a huge source of CSS inspiration for me with his Bulletproof Web Design and CSS3 for Web Designers books. Naturally it’s a great interview, but it was this paragraph that really struck a chord with me. I’ve always pushed my career forward by looking for the next big thing and not being so hung up on my specific role. I’m not alone either; designers and developers are moving to smaller, multidisciplinary teams where being game for wearing multiple hats becomes critical.