“Making rich people richer is not disruption, it’s the same old bullshit” says design guru Mike Monteiro in a speech given last June at the USI Conference in Paris.
Monteiro’s point is telling at a time when much of the tech industry’s business model is based upon solving the problems of rich white men, attracting investments from funds run by rich white men and then selling the venture to a corporation run by rich white men — what this blog calls the Silicon Valley Greater Fool model.
“How Designers Destroyed the World”, is Monteiro’s call to arms for the design industry. In it, he lays out four fundamental responsibilties that should guide how designers work; a responsibility for the world we live in, a responsiblity to the craft of design, a responsiblity to clients and, the most important of all, a responsibility to yourself.
“The work you do defines you,” says Monteiro about that responsibility to yourself. “I found when I started saying ‘no’, the clients listened. When I lost a bad job, a good job appeared.”
Monteiro’s view is designers are in a position of power. In truth though, we may all have a small degree of power in what we choose to do and choose not what to do.
“Responsibility is not a burden for you to carry, it’s a privilege.” Monteiro states. The presentation is well worth watching not just for designers, but for everyone.