Inspiration8

The Power of Words

This shows exactly how words can be impactful.

Now being a visual communicator, how can I make my visuals impactful too?

The Next Step

So what's the next step now, now that I think I have compiled enough information to form it into a small book. I've also explored a Japanese-English language to pose some questions online here: Motivation Research

What kind of book can I make with all these information, how should I translate all these information into something visual that serves its topic well? But what to draw when I don't exactly have a character. Hmm. But I think first of all, I need to plan my pages well before I begin anything.

One step further

I just created a short survey to investigate the questions I have towards this topic here.
Do help!

Click here to take survey

Thank You! :)

Inspiration7

Click here for more info!

This is one of the most interesting typography books I've ever come across. I first saw the real book in the hands of a friend who teaches art lessons in secondary schools and every page just screams HARDCORE TYPOPHILE! Check it out!

Inspiration6

Source here : Levels and Degrees of Light Book

This book reminds me of Len Lye's animations, most of his works involve using abstract shapes to sync with music. I thought the use of a book that explores vibrant forms of shapes to tell a story through jazz was interestingly experimental. Exploiting shape forms to tell something, I'm sure it's not as simple as it looks.

Mind Map

Even after narrowing down to 2 goals that I want to achieve, I still find the topic too broad and am a little lost, especially to find a concept that is able to wrap everything up. There's only 2 weeks left! D:

Maybe 2 goals is too much. But the reason why I have 2 goals is because I thought goal 1 is a little too shallow, I wanted something that holds a deeper meaning hence leading to why I want to find out what motivates people. Anyway a recap of my 2 goals:
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1. To investigate and understand how the encouragement of striving one’s best push or even dampen one’s capabilities to achieve.

2. Find out what motivates people.

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I plotted a mind map to see how these 2 objectives can link together. So what I concluded in the end was, one must have his own drive in order to perservere/motivate to achieve a goal such as work or studies which is also where words such as ganbatte/jiayou/do your best is most frequently used in.

But what about non-specific-goal oriented circumstances such as when a person is feeling down. These encouragement words don't sound as appropriate does it. That's when these specific words of encouragement turn out to have slight negative reactions.

I'm planning to do a survey to get more thoughts about this subject.

To come back to the project brief, with all these thoughts and information, what kind of book will it form up to be? Something infographic? Hmm but it doesn't seem to be wrapping enough. Let me attempt to write a concept statement.

Singapore being a multi racial country, a mix of languages is often used in the local scene. This project aims to investigate how the words of encouragement in striving one’s best, specifically in terms such as the Chinese’s “Jiayou 加油” and the japanese’s “Ganbatte がんばって” which both commonly translate as “doing one’s best” in English, push or even dampen one’s capabilities to achieve. In doing so, motivation to achieve in general mankind is examined and linked back to the subject of how these specific words from an external party play a part in motivation.

Okay, I hope this concept statement is nailed down and then I can start thinking what to do visually with this concept.

Inspiration5

Factors that keep us motivated for work: Autonomy, Mastery and Purpose.

Actually now I think most people are motivated by a purpose rather than autonomy or mastery. Autonomy can only work when the person has a want/desire/goal/purpose in mind to self-direct himself into achieving something because there's a tendency to slack off and be lost. As for mastery, though of course I agree, being a master of one craft is an attractive quality. But in terms of design, just that is not enough without any concept or purpose in the perfection of a picture say for example. So then it comes down to just purpose, a strong reason for doing something might just work to make you want to achieve something hence do your best in.

Looks like my topic is getting wider rather than narrowing it down...

Narrowing it down further2

After some talk with Jesvin and peers, there's a little drift in my objectives:

What are you going to do?

1. To investigate and understand how the encouragement of striving one’s best push or even dampen one’s capabilities to achieve.

2. Find out what motivates people.

After all these talk of how words of encouragement such as "jiayou" or "ganbatte" can maybe help in spurring a person to work harder or to do their best, most of the reactions I've got for this was no, it doesn't help much. Or it depends on who is the person saying these. Upon talking further, the question of "What motivates you then" came up. I think I may have just discovered my sole main purpose why I was curious about this topic.

In the meantime, the whole of last week I was reading articles, journals on why people do their best or what affects people to do their best. One of the articles that I came across was Kenneth Burke's "Definition of Man", here are some of the excerpts that I thought can relate to my topic:

“Man is ... rotten with perfection”

“Destiny Compulsion” - to bring out the thought that the sufferer unconsciously strives to form his destiny in accordance with this “striving for perfection” pattern.
the sufferer exerts almost superhuman efforts in the attempt to give his life a certain form.

What more illustrations could one want, of a drive to make one’s life perfect, despite the fact that such efforts at perfection might cause the unconscious striver great suffering?

From Kenneth Burke, “Definition of Man” in Language as Symbolic Action.

In the article it is said that it's is man's nature to strive for perfection and that perfection can mean in the simple sense of an author wanting to get his book published and so on. I thought it was interesting how it could apply to almost anything perhaps? As long as one has the drive and desire to achieve something be it from eating the most delicious ice-cream or have a happy marriage with 2 children or things like that. Each individual should have their own idea of "perfection" or rather the ideal life I believe.

But then again, perhaps having this thought of the ideal and working towards it can be two different things, depending how hard of a goal this ideal is. If it's just "I want to eat a banana", this thought can be easily fulfilled by going to the mart and buy one. But if it's something like "I want to be an astronaut", how much will one person go to achieve a "perfection" like that or forever just having it as a thought.

Hmm hope I'm on the right track.

Narrowing it down further

1. What are you going to do?

I am going to find out how far can one do his best, emotional impact on how this phrase of "do your best" plays a part in lightening spirits or dampening them and its effects on helping the person tide through the situation.

2. How are you going to do it?

Through research, posing questions to people. I guess eventually I want to understand how this word works in people and then the information gathered will be represented in the form of a book.

3. Why do you think it is interesting?

Because people often use "がんばって" or "加油" as encouragement during times of adversity. These Asian phrases of encouragement which can be translate to "put in more effort or do your best" is of different attitude in comparison to the western's "good luck". I thought it's interesting how these words of encouragement can affect a person's mood, feelings and does it really help to give you a push in these times of difficulty.

Turning Around

Ganbaru 頑張る

1: to persevere; to persist; to keep at it; to hang on; to hold out; to do one's best;
2: to insist that; to stick to (one's opinion);
3: to remain in a place; to stick to one's post; to refuse to budge

(Meaning from Jisho.org, an online Japanese dictionary)

It's Monday and I haven't found a focus I want to work on but I'm already facing some difficulties sorting out information. Firstly what do I want to find out from this theme of "to do one's best"?

Do I..? What do I want to know about ganbatte?

1. Want to know how it is being used in Japanese culture?

2. Want to explore how the word affects people?

3. What is ganbatte? How to ganbatte? Why ganbatte? When to ganbatte?
4. How is doing one's best applied in human spirit, when you say "do your best" and think that way, how far can you go?

5. Do I want to focus on Japan's use of this ganbatte spirit? Or am I more interested to find out how encouragement affects the human's ability to achieve.

6. Is ganbatte an invisible force that pushes human beings to achieve their maximum potential?

7. To keep be reminded to "do your best", does it help to boost your spirits and in return, raise your productivity?

Sadly I think I'm being tied down by language for this project if I were to focus on how this "ganbatte spirit" works in the Japanese people. Although what spurred me to choose this topic was due to "ganbatte" being used more recently to encourage the quake victims. But also I've always been interested in this use of "ganbatte" in songs, media, movies and dramas in Japan. Actually they're my source of encouragement or motivation whenever I feel down or stressed, I do feel spirited when I listen to these songs or reading stories of not giving up in times of difficulties and so on. Somehow not getting information from its origin source of use makes me doubt its accuracy at times.

So I guess I'll be turning my direction slightly towards the effects of perseverance and hanging on, what can come out of it? Or to put it in another way, how can encouragement help humans to achieve?

Ok great, at least I've narrowed down to something after typing all these.