(Ruta Writes...) ... to tread a new path

... to tread a new path

They say that “Once the game is over, the king and the pawn go back in the same box.” It’s something that many of us believe! I feel that this is a saying those fatalist people who believe that all events in life are governed by fate and they are led by their destinies. Few are those gems who stride the path that no one has, seek the light in darkness that no one has ever dared to. I feel... it is not about the destination but more about the journey and the way you live it. Sometimes, it is as simple as - decide to walk and the paths start following. Imagine… one lost in an expanse of grassland of thousands of acres where no one has ever been. There is nothing but the vast spread grassland and somewhere at the horizon, the grassland meets the sky. One decides to walk to seek a human settlement. After walking for a substantial amount of time, if one turns back and sees, for once will he realize that he has marked a way of his own that people might follow. The challenge to seek new roads will be more fun than reaching the destination. One may be known only by what one has achieved and people will look just at the

outcomes. But, only one as a person will know the best parts of his journey. As a designer, I have seen that people and clients get awed by the final and finished products… but at times, I feel that the final product is not as beautiful as the inchoate idea. When designing spaces, the part of the design process where a designer can really reward himself is the creation of an incredible idea… the creation of a path, creation of the set of solutions to an issue, to a space that no one has thought of. The evolving of such an idea sets adrenaline running in a designer’s bloodstream and gives him the spirit to create more… But when such people are constrained and made to abide by some parameters, it is then that the level of the invention starts degrading.

It is very hard to find such a person who doesn’t succumb to any such impediment and prospers. As a student of design, I have listened to many people talk about hows, whats, whens and wheres of design. Most of them talk about design as a subject and a profession to which, I believe no listeners pay any heed. It is always inspiring to hear from people/ designers who not only design as a profession or as a hobby but imbibe it in themselves and make good design, a habit. 

As designers, we have to face practical constraints and come out of them. A classic and a convenient approach to address an issue would be to give out an optimum solution that well fits into the requirements and follows the constraints. But, how will it be to gaze at the solution which would be a mere factitious beauty that we have created? Thinking from a different point of view, and the changing perception of design from mere decoration to a strategic step, where a designer becomes a path director, a manager, a strategist, a economist and other endless positions, could we say that we could just not give out solutions to people but, advise them what to do and then surprise ourselves with the varied outcomes? Could this kind of a vision be translated into reality? Can we just raise people’s aspirations and leave them on their own to make them realize what they really want? Can we as designers believe in ourselves so much that we boost people’s understanding about what they really want and be sure that people accomplish their solutions? Can we just go one step ahead of optimists and be leaders who direct the masses? Can we be content just to point the way and not actually walk the path but still be able look back only to find that we have actually come a long way over the lonely grassland?

(Ruta Writes...) sustainable business: being human

...sustainable business: being human

These days, form the books I have read, the work I have done, the businesses I have seen, it seems that emotional branding, giving experiences, is what works today and that consumers appreciate it more when they are treated as people instead of mere subjects of targeted advertisements. This idea led me to think that even in a world where everything is mechanized and where the value of being human is rapidly diminishing, thanks to the fast moving, labor saving technologies, people still want to feel cared about. In a place where affluence is respected and having a lot of 'stuff' is considered as a symbol of success, where we have come far from being cave-men, we still crave more for being human.

At times, I really wonder what it means to have all the “luxuries” as we call them – a big car, a hefty salary, an air-conditioned house – where in all the drapes and windows are always closed, where one has everything he wants but does not relate to the nature cycles – when it rained, when it snowed, when was the last time I really looked at the moon, when was the last time I felt the breeze on my cheeks, when does it dawn and how long is the day? It has been scientifically proven that being affluent does not make one content. It just gives a surge of excitement for a while which is temporary, by nature. Once you posses a thing, the graph of excitement rapidly goes down and one starts looking for other things to satisfy his urge to posses. Thus it is a paradox that having more stuff will not make one satisfied, but hungry to look for more stuff, in turn making him unsatisfied and hence, unhappy. What we really 'need' is to be loved and not just keep on having more stuff. Have you ever thought that being with our parents, friends, partners and giving them everything – emotionally, is more satisfying than watching T.V or giving out a big and expensive gift. As I like to say, emotions are best expressed through emotions!

Yes, I was talking about being an aware customer, a responsible person and a sustainable citizen. I always relate the notion of being 'human' to being 'sustainable'. Being sustainable is not just using 'green' products, using public transport or using less paper. It is also about being responsible for what we do, respecting ourselves, others and the planet. Sustainability is about being satisfied with what we have, what we are and being happy. Even though we keep on producing, consuming and trashing 'stuff', even though we demean nature's best resources, even though we have invented the fastest ways of globe trotting and in turn polluting the planet, even though we have become loners, we still feel the need to socialize, the need to be cared for, the need to be loved, as we did in any era. The fact that we realize that our world has limited resources and that we all live in one single home, we tend to get even closer and our world shirks to become one big human family. After all, sustainability is all about being what we are – humans!

A business that makes people feel cared about, one that promises being light on the earth (e.g: is durable, is non-toxic) and has a purpose that people connect with, is likely to be sustainable.