The current rant | past ramblings

2008:
The good, The inspiring
and The Unknown

James Hersick | 12.31.08

As 2007 drew to an end, I was glad to see it go. Business was good for us, but tragedies and trials in my personal life overshadowed all of the great accomplishments.

2008 was a very good year for Rocketfuel and for me personally. I rekindled my love of design and we did many projects we can be proud of. Our clients continue to be great partners and support us so wonderfully. I will never forget the pride and sense of accomplishment I felt when we finished the E. Carrey Kenney book. He is a great man and I consider myself lucky to have had the chance to work with him. The book is just one of the design highlights for us in 2008, but it will always have a special place in my heart.

Also in 2008, I was lucky enough to attend the AIGA leadership retreat in Omaha. I will admit that I was not looking forward to going. I had lots of work to get done in the office and it had been in San Francisco and Miami recently… so Omaha did not sound very exciting.  I was 100% wrong. It was a highlight of the year and a great experience. It was a ton of work and a ton of fun. No sleep was to be found, but I did find several new friends and lots of inspiration.

I also began shooting photography professionally again. It was a passion of mine many years ago, but I rarely used the skill for our clients. Who knows, maybe I’ll start painting again in 2009.

The last thing I want to mention is the AIGA BlueRidge ClockWork event. I co-chaired the event with Troy Dean, Kristina Hopkins, Courtney Trussell and Jessica Dean. This was the culmination of a 3-year dream for us. We worked very hard in 2008 to make that dream a reality. In November, we showcased the work of 40 volunteers who donated their creative talents to help 23 area nonprofits. We estimate that we provided over $150,000 in creative services to these nonprofits for no charge. Over the year, we learned plenty, so 2009 is going to be even more amazing.

2008 was an inspiring year, but I can’t pretend that it was perfect. While many struggled with the terrible financial news, we chugged along with the hope that things would get better. Sadly, one of our longest running clients was a victim of the mortgage meltdown. We have been working with them for over 10 years and many of the people there have become dear friends to me. 2009 will be very different without them.

But, I’m not one to dwell on the negative and I know that we Americans get bored fast. So… sooner or later we will get really tired of the recession and find ways to get past it. We are a creative bunch of people and these challenges make our brains turn even faster.

While there is a cloud of uncertainty hanging over 2009, I am looking forward to the new year and the challenges it will bring. If it’s half as fulfilling as 2008, it will indeed be a Happy New Year!