Valio Con 2014 – Day 1

Image is from the Valiocon.com website

This week our designers had the opportunity to attend Valio Con 2014 right in our backyard at the Catamaran Resort in San Diego. Valio Con is an annual conference aimed to inspire designers to create and build greatness both in the workplace and out. Exceptional speakers from across the country gather to share their insight and knowledge with others.

Day one at Valio Con was a hit. Everyone from the speakers to the attendees were full of excitement and energy. They became acquainted with the other guests through ‘drink night’ and welcome activities throughout the day. All the speakers blew them away with their messages and gave them tons of information to bring back to our office. Here’s a few highlights.

Geoff Teehan from Teehan + Lax kicked off the speaker series with a powerful presentation about what he’s learned from his successful career in the design field. He stressed the added value of sharing the gift of design with the community and not always working for profit. It’s crucial to discover what’s important and embrace inevitable changes in the job and in life.

Keiran Flannigan, creator of the Heed application, shared her experiences building the app. Her important message about creating a quality product rather than taking shortcuts resonated strongly with the group.

Chuck Longanecker from Digital Telepathy emphasised originality. He talked about the benefits of taking risks in business and the cruciality of putting everything on the line for what you love.

From Pure Fix, Jennet Liaw shared her evolution in the design field and stressed how vital taking the unconventional approach was to her career path. She also conveyed how passion, self-discovery, and standing up for yourself translated into business.

Ryan Hudson-Peralta from Quicken Loans gave an inspiring speech about determination. He implied that you are responsible for your own fate, no matter how large the obstacles are that you must overcome.

Lee Rubenstien focused on his side projects EatSleepDraw and ArtSnacks. Within those two projects he shared his experience discovering the importance of the user experience and how to convert your passion into user passion.

Michael Flarup from Robocat taught attendees the importance of fun. Be detailed oriented, but remember to enjoy the journey of creating a project. He also noted the benefits in letting people hear your ideas to improve them.

All the speakers had a strong message to bring home, and since this was only day one, we know there are a lot more great ideas to come. Follow us and one of our desingers Evan as we tweet our way through Valio Con. And as always, don't hesitate to contact us for any of your design needs.