Brad Burke

I don’t use Figma anymore. For the past six months I’ve been uploading my consciousness directly into the ether and allowing the work to manifest through minor disturbances in the electromagnetic field. You think you are seeing the aurora borealis that's actually my brain waves. It’s a much more intuitive process. I sit completely still in my office until a founder somewhere develops a sudden inspiration for their brand positioning but in reality it was me clipping them in their brain stem, smiling down on them like one of God's children. People keep asking what tools I’m using. I understand the question. I used to think that way too. But asking me what tools I use is like asking a glass of water what software is wetness. Its a meaningless question. I don’t design anymore. I am the pixels. I am the logo. I am the little bit of space between the 'r' and the 'n' that you better make sure is kerned properly. When you increase the font size I experience physical growth. When you cut a vector point, my consciousness goes into quantum superposition. This is where the industry is going. If you're not on board, you're going to get left behind. My entire design system now lives in the collective unconscious. There’s no documentation. Your team will simply wake up knowing the button radius. If someone uses the wrong shade of blue they’ll hear a high pitched ringing sound until they correct it. Developer handoff has been so smooth since I started working this way. My effigy appears at the foot of the engineer’s bed and I open my mouth. The CSS comes out at a frequency only their fillings can receive. We’ve eliminated all meetings. I no longer send clients presentations. I enter their dreams as a white horse with an already complete interactive brand guidelines. They’re free to leave feedback by speaking into a bowl of room temperature water. I receive it immediately and disagree with it on a cellular level. Transcending this outdated material plane is my standing Tuesday meeting. Some people are uncomfortable with this. A procurement manager recently asked whether I could provide an SVG of the logo and I just told her to close her eyes and remember the first time she felt truly understood. She looked annoyed and just said their print vendor needed an SVG by today. A big adjustment has been personal. My wife asked if I could help bring in the groceries. I explained that I now exist simultaneously across every customer touchpoint. I think there’s a lot of fear right now about what happens when designers stop needing tools. But the people who adapt will be fine. You just have to be willing to let go of a few outdated ideas. Like having a body. Being legally distinguishable from a gradient. Anyway I am open for new branding projects this quarter.

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