It’s possible to misunderstand rules; a useful rule can appear useless, and vice versa. At times we need to break rules in order to understand how and why they might help.

The picture above is an improvised drum kit made from kitchen tools. There’s nothing particularly special about it except that it solved a design challenge. And so an unusual design will sometimes disprove our previous assumptions.

Writing can be an exercise in both following and breaking rules. Rules aren’t something to be afraid of, they’re something to use. Consider:

“When you are writing, do not worry about how often you use the word I. Use it as much as you need to. Just as you can weed out other words you no longer need when your work is nearing completion, so you can weed out extra Is by combining sentences or editing phrases. It is very easy to take out what is no longer needed at the end. It is much harder to give yourself enough material to work with at the beginning. Say “I.” This word lets you speak from your experience.”
- Shiela Bender in “Writing Personal Essays” (1995)

I’m not convinced I’ll have the patience to follow this advice. I’ll try!

Here’s an excerpt from the latest issue of Tape Op, where Larry Crane interviews with two of the three founders of Propellerhead, a Swedish software manufacturer. Propellerhead produces Reason and other audio tools. The interview includes this practical take on design project management:

Ernst Nathorst-Boos: “I usually say that we’ve got four energy levels, if you will. If we don’t do anything, our products stop working because Microsoft and Apple bring out a new OS. That’s a lot of work – maintaining it. Then we have smaller feature updates of stuff you need to add because people are asking for them. Then the next one is bigger strategic features that you want to add to an application. Those may take several updates before you realize the idea that you had at the beginning. The fourth level is actually doing more products, not just Reason or Record. Then reality tries to pull you down to the first two levels all the time. It’s a lot of prioritization. The hard part for us is not coming up with new ideas, because we’ve got an incredible inflow from everywhere about ideas. The hard part is selecting out of those 300 the 12 that you can actually do.”

To recap:
1.) Keep pace with changes at the life support level.
2.) Respond to the most compelling change requests.
3.) Develop in longer term, bigger picture changes that support brand positioning.
4.) Diversify by invest in complementary markets.

I enjoy the simplicity of Mr. Nathorst-Boos’ quote; he’s not interested in giving you a breakdown of their development framework — why should you care? — rather he’s sharing a broader perspective, a brief and amusing look at their development process. Notice his care in reinforcing a positive aspect of existing market behavior, what he calls the idea flow.

Additionally, Nathorst-Boos offers a sense of how this type of deconstructive thought could work in other types of design projects, particularly projects in a hyper-competitive and rapidly changing markets. Innovation happens elsewhere, and if you encourage idea flow, great ideas will come from all directions.

Design project managers take note; it’s smart to promote idea flow even when you have more ideas than you know what to do with. Next, rely on a set of internal guidelines to help you extract the best and most actionable ideas from the rest.

Funny observations by Inc. Magazine writer Jason Fried:

“Unfortunately, years of language dilution by lawyers, marketers, executives, and HR departments have turned the powerful, descriptive sentence into an empty vessel optimized for buzzwords, jargon, and vapid expressions.”

If you enjoy Jason’s point of view, check out the excellent book Hot Text by Jonathan and Lisa Price. Originally published in 2002 on New Riders, Hot Text is a practical guide to help business copy writers tighten up their online prose.

Writing effective copy is much easier said than done… I’ve said it, I’ll try to do it, and I’ll inevitably slip up. A manager’s day doesn’t afford a lot of time on issues of grammar or style. It can be seductively easy to rely on pop-management shortcuts. This often buries whatever useful and compelling ideas were in the message to begin with.