Philips has taught me more than just a set of skills,
Brunel has taught me how to make, and Philips has taught me how to think.
Making the most of others skills
Before I joined Philips I would struggle through a problem on my own, I learnt a lot from the perseverance but it was never a good use of my time. I was taught such a range of skills at university that I believed I had to use them all and on my own. I was stubborn and wouldn’t always ask for help from someone who was better at that skill than I was.
Since joining Philips, and being a part of teams with such a range of skills; I have learnt the value of making the most of everyone’s individual talents and not trying to do it all on my own.
This change in mind set happened when tasks were set that I knew I couldn’t do and especially to the level I expected of myself, something had to change. I was pointed in the direction of a colleague, who could help me; and by admitting that I needed help, I learnt and gained far more than I could have imagined. This colleague turned into a sort of mentor to me, they had a solid skill set which I wanted to develop in and they were gracious enough to take time to help guide me over the last year. I no longer struggled on my own, but shared my tasks and problems with those who could help me learn to solve them, so that in the future I could solve them my self. Although this did mean I kept going back with more questions, as I wanted to keep learning more and more.
This small mind shift early on in my internship really aloud me to make the most of my year in the midst of such a diversely skilled group of people. I started to ask to help with tasks where I knew very little of so that I could learn from my colleagues. This eagerness to learn was picked up on by some colleagues who then asked me to help out on all sorts of different tasks because I was willing to help and learn.
Verbalising ideas
My dyslexia has always held me back when it comes to words; verbalising what I want to say has always been a struggle.
This year has been a journey of confidence building, one which everyday gave me new opportunities to practice verbalising what was going on in my head; presenting and sharing ideas with others and working in teams to design solutions. But it was not as easy as it sounds, because a majority of those times I was speaking Dutch. Having a determined personality in these situations really helped me; instead of switching to English, as I could very easily have done with everyone speaking English here, I made myself speak in Dutch. Not only did this help improve my Dutch quickly but it also taught me how to simplify my thoughts so I could communicate them more easily, even in a language not my mother tongue.
I started to write out my ideas, thought, opinions and learning’s as blog posts on my portfolio website; this not only has this helped me with my formally written communication, but it has also helped me reflect on every situation I can learn from.
It’s not just what you know, but also whom you know
Until I started working at Philips I wanted to do things on my own, with my own skills, not just relying on others connections; especially those connections of my father. I wanted to prove to myself and others that I could do it on my own; but that wasn’t the only reason, I didn’t want to let anyone down because they had higher expectations of me, because of who I knew. I worked so hard at university to show that I could do it and was where I was because of what I could do and not who my father was.
This hard work paid of because not only had I shown others that I could do it, I had shown myself. This mind-set helped me feel confident to use my contacts because I was no longer so unsure of myself and skills. I have learnt that working to your potential and being open to all opportunities isn’t just because of what you know but because of whom you know too.
No one can do any thing on their own, I came from a family, but here also did nothing on my own.
“cleaver peopke lern from their mistakes, wise people learn from the mistakes of others, and stupid peole never make any mistakes”
Inspiring the next generation
One very unexpected opportunity that came along this year was to go and speak at my junior school here in Eindhoven. I was asked to speak to the current year 6 about design; I had no other input than that they were learning about space and were about to design a space station.
I was excited and felt very honoured to be given this opportunity, but I was also pretty nervous. I wasn’t nervous about the actual presenting; it was the content that I was nervous about. I’m still a student too, how could I teach them anything?
I obviously taught them something, and well for that matter. 60 eager and energetic students were engaged and curious about everything I taught them, they had so many questions and could wait to hear more of what I had to say. The children had such positive reaction that the teachers asked me to go back again to teach them for their next project.
The next time I went back I wasn’t nervous, just very excited to inspire them again. Their reaction even more amazing than the first time; I was starting to see them think like designers. They were more inquisitive and questioned everything, their creative ideas were even more out of the box and their enthusiasm to learn was incredible.
Presenting isn’t about what you can teach someone, it’s about what they can learn from you and for everyone that will be different. I don’t have to be worried about what I can teach someone, I just have to share with them what I have learnt; its up to them what they take away from it.
I may not know everything there is to know about design, but I do know why I love it and peruse it, and that obviously rubbed off on the children. I came away having loved the experience and also having learnt from them, which I really wasn’t expecting.
Just as Philips Design has inspired me I got the opportunity to inspire others.
New perspective
Although I’m sad that my year at Philips is now over, I am extremely grateful for everything you have taught me. It’s more than just a skill set; it’s been a new way of thinking, a new way of looking at design as a role in today’s society.
I came to Philips as a student, but with hard work, many amazing opportunities and the support from everyone I have worked with, I leave as a designer.
I couldn't have asked for a better internship, so thank you Philips!