All the time you will ever need depends on what you want and have to achieve. As designers, our time is different because of these two distinctions. If I had all the time in the world to design, I would spend it on creating what I love the most.
At the end of the day, I look back and ask myself: "What if I had more time?" Without the idea of time, nothing moves forward and everything is perpetually stuck. Time will forever clash with my goals, but it is also the reason why my work has more significance.
Time is the most valuable resource we have, both as designers and as human beings. Because it is a finite thing, we divide it up among the things and the people in our lives which matter most to us. I think it is quite telling how important design is to us—we spend countless hours working on these projects which embeds them into our slice of time.
The concept of time gives us the challenge to make the most out of life. With long days that turn into late nights, with occasional naps in between, my passion for design and improvement can be consuming yet so fulfilling. If given all the time in the world, I would love to experience everything—from traveling to absorbing knowledge. Time as a constant provides opportunities for growth and serves as a reminder to appreciate the people and things we get to experience. There are still worlds to explore and memories to make out there.
Over the years, time has become my companion. Instead of something to be worked against, I enjoy and work with time. Without the concept of time, there would be no significance to the things I do and make. In essence, time has taught me to consider and appreciate every detail in life; it has made everything in life infinitely more meaningful.
If time weren’t an issue, I would want to spread myself out to learn and master new skills. With the limits of time, I believe that we have to pick and choose what skills we want to work on. Time is my worst enemy because of this constraint, but at least I can say that I've learned a lot in the given time.
If time could be designed, I would create a rewind and fast forward option. I think there are things in life that I wish I could speed through or slow down so I can indulge on the things I enjoy the most.
I am slow, meticulous, and tend to scrutinize every task, so one could say time is my enemy. In my ideal world, I wouldn’t have to conform to society’s typical division of time. I wouldn’t even want to lose time to sleep! I want all the time in the world to take on different hobbies, learn new skills, travel, and be as creative as possible. We could all use more time to experience all that life has to offer.
Managing time means setting priorities between what I want and should do. Time is always against me as a designer, but I've learned to control that constraint to minimize wasted time. The bad news is time flies, the good news is I'm the pilot so I decide where it goes.
Managing my time is about a careful balance of ambition and practicality. As designers, we have so many ideas and so little time to accomplish them, but time can be a wonderful constraint that keeps us on our toes. Time challenges me to maintain a work-life balance while bringing my ideas to fruition in the best way I can.
For me, managing time means finding a way to make the most out of the 24 hours in a day. While having only 24 hours in a day may be a constraint, I have control over how I spend this time. Every hour has a purpose, and I strive to use my time to self-improve in any way I can—whether it’s my design skills or learning something new.
I believe many of us wish we had more time in the day, but I wish I had more inspiration instead. We have no control over the days we pass, as time is unbiased—everyone is given the same amount of hours everyday. For those who have the luxury, we choose how our excess time is spent. The rate of time passing will never change, but the opportunities given will. I wish to take every moment to find inspiration and motivation to do better and be better—as a designer and as a person.
If time wouldn't be an issue, I would enjoy doing little things without noticing time: appreciating long conversations, taking spontaneous adventures, visiting family over a cup of tea. Creating a plan in a diary helps me manage time and feel productive. If time is reimagined, I would like to be able to rewind, pause, and fast forward time. It would be nice to remember some memories, pause to enjoy the moment, and fast forward through negativity.
If time weren’t an issue, I would dedicate myself to learning every skill there is to learn. I see learning as an adventure because it’s a great way to experience many different things and encourages growth, change, and challenging yourself.
Time is the most valuable thing anyone could ever give. Arguably, most of my time during these past two years has been given to design, and to the people in this program. With the time spent, I’ve developed relationships I wouldn’t trade for anything else in the world. A unique and unrepeatable experience that won’t ever happen again—just like time.
I love to learn, so if time weren’t an issue I would want to learn every language, musical instrument, creative media, and study biological sciences and math.
Despite my ongoing feud with linear time, I would design it to branch out like a fractal. Just don’t lose yourself in the multiverse of infinite procrastination scenarios.
While we tend to run out of time, time drives me to create the best work I can. Time pushes me to stay motivated and on track with design projects as well. I've learned that it's valuable and precious to appreciate the small moments we've all shared together with our professors—critiques, exhibitions, and trips. If time weren’t an issue, I would explore and create as much as I can in the world.
Each second only exists once. The seconds of the past can not be retrieved. Time is a precious commodity that runs out fast. Though we have enough of it, it is not infinite. If it was, I would have no sense of urgency, and "I'll do it later" would become a valid excuse.
Managing time and time itself is something I have always struggled with, especially in recent years. Facing this challenge head-on, I've come to realize that time—instead of being my enemy—has always been a friend of mine. The key is not to waste time but to invest in it with things you love.
I use my time wisely as I try to balance work, relationships, and hobbies. It’s not an easy task as a designer but you learn and grow and become better at managing the time you have.
If I had unlimited time, I would travel back to South Korea and see my family, then I would fly to Hawaii. I would manage my time no differently than I do right now. Time is fine as it is right now. I would not try to redesign it.
If time weren't an issue, I would travel around the world, work different jobs, and soak myself in the beauty of different cultures. I would dedicate my time to building a spaceship, and I would use it to explore if the Earth becomes too chaotic. I would tell the people I care about that I love them.
Time is a fascinating topic. According to physics experts like Carlo Rovelli, time is not real and is merely a function of our perception. He suggests that time is continuous, like a one-way street, and that time is irreversible. Maybe he is correct. I think time is a precious commodity that we make up in order to feel real and tangible—something to justify how we feel and act. It’s a system that has been afforded far too much relevance in our life and we have become slaves to it. Time can be helpful, allowing people to make use of their time and spend it efficiently according to how society values time. Some people seem like they take it for granted, but it doesn’t mean that they are spending incorrectly. If time isn’t real and isn’t an issue, I think nothing would ever happen. We would not have past, present, and future. We would stop existing and would not progress until now.
It may seem like time moves at different speeds. Apparently, time can fly on days when we’re having too much fun; and on difficult days, time crawls.
Time is the solution to all my problems. Given enough time, I would be able to solve anything. Without enough time, I’ll learn how to make it good enough for time being.
The 24 designers of the class of 2020 spent countless hours this semester developing their thesis projects. Explore our virtual thesis exhibition to see 24 unique approaches to the metaphor of translation.
Through design, we can control many things: space, form, color, even light. But one thing remains an elusive element outside our control. Time. It is the ultimate constraint. We can work with time, against time, around time, we can even run out of time. It’s our most precious commodity, and over the past two years, we have spent our time learning about design—trying, making, thinking, failing, trying again, and succeeding. Hover to see how we’ve kept ourselves busy during Shelter-in-Place; click to see what we’ve made over the last two years.
