This is a post in Braintalk

Braintalk with Andrew Egenes

1. Hi , who are you and what do you do?

Hey Thomas! My name is Andrew Egenes and I’m the creator of Design Float, a social media site dedicated to the design industry. I’m also a self-employed contract web and graphic designer, developer, and entrepreneur.

2. Describe a typical day at work?

A typical day at work for me begins at about 9:30am when I get out of bed. I work from home so I don’t really have to worry about getting ready in the mornings. I usually start things off with a breakfast shake while I watch the news for about 30 minutes, then I head over to my office area, get on AIM and catch up with some of the other designers/developers I work with on a daily basis where we discuss the goals for the day. I try to take several short 15 minute breaks throughout the day where I’ll get away from the computer and either play darts, go for a walk outside if it’s nice, do some jumping jacks, anything to keep the blood flowing. I usually stop all my contract work around 7:00 or 7:30 and then it’s not unusual for me to spend another 3 or 4 hours on personal projects, brainstorming, mocking up concepts, etc.


3. What do you enjoy most about your work?

That’s a hard question to answer because there are so many things I love about what I do. I would have to say I really enjoy the satisfaction of seeing a project become successful most. For me, there is nothing more gratifying that forming an idea or concept then making it come to life, grow, and eventually be successful. Granted, you usually fail plenty of times before you find an idea that ends up being successful, but that’s all part of the process.


4. What do you like least about your job?

Right now, I really miss the social aspect and benefit of working in an office. I really enjoy being around other people, especially during the workday and right now I get very little to no face to face interaction with other creatives.


5. What is your worst enemy of creativity?

I would have to say my worst enemy to creativity is bad weather. For some reason, I struggle really bad when the weather outside is rainy or dreary. I find it harder to get motivated, I don’t think as well, and it’s usually when I do my worst work.


6. What do you do when you start a new project and you have NO ideas?

Scour the web. It’s not unusual for me to spend several uninterrupted hours browsing galleries, portfolios, and other websites for that spark of inspiration. If I’m struggling getting a concept going, I’ll also write out a list of words that describe the project, product, or idea and then browse an online thesaurus for synonyms. I find vocabulary exercises force me to look at a project from a different angle and lots of times that’s how I find the best approach to take.


7. What inspires you the most?

Seeing others be successful. Every time I see or read about another awesome new idea that someone came up with, it inspires me to think more creatively and pushes me to come up with new ideas of my own.


8. Do you listen to music while working? And if “yes” what music do you listen to?

Absolutely. I don’t think I’d make it through the day without my Sirius satellite radio. Depending on the mood I’m in, I’ll listen to anything from Jazz to Metal to Classic rock. I’d have to say I spend most of my time listening to Classic Rock though.


9. How do you deal with criticism?

I truly embrace criticism. I try not to let myself get to far into a concept without running it by some colleagues, other designers, and even my wife because it’s so easy to get tunnel vision when you latch onto an idea, and lots of times it’s not nearly as good of an idea in reality as it was in your mind.


10. What does your workspace look like?




11. Do you remember the very first web-project in which you were involved?

My first web project was a website called Source11. I was a 14 year old surfer, skater, and wakeboarder and became interested in web design when I started posting on some surf/skate/snow message boards. I talked my dad into buying me a year’s worth of hosting and Source11 was born. I spent the next 2 years molding it into a moderately successful community of other skaters and surfers. When I began receiving free products to review and companies began approaching me to sponsor contests on the site, I realized that I might actually be able to make some money on the internet. The rest is history.

12. Is there any advice you would give our readers?

The only advice I can think of is start small. Most of us would love to be the next Kevin Rose, but there is so much more opportunity in smaller more manageable ideas and concepts. It’s one thing to aim high, but it’s another to only aim high.


13. What has been the most fun project to work on so far?

Definitely Design Float. When I first created it, I wasn’t really sure if the design community would embrace or reject it. It has been far more successful than I imagined and it just keeps growing. I have learned so much about the potential for socially powered communities on the web and it really has me excited for the future of the internet.


14. Imagine yourself in 15 years… what do you see yourself doing?

I definitely still coming up with new ideas and starting up new projects. I also see myself doing it while my wife and I travel the world because the tools that allow us to work remotely are only going to get better.


15. Please tell us 3 people who we should do this Interview with (Why them?).

(Andrew didn´t answer this one - so it is up to you Who do you want us to do this interview with? Leave a comment! )


Andrew, thank you for answering our questions.
If you want to visit designfloat.com you should do this now: designfloat.com