It was like Christmas morning. I bounded out of bed. “It’s here! It’s finally here!” I cried out to the dog, who opened her one good eye briefly before going back to sleep. The email was in my inbox; it arrived at 7:08am. My Andrew ID was ready.
Until you have an Andrew ID, you are nothing at CMU. You can’t get an ID card, you can’t get a parking pass, you can’t get into buildings, you can’t see classes, you can’t get email…nothing, nada, zilch. You are persona non grata. All week I’ve been sneaking into buildings behind students and faculty. It was like that book A Burglar’s Guide to The City trying to find ways to get from place to place without a badge.
But no longer.
I’m a card-carrying member of the faculty now.
I look like Paul Giamatti playing a role as a professor. Designers, do not look at the design of this badge. I should assign it to my students to redo as an exercise. I also blacked out my ID number so none of you ingrates decides to impersonate me.
I have all the things now. It seems so stupid, but when you’re fighting Imposter Syndrome, having some physical objects that say You Belong Here are comforting and empowering. There’s a design lesson in here somewhere.