Content philosophy

Recently, I attended a talk where the presenter wore a t-shirt that read: “You should pay your writers more.” I loved this. Partly because I agreed with the sentiment (no surprise there), but also because of the idea that you can wear your philosophies — or politics — as t-shirt slogans, even in a professional setting. That shirt spoke volumes before the presenter even began.

And it occurred to me: this might save me some time! In my various workplaces, I end up saying the same things repeatedly. I’ve written about this before:

On saying the same thing without sounding like a robot

Content designers love consistency

If you get a group of content folk together (what’s the collective noun for a group of contenters?) we consistently end up talking about the same things. We all face the same challenges that arise from navigating the tensions between the nuances of language, user needs, and stakeholder expectations. If we could distill these truths into t-shirts, we’d have wardrobes brimming with phrases that could do the speaking on our behalf and save us a bunch of time in meetings.

After years in content, I’ve noticed that I tend to repeat myself in meetings. Not out of laziness, but because some truths need to be reiterated. Here’s a scenario that happens so often it practically demands a t-shirt:

I’ll be sitting in a meeting where someone says, “We need a website / portal / chatbot.” My first response, every time, is: “Have you thought about the content?” Without fail, it’s met with a pause or an uncomfortable shrug. That’s when I remind them that no matter how sleek the interface or innovative the platform, it’s useless without well-thought-out, user-focused content. Things like websites, chatbots, and portals are often solutions looking for a problem.

If I ever created a line of t-shirts, this would be the first design: “Have you thought about the content?”

T-shirts for content designers

That presenter’s t-shirt planted a seed in my mind. What if we created a line of t-shirts for content professionals? Not just to make us feel part of a group, but to remind others — stakeholders, designers, and decision-makers — of the principles we champion every day.

These shirts wouldn’t just be slogans; they’d be conversation starters. Subtle nudges to those who might underestimate the importance of content. If we could wear our truths on our sleeves (literally), maybe it would remind the world that content isn’t just the final coat of paint — it’s the foundation.

Luckily, I have plenty more ‘Sarah-isms,’ along with the skills to distill them down to the number of words that will fit on a t-shirt. The possibilities are endless, but one thing’s for sure: the world of content design deserves its own wardrobe.