Chasing design awards

I was recently asked by another designer what design awards I had received for my work. I told him that I had just one from the DBA. Part of me of course wished I could wow him with my long list of accolades. I think it is natural that everyone wants to be rewarded for their efforts, to be told they did a good job and to be held in high regard by their peers, but is a design award the best way to do it? When most awards are given, they are not furnished with a brief, don't congratulate the marketeer or even the product that goes with it, just the design. Aesthetics and originality should of course be key objectives of a designer but they should almost be taken for granted when being considered for a design award. Does the design effectively communicate what is at the heart of the brand that it is promoting? That should be the first question. An award should be given to the whole package, of which design is a part of rather than being judged as a complete article. In that way we might just stop a little bit of the egoism that goes with design and concentrate on getting back to doing what we should be. That is working with companies to succesfully communicate their brand.