Designing A Career
The foundations of design
Everyone wants to be a designer, and some wait for direction while others find their own way. I’m a firm believer in the latter, but how I got there is based on some guiding principles.
I write this to remind myself as much as to share it. There are days when design can feel unfulfilling, and the noise is too loud. Right now, it’s Affinity, Canva and Adobe conversations, and I’m wondering what happened to real design?
This article is about what it takes to be a designer. The nitty-gritty truths that I’ve learned. So much advice is fluffy. Keep applying. Create. Do good work and you’ll get results. It’s loose ends, and in practice, design is shaped by budgets, hierarchy and bias.
Briefs are the start
It’s a lesson in power play, human dynamics, and expectations, often directionless. You may come away wondering why you said something, and the words you could have said get stuck in your throat. You will learn as you go and as you meet more people.
Keep learning
You won’t stop. I have a Master's in Graphic Design and Typography, which means a lot but also doesn’t. Tools change, businesses adjust, AI creeps in, and what was important last season is everywhere this year. Keep learning to keep yourself marketable and relevant.
Design daily
You don’t have to wait for a client; keep creating. Play, create, change, test and start again. We take ideas from a grey space to a real creation, which takes practice.
The user is everything
User experiences must never be dismissed. It’s how people use the things we create and that’s demanding. It’s a mindshift, driven by empathy.
Design works hard
A beautiful cover that can’t be read, an interface that’s confusing, or a brand that’s so complex nobody understands how to use it. That’s bad design. It must solve a problem first.
Learn to code. And type.
Two useful skills you can’t be without. Coding helps to ease the conversation with developers as you’ll know how a browser works and what’s viable. Typing just makes life easier.
Make friends with a printer
Too much print design is online and disconnected from ink and paper. Next time you send a file to press, ask to look around. You’ll understand more from seeing and listening.
Accept AI
It’s here, you can’t change it, and not learning means falling behind. Get to know the tools, so you can control them.
Tell the story
If you can’t explain your work, someone else will. Whatever you think of flags, St George isn’t here to tell the story so someone else has with polarising results.
Storytelling isn’t a soft skill; it makes design impactful and allows people in so they can learn from you.
Get to know your client’s business
Understanding how to read data and asking good questions about the problem will enable a better understanding of the problem, so you can solve it better.
Designers work hard
We’re facilitators, strategists, ethical gatekeepers and drivers. That’s our range. Make it, do it and connect with it.
Red tape is just red tape
You won’t have cheerleaders and you’ll have to explain your work to people who don’t understand. This isn’t about you, or them. It’s life. Learn to meet people in the midground with language you can share, whilst maintaining those design standards.
Your file isn’t perfect
It’s amazing to have clear layers and to clean your Mac but your clients mostly don’t care. They want to see the final piece and a solution.
It’ll go wrong before it’s right.
Create it before you need to deliver. Take a break, bake a cake or walk, and then look again. Now send it. Don’t wait for the perfect version as you won’t move forward but you can let it rest for a moment.
Lift as you climb
The best designers are the ones who help others. They’re generous, kind and take responsibility. Be a decent person.
Want to learn more?
Struggling with social media graphics? Not sure how to make your website actually look good? Wondering why that font just doesn’t feel right? What is a great book cover?Let’s get together in Design Club.
