graphic design, freelancing, illustration, advertising, web design

(newbie)

I think the scariest thing is the notion that, in spite of all the training, you might still find yourself, sat on your first day in an agency with a brief in front of you and pull a complete creative blank!

Of course, the truth is that genuine expectation, for me at least, tends to spur the process rather than stall it (this I know from work placement) but that ’stage fright’ trepidation will doubtless be there at least until the first project is done and dusted!

Nice post. Well and truly Dugg and Stumbled
Advice for newbies:
have confidence in your own abilities;

do not compare yourself/abilities to other designers;

don’t be afraid to disagree with the client (diplomatically, of course);

attempt with all your might not to think of yourself as a newbie - you are a Designer - watch out world!

present your designs, concepts, ideas with passion.

And last but not least, read this blog daily

Hi Matt
The creative blank is not just a worry for newbies, it happens to us all.

Hi Johno
Excellent advice, especially the last bit

My biggest fear as a recent grad is not finding enough work as a freelancer, what to do if a client fails to pay, and whether my work is really up to scratch, especially when there’s plenty of talented competition around. I would say that some of my biggest stumbling blocks to date have been: pricing and deciding what to quote for a job (a very tricky scenario); deciding on my target market (also very tricky); and people who say they love my portfolio and will definitely have work for me in the next week or so, then after a period of silence they say “we’ll get back to you as soon as we hear from the client” and of course I never hear from them again. That’s probably happened three times in the last three months.

My tips for Newbies -

Try and get some experience in a design agency before going it alone if you can. This will enable you to see how to run the admin side of design. How to - set up a job book, set up a job properly for print or web, how to manage time and schedule jobs.

Realise that what you lack in experience you make up for with the freshness of your ideas and eagerness to learn.

Remember that for any person that does not like your work, there will be several that do.

Being a newbie designer in many ways myself, my advice is to exude confidence as you communicate with your clients. They will only be as confident in you as you are in yourself. I am constantly struggling with designer inferiority complex because I didn’t go to design school (I went to music school instead!). So, I’m always wondering, especially when the blank moments come, or when there is some technical detail I am not sure of, what the heck made me think anyone would want to pay me to design something?

I see a question posted “What the heck would want to pay me to design something. Well, as a complete newbie to blogging. Who just had what was a somewhat rather put together site…completely wiped out in a glitch from Blogger. Then I would say someone like me. My blog is dedicated in honor of my son-in-law. He is a Desert Storm Vet. now being called up from the Guard and being deployed to Iraq. And Blogger somehow completely managed to screw up something very important to our family. Our blog is in protest to our current administration, this stupid Iraq war, and also to honor and offer support to the troops stuck there. I myself right now am crusing the net looking for design help. Because I want his page to be the best ever…he will be gone for 18 mos. So yes people will pay….I just wish I had more money. And, I could just strangle someone at Blogger if I could ever get a response from them. I used to design but now have mental health problems that have effected my memory and ability to organize. And, I have lost all of my memory of coding. So yes people will pay…so don’t ever give up.

Johno, that is such down-home advice. Thank you for that bit about the confidence. I think that’s the part I lack the most. I need that “Watch out world!” attitude. hehe

Tara, you are so encouraging! I liked every piece of advice you gave us newbies, especially that it is not necessarily a “bad” thing to be new!

Tracey, I can’t count the number of times people have said “Oh, you do websites? I’m thinking about getting a website (or redesigning my current one)…” I just don’t believe them anymore, unfortunately. Ooo, and about the pricing issue, check out the Resources section of this blog in a couple of days. I’m working on a PDF worksheet for that

Randa, again the confidence tip. Hmm… this must be the trick! And I think that most designers didn’t go to school (specifically for design) and experience counts for more anyway. School just gives you a tiny bit of a head start. Ever look at posts for design jobs? They usually don’t care about a design degree, just __ years of experience.

I’m so glad people are responding to this post. It makes me feel good that you’ve enjoyed reading it and you are all giving such great advice! Thank you!

One other piece of advice…well, not advice, I guess, but something that helps me. You will never find me without a pencil, notepad and camera.

I might be in a cafe and see a colour combination I like, a shape, a photo in a newspaper - scribble it down or take a photo with your cell phone, or steal it (just kidding). I know I’m not the only one to do this; perhaps I just have a poor memory
And a real piece of advice: forget about money when you start out; I’m not suggesting that you work gratis, but think design first, money second. If you have enough to pay the bills and feed yourself and you’re working at something you love, something you have a passion for, then just concentrate on that.

If you have to clean toilets to support your sortie into the world of freelance, then so be it. Not the most elegant of examples but…

Great guest post!

My advice for anyone starting out is to always work with a contract, even when doing work for friends and family. The last thing you want to do is ruin a good friendship because of work, and if you present a contract from the outset you’ll be selling yourself well as a professional.

My advice for Newbies:

Never be afraid of brainstorming with your client and getting as much information as possible about the client’s needs, requirements and vision for the project.

I talked to my very first client on the phone, and within the first 5 minutes of our conversation I was already bombarding her with the ideas on how to convey her message on the Web site. I didn’t have any solid portfolio built yet, but she was so impressed with me on the phone that right away I was assigned to work on her project. After all these years she’s still my client and treats me not only as a designer but a consultant as well.

P.S. Lauren, excellent article, btw

Johno, another great tip. Thanks! I do that sometimes, too, but I could be more vigilant. I usually try to hold it in my head and then end up forgetting

David, I would be interested to know the types of provisos you write into your contracts. In my experience so far, I’ve found that setting a deadline is important, otherwise the job could drag on for months when it should’ve taken weeks. Writing a contract can be intimidating, and it’s something my profs never taught me. One did scare us, though, by showing us the 30 page contract he signed with a government agency to do a demo CD!

Vivien, I’m so glad you (and everyone else it seems, too!) enjoyed my article. I hope I get a chance to write more! It seems with that first client you exuded the confidence Johno told us about Good job! It’s always nice to have a few of those clients you can count on for a smooth relationship and a fairly steady flow of work.

Lauren, you are welcome to write for my blog anytime it’s a great article

Like Johno - I aways write everything down in a note book - a hardback one so I don’t through any notes away by mistake. I would forget things without it.

Davids idea of a contract is a good one though I have to admit I rarely work with a contract. I sometimes get a written order for the cost from the client but in general most of my work is for regular clients and as long as I keep them informed if there are any cost increases due to extra work they are fine.

My advice to someone entering the design field is while it’s very important to get very good at a couple of things it is equally important to never stop learning and not being afraid to make a misstep.

I’ve come across fellow designers that didn’t realize Photoshop for example added a feature because they never bothered to click on a button or menu option they did not recognize to find out it what it did.

Hi Tobias

You make a good point that we shouldn’t become complacent and just do what we know. I think most of us are guilty of that at times, especially when time is short.

Excellent article Lauren and Tara - thanks very much.

I’m a comparative newbie - so no tips to add. But learning lots of tips from this conversation.

That’s why I like the danish system, or at least the one I’m following. We have 1-2 years at school and then we have a 3 years working for a company, much like a new designer would, before we are done with the education. That way I already feel prepared and have had alot of training in the business part of design with the feeling that if I made a fault there would be someone to catch it. I’m much more confident in my ability to do freelance work now already. And I’m not finished with my 3 years yet.

Thomas,

The Danish system seems excellent! Good luck with all that you do.

Hi Thomas

That sound like a great way to be educated, you get the best of both a formal education and real hands on training, they should adopt system in the UK. My partner works as a quantity surveyor and I know they sometimes have students who are studying for a degree in Quantity Surveying work for their construction company for the third year of their degree before returning to University for a final year. They don’t seem to do that with design in the UK though - shame!

One of the first things I tell people is to never, never, ever get ‘married to any artwork’. Client interaction being what it is, you may have to make some allowances about which you’re not going to be happy. Don’t burn up too much energy grousing about the design that ‘could have been’- there’s always another gig, and you can always keep the BC (before client)version for the portfolio.

Hi Steve

I totally agree about not getting too precious, you do your best to persuade, but thats all you can do. A lot of my portfolio work is BC too.

Really? What do you tell prospective clients about BC designs?

What would you say about this? I came on the scene with a website design already completed and I was to build it (the “designer” didn’t know how to build websites…). I managed the project, was the liaison between my company and the PR firm, gathered and edited appropriate information, etc, built the website and have been maintaining it for almost a year and a half. I have learned a lot and it was a great experience, but it’s an ugly design and I would hate to show it in my portfolio! Besides that, I didn’t design it. How would I show something like that, without the client thinking its my design? There wasn’t really a before client state; I wasn’t around for that part. And they don’t want to waste money to allow me to redesigning something that works. How do I show this major part of my experience, without jeopardizing the client’s impression of my design aesthetics?

Lauren that is a really difficult one. I don’t know the answer, I guess you don’t show it in your portfolio you just talk about it as you have done just now emphasising the fact that you can take on a design and produce and manage it.

I’ve had some people tell me to do a redesign and show that, but usually people will like to go to the site and surf around a bit. Obviously it would not look right! I don’t want to lie and say they chose the current design over mine, either.

I do have all the project information on my resume, but I don’t think freelance clients will ever see it. Well, at any rate, it was experience that I will be able to use, regardless of whether or not it shows up in my portfolio. If anyone else has ideas, I would love to read them!

And what do you tell your prospective clients about the BC projects in your portfolio? Do you reveal they are BC? What if they ask if it was ever produced?

Thats a good question, Lauren! Im not going to answer it, I dont know either. But it would be nice if someone would tell…..
…
I would put it in and say it was “suggested” to the client. In the end its the design that counts isnt it? And when you say they wanted a different one is that really so bad?

That’s a great idea, Josh. No one has suggested that yet (maybe pun intended? hehe)

I’m in a frustrating position at the moment. I’m trying to break into graphic design but lack either of the two most necessary ingredients - a degree or experience.

I love designing and I’m determined to get into the industry, it’s the only career I can really see myself enjoying.

To bring this back on topic a little bit, I guess I’d say what scares me most as a newbie is my level of ability when stacked up against others my age (23).

I’ve read the other comments about confidence and not comparing your work to others, still I often can’t help but think I just won’t measure up.

Does anyone know of anyone succeeding from such a cold start (self taught, no degree, no professional experience)? If so…how? lol

Many Thanks.
Great article with some truly helpful comments!

-Mark

Hi Mark

have you though about doing a part time Graphic design Course? I know Aaron at Milienzo.com did a part time course in New Media Design and now has a job in the industry.

Thanks for the quick reply!

Funnily enough, the first thing I did after posting was do a quick search for local part-time courses. No immediate results, but I’ll keep looking

Mark: If you want to get in with your situation I would advise you to use and expand your network. When I started out, I made sure to tell everyone about what I did. You’ll be surprised how many of your friends and family know somebody who is thinking about getting some graphic design done. I have even got contacted by people who were friends with people I talked to for about 10 mins at a party. The most powerful tool you have is yourself and your network.

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Hello. Just wanted to say I’ve found this post really useful, along with a lot of the rest of your site - a great resource! This article is particularly interesting because I’ve recently written one along similar lines - looking at university graduates and how prepared they are for the real world of design work. I graduated a few years ago, and am now working in the industry and its interesting to compare other peoples’ experiences along with my own, as well as comparing my attitude as a graduate compared to now! If anyone’s interested in reading it my article is on the Deckchair UK website blog (pingback above!). Thanks again for a great site!

Hi Rebecca,

Glad you are enjoying the site, and thanks for the link. Don’t forget to check out Lauren’s site at Creative Curio (who wrote this article)

Hey wow, it’s great this post is still being read! And since I wrote this article, I’ve gained even more experience! I recently started working for a large real estate firm and our budget is much bigger than my former employer’s (we did almost everything in house on a B&W printer), which I feel allows me more creative freedom. I’m working on a piece right now that will have a foil stamped cover. I’m excited to see how it turns out! Thanks for stopping by to say hi Rebecca, and I hope to see you over at Creative Curio, too

And thanks to you, too, Tara, for the reminder to Rebecca and the opportunity to write for you and the GDB readers. I’m working on that case study thing you asked for, too, I just need to scan my sketches! I’ve written it all out though… hope to get around to it soon and maybe have 1 or 2 more in the works that I’ll do a write-up for

I am majoring in Graphic Design and Web Design and I will be graduating in May (2008). One of my main concerns is that I am attending a liberal arts college, therefore I have taken much fewer design courses than someone who attended an art or design school. I worry that I may be behind others entering the field at the same time.