How to be a Graphic Designer Without Losing your Soul (chapters 8 and 9)
The last two chapters cover the very important topics of self-promotion and the creative process. Self-promotion is a major issue to consider when it comes to being a graphic designer without losing your soul. You want to earn a reputation in the right way and for the right reasons and this isn’t easy. I like how the book states that “we must not confuse admiration and respect with fame or celebrity.” Designers should not promote themselves like a boy band, rather have a reputation for generating good design and business. The ways in which the book suggests doing this are creating work that’s portfolio worthy, not just work that earns you a lot of money, in some cases enter design competitions, take advantage of professional organizations, attend conferences and lectures and maintain relationships with art colleges. The chapter also covers how to deal with the design press. This involves how much press is too much press and what kind of press is good. “Designers need regular injections of exposure, but don’t let it become a fixation (…) if you want to be famous, the first thing to have to do is stop wanting to be famous.”
The last chapter was hard for me to read only because some many interpretations of the creative process exist out there and it’s something that has been engrained in us sense the beginning of our design studies. What stood out to me the most in this chapter is the section called criteria for good work. Everyone also has their own interpretation of this, but its good to have it broken down and simplified. The first aspect of good work includes a happy client, if your client isn’t happy, then something isn’t right. The second is whether or not the job was profitable and this covers both financial profitability and profitability in the sense of things that cannot be bought such as exposure or recognition. Next involves the job’s “newsworthiness.” Did the job attract a lot of attention or other work? I though these were all good questions to ask about a project or job, mainly because most designers strive to create good work and having these three simple questions can be really helpful.
