How do y’all find the time for designs to update your portfolio with? I work 9 hours per day, so minus the 2 hr commute and the 7 hr sleep and the 3 hrs of necessities like housework and being with my family, there’s three hours left. By that time I have barely any energy left, so I just want to enjoy the designs others do, or watch tutorials, or fool around with my pencils and relax. Most of the work I do in my day job is either too boring to show or confidentials I can only partially show on request… so I’ve practically fallen off the grid for two years now. I should probably push myself for finished pieces in these three hours. How do you handle your own portfolio?
I’ve never found time to make on in 20+ years, let alone update one!
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Work/life balance. If I had a good answer, I’d write a best-selling book and spend the rest of my life sipping Tiki cocktails on a beach. That said, the hours you told us account for Monday thru Friday, assuming you work five days a week. So the answer would be to work on your portfolio on the weekends.
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In my 20+ year career I’ve updated my personal portfolio 3 times. And those specific times were when I was either out of work or trying to change job paths.
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Yes, same here. Other than making a few fixes here and there, the last I made any significant changes to my online portfolio was four years ago during the pandemic, when I had time on my hands. Not adding new content is bad for SEO purposes, but it is what it is.
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I never just fabricated portfolio work. My portfolio was always a compilation of my best works from real jobs I completed for real clients (not made-up ones.)
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Same here, but when someone is starting out, it’s probably as important to show what they’re capable of doing, not only what their short time at a beginning job has produced.
Another unrelated thought is that in past decades keeping a portfolio updated meant slipping examples of the latest work into sleeves in a physical portfolio.
Today, it’s more time-consuming since it involves designing new pages for a website, which includes photography, screen captures, writing copy, and a dozen other decisions and processes that take time. Most designers — including me — have a harder time designing for themselves than for clients or employers, which adds to the time and effort and makes procrastination an attractive option. 
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I agree, thinking back (this is in 1967 Before computers) when I talked to the Art Director of the TV station in which I was trying to get my first job as a 19-year old, the A.D. gave me a chance to see my illustration with hand-lettering for three different TV shows.
Three days later I showed them to that A.D. and that Production Manager said “An Assistant A.D. was not in the employee budget.” But the A. D. Insisted that, “ You don’t understand, “ Look at this work! I GOT TO HAVE THIS GUY”
Three days later I started as the WLEX-TV Assistant Art Director…at the amazing salary of $60 per week. Yey!!!
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I agree with Steve_O,
May father always told me
“When you’re young, remember that you will make a living from 9 to 5, but you’ll make money from 5 to 11.
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I used to watch football and baseball on tv. Football games last 3 hours. Baseball games are typically 2.5 hours. I’d have the game on in the background and assign myself a task that I thought I could complete within those time frames.
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I used to keep certain projects that were ‘portfolio worthy’ and then email it to my personal email with subject Portfolio Piece so I can easily find them.
Then when it came to applying for a job,
I searched the subject line.
Downloaded the pieces.
Created a Portfolio catered towards the job
Created CV tailored to the job spec
Sent it
In essence I would create tailored portfolios, specific for each job application, every 5-10 years.
And when it was needed.
I ended up with lots of portfolio pieces that weren’t suited to the job I was applying for, but they suited other jobs.
It only takes a moment to send an email - upload it to dropbox - or save it another way with a Tag that you can easily find.
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