School Project

Hi, I have this school project where you have to find a job or profession you are intrested in and come up with 20 questions. Once you find 20 questions you have to find someone who works in that job and ask them those 20 Questions. Since I don’t have any people I know who work as a Graphic designer, I asked my teacher if I could just ask my 20 questions to a forum, and he said yes. So here I am now, I am hoping that anyone who does Graphic design as a side hustle or a full time job to answer my questions. Once I get the answer to the questions I have to make a presentation on it (Which I suck at and get super nervous about lol). Anyway I hope someone can answer these questions for me!

Thanks in advance!

  1. Why did you choose to become a Graphic Designer?
  2. What is one thing you like about your job?
  3. What is one thing you dislike about your job?
  4. What is the working condition of your job?
  5. What do you use to do all of your Graphic design work?
  6. How much do you pay for the softwares you use?
  7. What Software do you use the most?
  8. How much do you charge for each design?
  9. What type of Graphic design do you do?
  10. Do you think this job will still be a job in the future?
  11. Have you ever wanted to quit and do something else?
  12. What is your personal goal (if you have one) for this job?
  13. How often do you have clients?
  14. How many projects do you work on at any given time? Is there a limit on how many you allow yourself to work on?
  15. Do you have any struggles you face while working?
  16. What happens if a client doesn’t like the work you made for them?
  17. What is the most someone has paid for your work?
  18. Do you have a piece of work you are super proud of?
  19. Do you typically work by yourself or with other graphic designers?
  20. Any tips for someone starting Graphic design?
  • Why did you choose to become a Graphic Designer?

Good question. I always enjoyed art and was looking for something that would allow me to be somewhat artistic while also still being able to pay the bills (rather than becoming a “starving” artist.

  • What is one thing you like about your job?

The paycheck? Ha. Seriously, I’ve done this long enough and I am working at a company where my manager trusts me enough to generally let me be with very little micro-management. I would say that is the one thing I like.

  • What is one thing you dislike about your job?

Deadlines. That seems like an obvious thing now, but at heart I have always been a procrastinator and it never occurred to me that overall being a designer would require constant deadlines.

  • What is the working condition of your job?

As more people answer theses questions you will probably notice that there will be wildly different answers. I work as an in-house designer so I work a fairly typical 40 hour work week. 9-5 but ever since Covid I have been fortunate enough to work remotely from my house.

  • What do you use to do all of your Graphic design work?

That is a VERY open ended question. The shorter answer is my brain, my experience, my education to produce what I envisioned or planned through the use of mainly the Adobe Creative suite. However, pen/pencil and paper for sketching and conceptualizing are still used quite a bit as well.

  • How much do you pay for the softwares you use?

I pay nothing. The company I work with pays for the Adobe CC license and any font licensing, stock photography subscriptions.licensing, etc.

  • What Software do you use the most?

Adobe InDesign mainly, followed by PhotoShop and Illustrator. But I also use Adobe Premiere, Adobe Animate and WordPress fairly regularly. Along with occasionally (thankfully) using Microsoft PowerPoint.

  • How much do you charge for each design?

I don’t. I used to do freelance more than a decade ago, but no longer do. I will occasionally help friends with MINOR projects (less than an hour’s worth of work), but I don’t charge them as long as it is infrequent.

  • What type of Graphic design do you do?

Predominantly print and web design, with a smattering of occasional small animations and video.

  • Do you think this job will still be a job in the future?

Absolutely, it’s just a job that changes often. There are skills and software that were used when I began that are no longer used, but it is just the nature of the beast.

  • Have you ever wanted to quit and do something else?

Hmm. Realistically, no.

  • What is your personal goal (if you have one) for this job?

Personal goal? I suppose a personal goal is to always work ethically and efficiently. Ensuring that the work I produce is on target and within budget.

  • How often do you have clients?

Being an in-house designer I deal with internal clients daily.

  • How many projects do you work on at any given time? Is there a limit on how many you allow yourself to work on?

It’s hard to answer this with a hard and fast number. There are times where I’ve technically worked on probably a dozen or more projects a day, but those projects were smaller and less time consuming. But I do put limits or at least let my boss know when I may be asked to do more than I am able to complete within a timeframe. Thankfully he understands that. But I don’t have to push back very often.

  • Do you have any struggles you face while working?

Sure. Micro managing. Clients not understanding how things might work. Difficulties with vendors at times, or even dealing with difficulties vendors might be facing such as sourcing paper during the pandemic for example.

  • What happens if a client doesn’t like the work you made for them?

At least in my current role that doesn’t happen often. It depends on what they don’t like. Design isn’t about likes and dislikes, it’s about what works for the task or situation. Being inhouse I have had clients had issues with colors or fonts, but those are dictated by our brand standards. So in that case they may not like it, but they don’t have a say in the matter. Usually if a client is unhappy, it is because of unclear communication before working on the job or a significant change in the scope or direction of the job. In those cases it is a lesson learned and I make adjustments and move on to the next job.

  • What is the most someone has paid for your work?

Being in-house I am salaried. I don’t get paid per project.

  • Do you have a piece of work you are super proud of?

Super proud of? I do have work that I am proud of, which I’ve used in my portfolio. But while there are quite a few pieces of work I am generally proud of and happy with, I don’t have any “dream job” pieces.

  • Do you typically work by yourself or with other graphic designers?

Currently I pretty much work by myself. In the past I have been on teams with other designers. I work well by myself, but I did work with a team of 3 other designers where we all were really good about working off of each other, brainstorming and providing valuable critique which I think is always important.

  • Any tips for someone starting Graphic design?

Study. Ha. That may be obvious, but what I generally mean is study the world around you and try to understand how things work and why they work. Not just pieces that are rally unique, but even day to day things that you may not really look at or think about, but when you do focus on them, you realize how well done they are because of how effortlessly they are designed.

Sketch. A lot. Have notebooks, or even loose paper and pencils and pens. The computer is a tool, but sketching and drawing helps you to problem solve and think through designing to solve the problem versus just designing to “look pretty”.

Bee thick skinned. Feedback can be brutal, what others say about your work can “hurt”. But take critique for what it is worth which is to try to help you work better.

Do not create art for yourself. You are seldom the target of your design. And even if you are the target for your design, think about the larger group that you are part of that is the target. Design is not about art for art’s sake. It is about communicating a message, idea or concept to generally influence the audience to do something (whether that is tangible such as buying something or intangible such as thinking differently or thinking about something they may not have thought about.)

Keep learning. The design field is ever growing. If you stay stagnant, your opportunities grow stagnant. When I began internet was in its infancy, there was no social media, etc. But I have adapted and learned in order to stay current and relevant.

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You’ve asked some good questions. :grinning:

— Why did you choose to become a Graphic Designer?

My university major was physics before switching to fine art. After about a year, I realized making a living as an artist was nearly impossible, so I switched again to the closest field in the program where making a good living was doable — graphic design.

— What is one thing you like about your job?

Creativity and improving what preceded my involvement.

— What is one thing you dislike about your job?

Clients who micromanage and interfere with me doing the job they hired me to do

— What is the working condition of your job?

Mostly sitting in a studio in front of a computer.

— What do you use to do all of your Graphic design work?

A combination of my education and experience.

— How much do you pay for the softwares you use?

It probably averages out to around $80 per month.

— What Software do you use the most?

Most the Adobe Creative Suite

— How much do you charge for each design?

That’s totally dependent on the project, who it’s for, and how much time it will take.

— What type of Graphic design do you do?

I’m probably a generalist — everything from magazines to books to websites to corporate branding to designing typefaces.

— Do you think this job will still be a job in the future?

Yes, but it’s changing rapidly.

— Have you ever wanted to quit and do something else?

No.

— What is your personal goal (if you have one) for this job?

To do the best work I can possibly do. That sounds a bit corny, but that really is my motivation.

— How often do you have clients?

Always

— How many projects do you work on at any given time? Is there a limit on how many you allow yourself to work on?

I don’t like to divide up my days with multiple projects. I don’t believe in multi-tasking, so I only work on one task at a time. Even so, I might have several projects I need to complete, so when there are breaks, I switch to another project.

— Do you have any struggles you face while working?

Boredom sometimes when clients create obstacles that keep me from doing the job properly. When that happens, everything kicks into autopilot and simply getting it done becomes the priority, which is, as I said, boring.

— What happens if a client doesn’t like the work you made for them?

I want my clients to like my work. However, they’ve hired me to solve their design problems, so it’s often up to me to convince them that what they like isn’t necessarily what they need.

— What is the most someone has paid for your work?

Most of my career has been spent working on salary for various companies. It’s probably best not to publicly discuss how much I’ve made on various freelance projects.

— Do you have a piece of work you are super proud of?

Proud isn’t the right word. Satisfied or pleased are better descriptions of how I feel about some of my best work. Conversely, there are a few things where I’ve been displeased and unsatisfied with what I’ve done.

— Do you typically work by yourself or with other graphic designers?

I’ve been working for myself and my clients for the past couple of years. Before that, I spent most of my time for many years managing teams of designers, writers, editors, web designers, outreach specialists, videographers, social media specialists, and similar positions. I miss working on teams. I’ve always liked it much better than working solo.

— Any tips for someone starting Graphic design?

It’s a difficult field to break into and make a good living, but it’s possible if one works hard, gets the right education, and has some raw talent to build upon. If you’re not entirely committed to it, it’s probably better to pick another field where the competition isn’t as steep, and the beginning pay is better.

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Awesome thank ya’ll so much! I will def use this information for my presentation!
Again Thank you!