Serious Design Talk.
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- atlasundead
So, for those of you lucky enough to do your work for a living what point in your life and what job were you working on when you realized you no longer had to work your other job?
i hope that was'nt too serious.
- usrper0
huh
- digdre0
real designers don't have another job, do they?
- brandelec0
i was a cook for a while until i landed an internship years back
fuck you martin you can keeps you cheezburgers
- OSFA0
pffft, I got my first wacom when I was 6
- e-pill0
i am at the high point in my career and i have decided to take a side job for recreation and to give me a chance to network more and just meet more people. im giving up my sundays for this gig and its something i never done before. so im excited for it. everyone around me thinks im a nut to take it but like i said its for fun...
hope that helps..
-e
- what is itdigdre
- sunday is ladies' night?brandelec
- im going to work retail in g-star raw stores. its my favourite brand of product.e-pill
- eeshgramme
- i never worked retail ever so for me its rather exciting. i know how that sounds but it is for me.e-pill
- whoa i work above a g-star raw store.iamlo
- where?e-pill
- was hoping e-pill would say "working the pits at drag races"mg33
- MikeJ0
;)
- anxiousarms0
i'm still in the place where i'm trying to collect enough clients to do just that.
i'd love to stop going from agency to agency on unfamiliar machines in unfamiliar offices with unfamiliar people and work just on my own.
is that what you mean?
- yesatlasundead
- yea, it takes awhile. OR, one REALLLLLLLY great project.anxiousarms
- ukit0
lucky enough to do your work for a living=have job as designer?
- Ranger0
Punctuation is so last millennium.
- complaining about spelling and grammar are so butt fucking.anxiousarms
- You feel like you've been BF'd when someone corrects your language?TransitBroadcast
- Probably a bad experience in his school days, best not push the point.Ranger
- pylon0
Sounds like you're trying to figure out when to break from *day-jobs* into being a full-time freelancer and/or having your own studio?
- digdre0
one day, I want to work somewhere, quit there, start in a bigger place and become art/creative director.
Then maybe, open up something on my ownbut at this point It seems like that is not going to happen.
- It can happen.
But it will take time.pylon - lots of time.anxiousarms
- Just remember, where ever you work, you are working for yourself. Bust ass and keep getting better.blaw
- +10 to blaw's note.pylon
- i'll put that in my notebook tomorrow.digdre
- It can happen.
- blaw0
I worked two jobs, the second part-time as a designer. When that place hired me full-time, I quit the other. Worked a bunch of those until I decided to go independent. Worked that until I decided to open an office and hire staff. Now I fret about things like payroll and taxes. Wait, what was the question again?
- are you still building furniture?nearestexit
- Yes, sir. Though my shop time has been focused the woodwork around my house. Much less sexy, but still fun.blaw
- bigbaby530
I think when you're pulling in more cheese that your "other job" then you can afford to quit the "other job"
- Jnr_Madison0
I used to work for the government but I can't talk about it.
- ..because it was very boring.Jnr_Madison
- was that with jaline? ;-)alicetheblue
- yawning as I type thishallelujah
- TheBlueOne0
fuck you martin you can keeps you cheezburgers
- Grotesque0
First I was a typograph
- TransitBroadcast0
I've worked in it long enough to know that it's still work... that being said, I still love my job, so wait, am I contradicting myself?
- SkyPoo0
I went from full time to freelance, then back to full time, then freelance again, then set up a small agency (such a grand word for two people knocking out graphic design) then I went sole trader and then I became a ltd company.
I am amazed at how many hours of your life some of you put into having a full time job and then trying to operate freelance business on the side. I have never done that. I tried it once and really hated not having any time away from working.
I sometimes think that what I do now to make a living now is nothing more than what some of you would consider to be sideline/freelance work. But I make it pay and I do okay.
I hope you all make lots of good money for giving away all of your freedom.
- emmaopeel0
I worked for small shops/agencies until the point that I realized I couldn't stop dreaming about work and that the bureaucracy of the office was causing me more stress than the actual projects.
I had saved up a good amount of money (too busy to spend it, and thankful for that... I needed a cushion of time) so I decided to quit, take a month off, finish off a few personal projects that I was so frustrated with not getting to, and then started wooing clients.
About three months in, a dear friend joined me, and we have two big clients (we anticipated this, part of the reason both of us felt comfortable in not looking for full-time engagements) that keep us happy, and leave us enough time to take on smaller projects and find some more...
In all honesty, I think once your switch has flipped, you know it. The key is to have all the elements ready for when that happens.
- gramme0
I am following the narrow path of Rand.
In all seriousness, I want very much to run my own design practice some day. Not sure if I would want to work alone or hire one or two others. I do know it would be small, I have no desire to work at or own a large studio. I've even talked it over with my wife. She has a good business sense and is an excellent administrator. She would basically be my office manager. At first I'd most likely create a studio space in or adjacent to our house, but eventually I know I'll prolly want a space away from home to keep a clear separation between work and family.
I've got 5+ years of experience post-college working for agencies & studios. I figure within the next couple years, make a move for a more senior position in a slightly larger shop where there's room to move up to design director. I could get a senior position now, but want to flesh out the folio a bit more at my current gig. I figure maybe 3–5 years after that, open my own design practice. Doing all this by age 37 would be awesome, but who knows what God has in store.
- get in at a smaller place as design director and learn how to run a biz. much more freedom. playing with someone else's money.johndiggity
- else's money.johndiggity
- Gramme, I would work with you in a heartbeat. We live in the same city, you know.duckofrubber